The pandemic presented a lot of unique challenges for the Social Committee. In-person socializing, networking and, at times, commiserating with our peers is the foundation of the success of the Chapter’s social events. The pandemic forced us to revitalize our approach and come up with innovative ideas that would still draw in membership in light of the missing “it” factors that go along with our social events. I believe we have risen to the occasion by hosting a variety of fun and interactive virtual events.

My first challenge as incoming Social Chair was hosting the 2020 Holiday Social. It was no small task figuring out how to host a virtual Holiday Social that stood up to our previous in-person Holiday Socials. The pandemic caused a lot of local businesses to suffer financially. I wanted to figure out a way to host a fun and interactive virtual event while supporting a local business. We reached out to Casa Juarez and they were able to put together an interactive an engaging Tequila Tasting/Food Pairing. It was one of our most well attended Holiday Socials to date, with 105 people attending.

Our second, larger scale, social event was our Annual Dinner. I took the same approach to this event as with our Holiday Social. We partnered with The Wine & Cheese Place and local mixologist Chris LaBeau with the Manhattan Cocktail Project for a virtual Annual Dinner/Mixology Class. After taking care of the requisite Annual Dinner business, we were able to enjoy an informative class while making two delicious cocktails and yummy snacks from The Wine & Cheese Place.

The Social Committee would love to hear your feedback. As people are getting vaccinated and St. Louis County and City are loosening restrictions, we may be able to slowly start to host in person social events.

The ACC-St. Louis Chapter launched its first Litigation Practice Area Network event on April 21 with a virtual CLE presentation from PAN sponsor Swanson, Martin & Bell, LLP entitled, “Post-Pandemic Litigation: What to Expect.” The expert panel of litigators provided direct insight into the reopening of local courts and identified novel types of litigation arising out of the pandemic. They also provided practical and specific litigation tools and strategies. For example, they suggested using a Motion in Limine to set forth etiquette rules for Zoom hearings or trials to prevent parties from “staging” their backgrounds to influence the court or jury, and they offered unique arguments for how statutes and executive orders could impact even non COVID-19 related litigation. The Program Materials, along with all other CLE materials, can be found here.

Practice Area Networks are a unique feature of both the National organization and the ACC-St. Louis Chapter. These networks provide convenient ways to interact and are open to all members. The St. Louis Chapter also has an Employment & Labor PAN and the National organization has twenty-one different PANs. You can view the National PANS here.