Good Morning and Happy Friday!

Honestly, I don’t have anything new to announce, so here’s a reminder about a few items and upcoming events.

We have a new Listserv to discuss Uber and other rideshare industry legislation.  It's the “NATLE Uber Rideshare Situation Room”.  Email address is natle_rideshare@lists.trialsmith.com.  Twenty participants, so far, so let me know if you and/or your government relations folks ought to be added.

Once you register for the NATLE Annual Meeting in Chicago (July 25-27), you must also register through AAJ.  This step is free and they produce the name badges that provide entry to all AAJ events like the Opening Reception and New Lawyers Division Party!  Once you complete the NATLE registration process, you will automatically be added to a NATLE-member only (no vendors), listserv for Chicago registrants to help with any pre-con (and during-con!) arrangements. From airport rides to morning runs and dinner in between—connect and make it happen!  Both registration confirmations contain a link to the hotel reservation site.  Don’t wait on reserving a room – NATLE does not have a secret cache of rooms for fence-sitters!

Our riverboat tour along the Chicago River will sail on Saturday, July 25th (4:30p to 7:30p).  Our friends at Supio are sponsoring the activity to reduce any ticket cost (~$25-$30).  The dock is a 2-minute walk from the Hyatt and we’ll have the whole boat so families and guests are welcome to join us for this guided and catered private cruise.  We’ll go rain or shine as we explore amazing architecture, skyline vistas, and listen to stories about why no other city is like Chicago.  This interactive experience includes the “ugly buildings” (like the House of Blues – AAJ Opening Reception!) and the City’s underbelly.  Reserve your spot(s)!  (After the cruise, the COP is inviting EDs to attend their dinner – details to come.)

The program in Chicago includes a mini leadership academy, “Lead Well, Live Well…The New Playbook for High-Impact Leadership and Staff Teams”, led by leadership consultant, Jes Averhart.  This interactive, high-energy experience is designed specifically for trial lawyer associations and draws from leadership work currently implemented across multiple TLAs, including California, Maryland, North Carolina and South Carolina.

We’ll also host Jes in November at our in-person Leadership Symposium: Built for the Full Leadership Team, a full-day program on Friday, Nov 6.  This is the day before the NATLE Governmental Affairs Conference in Tucson, November 7-9.  Leadership consultant, Jes Averhart, has designed this program specifically to bring together staff executives and volunteer leaders to build a shared direction, strengthen decision-making, and accelerate results.  Help us spread the word by notifying your president and/or president-elect.  The Westin La Paloma is expanding our room block to include Thursday night, Nov 5.  (If your volunteer leadership can only attend the Symposium and not the GAC, there will be a Symposium-only registration option.)  Help us right-size the room block and let us know how many rooms your team will need for Thursday night, Nov 5. 

Speaking of the GAC, a Planning Committee is in the early stages of forming, so let Alison Dodge or me know if you area interested in helping shape the program and topics.

That’s the NATLE Weekly Wrap.  Have a great weekend!

P.S. In case you’re still here…I met a hound dog this week and I don’t mean the four-legged kind.  No, this gent wanted to buy an item I had listed on FB Marketplace.  I never give out my home address unless it’s something too big for my vehicle, and then I ask my 6’4”, 400-pound neighbor to be my very imposing husband for the meet-up.  This time, though, we met in the parking lot of a nearby Verizon store.  First impression of this grizzled 80-year-old was, true Vermonter Grampa.  The exchange was perfect until the over-enthusiastic offers came to send photos of the finished project (he bought replacement wood slats for a park bench).  That was fine, but my skeeze-radar started buzzing when he said he’d invite me over for a BBQ to see it in person.  After running an errand, I came home to delete the listing as well as the FB text thread, thinking that would sever the connection.  Nope, within an hour, he wrote to ask me out for coffee.  I haven’t mastered the turn-down, so in a flop-sweat, I asked ChatGPT how to politely tell someone I’m not interested.  I followed its advice to be direct, said No, thank you, and blocked him.  Maybe what got his hopes up was when he tried to pay $125 for the item I had listed for $120 and I wouldn’t take the extra.  Honesty…who knew it is an aphrodisiac?!