2026 conference schedule
Monday, March 30
9:30 - 10 a.m.
Check-in
10 - 10:15 a.m.
Welcome and introductory remarks
Speaker: Michael Arkfeld
10:15 - 11:15 a.m.
Keynote | Role of AI in the Courts with Judges
Speaker: Judge Schlegel
Recent advances in editing software and generative AI have made it simpler than ever to produce highly convincing fake images, videos, and audio. Unfortunately, these same technologies can be exploited by malicious actors to fabricate multimedia evidence, steal identities, commit fraud, and spread disinformation. In this talk, I will survey these emerging threats and highlight ongoing research in multimedia forensics aimed at developing AI-driven systems to detect manipulated and AI-generated media. I will also present several of my lab’s forensic systems designed to identify edited images, uncover AI-synthesized content, and expose deepfakes, ultimately helping to safeguard the integrity of digital information.
11:30 a.m. - 12:25 p.m.
From Boolean to Bots: The Evolution of Legal Practice and the AI-Powered Future
Speakers: Niloy Ray, Whitney Stefko, Chad Roberts, Sean Harrington, Devan Schroeder
For decades, discovery was about finding the “needle in the haystack.” Today, AI isn’t just finding the needle—it’s explaining why it’s there and what it means for your strategy. In this session, we trace the trajectory of AI from its roots in basic predictive coding to the current frontier of generative and agentic systems.
Each panelist will provide a 5-minute deep dive into their specific AI implementations, sharing real-world successes and “lessons learned” from the front lines. We will conclude with a panel Q&A to discuss the road ahead for legal practitioners, including issues relating to AI governance and regulation, ethical and practical issues associated with AI agents, and the impacts of AI on legal employment.
12:30 - 1:30 p.m.
Lunch
1:30 - 2:25 p.m.
What to Use and When: eDiscovery Decision-Making in an Age of Choice
Speakers: Robert Hoff, Tom Morrissey, Michelle Newcomer, Jeff Johnson, Caitlin Ward
Gen AI, TAR, search terms and combinations of these approaches have shifted the eDiscovery challenge from what’s possible to what makes sense in practice and when. This panel examines how legal teams navigate that complexity, drawing on perspectives from across the discovery ecosystem. Join for a discussion on how teams balance speed, cost, and defensibility in light of case-specific data characteristics, while highlighting key considerations, tradeoffs and process safeguards when selecting discovery approaches.
2:30 - 3:25 p.m.
Custodial Interviews: Navigating Collaboration Tools and Emerging Data
Speakers: Brian Morrison, Amy Sellars, Elizabeth Carrera, Suzanne Clark, Richy Abraham
Modern data ecosystems and collaboration tools have transformed data identification and custodial interviews. As traditional playbooks fail to keep pace, this session offers practical strategies for identifying dispersed data sources, preparing for and conducting effective interviews and leveraging that intelligence to build a defensible, modern litigation and discovery strategy. We’ll also explore the impact of AI tooling, both as data sources and for optimizing interviews.
3:30 - 3:45 p.m.
Networking break
3:45 - 4:40 p.m.
Beyond Document Review: Innovative AI Applications in Legal Practice
Speakers: Tessa Jacob, Rose Jones, Steve Teti, Judge Braswell, Ruth Hauswirth
Join our panel to discover how AI is transforming legal work beyond document review. Panelists will discuss practical uses of AI: preparing for depositions and evidentiary hearings, drafting briefs and motions, responding to opposing counsel, and drafting expert affidavits. Learn strategies to make AI-generated documents more accurate and professional. We’ll even show you how AI can assist with quick rule refreshers—without risk of hallucinations. Our session offers step-by-step instructions in using real AI tools to enhance efficiency in your daily practice, as well as considerations to best protect you and your clients.
4:45 - 6:15 p.m.
Conference reception
Reception sponsored by Nextpoint and hosted at The Vig,
located at 606 N 4th Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85003.
Tuesday, March 31
8 - 8:30 a.m.
Check-in
8:30 - 9:25 a.m.
Judicial Panel: eDiscovery Lessons from New York Times v. OpenAI
Speakers: Maria Salacuse, Judge Schlegel, Judge Xavier Rodriguez, Judge Maritza Braswell, Judge Sam Thumma
This judicial panel will address the eDiscovery issues arising from The New York Times Company v. OpenAI, a case presenting novel discovery questions at the intersection of copyright law and generative artificial intelligence. From the bench’s perspective, the panel will discuss how courts apply existing eDiscovery principles to disputes involving large-scale data ingestion, model training, retention of AI training data and technically complex systems. Topics include preservation obligations for non-static data, proportionality in the face of massive datasets, possession, custody, or control of training data and third-party sources, the feasibility of reconstruction, and the exercise of remedial discretion and sanctions under Rule 37(e).
9:30 - 10:25 a.m.
Privacy in a Surveilled Society
Speakers: Anne Davis, David Rudolph, Ross Gotler, Kate Baxter Kauf, Jerry Bui
This panel will explore privacy issues arising from the range of technologies deployed by commercial, consumer-facing and government entities. The panelists will provide an overview of privacy laws, regulations and claims that may be asserted; vehicles for surveillance and data collection and contrasting perspectives on whether/how real-time advertising, web and app management tools, IOT devices, and data broker activities may violate individual privacy rights; contrasting privacy regulations globally, and e-Discovery issues that arise when engaging in discovery on privacy claims.
10:30 - 10:45 a.m.
Networking break
10:45 - 11:40 a.m.
Trust but Verify: Ethical AI Use for Attorneys and Judges
Speakers: Mark Sidoti, Sean Cheadle, Anne Davis, Judge Sam Thumma
This panel will explore the rapidly evolving ethical landscape surrounding the use of AI in legal practice and the courts. Our distinguished speakers will discuss relevant rules of professional conduct—including competence, technological proficiency, and confidentiality —alongside recent ABA and NCSC guidance and notable “hallucination” cases that have resulted in sanctions and cautionary tales for practitioners. The discussion will also touch on state and local court rules and standing orders, the latest insights from the ABA Task Force on Law & AI and the developing ethical framework for judges and judicial officers as they encounter AI-generated content in filings and court operations.
11:45 a.m. - 12:45 p.m.
AI Deep Fakes: Is Seeing Believing?
Speakers: Joy Woller, Judge Xavier Rodriguez, Clarissa Certa, John Christiansen
Generative Al is rapidly reshaping the evidentiary landscape. From hyper-realistic deepfake videos and cloned voices to Al-generated images and even Al prompts now at issue in litigation, courts are increasingly asked to evaluate digital materials that may be partially—or entirely—machine created. This panel will examine the expanding range of generative Al artifacts entering the courtroom, the state of GAI detection tools, and the critical evidentiary questions lawyers and judges need to be asking.
