IMLA

Ethics Webinar
2025-12-09 13:00 - 14:00 (America/New_York)
Expectations for Attorney-Client Relationships: Establishing Clear, Strong & Effective Commitments
When representing local governments, the Client is the entity (as an organization). Elected officers, appointed officials, and staff members may be representatives of the Client. While the Attorney may work closely with those individuals, they typically are not the Clients. Nonetheless, for purposes of this document, representatives of the local government are referred to as “Clients.” Although each arrangement will vary, there are certain essential elements of successful Attorney-Client relationships that tend to provide a solid foundation. This presentation outlines recommended mutual expectations between Attorneys and the local government Clients they serve. Its purpose is to promote professionalism, accountability, and effective collaboration in the delivery of municipal legal services. The presentation references the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct, specifically 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.6, 1.7, 1.8, 1.13, 2.1, 4.1, and 8.4.
Speaker: Alan Bojorquez & Kuruvilla Oommen

Immigration Webinar
2025-12-11 13:00 - 14:00
Federal Immigration Policy Developments: Legal Implications for Local Governments
This webinar will provide an overview of recent federal immigration policy changes and their potential legal and operational impacts on local governments. Topics will include shifts in federal enforcement priorities, emerging legal challenges affecting municipal policy, and the City of Denver’s approach to policy in the shifting federal legal landscape. Attendees will gain insight into how evolving federal directives may influence local ordinances, law enforcement practices, and public service delivery.
Speaker: Atim Otii & Councilwoman Jamie Torres

Mental Health/Substance Abuse Webinar
2025-12-18 13:00 - 14:00
Staying Safe and Sound for the Holidays – Strategies for the Legal Professional
Holidays are often associated with joy and excitement, but they can be stressful, overwhelming, and challenging as well. For some, holidays bring up feelings of grief, isolation, disappointment, and sadness. The holiday season can quickly bring increased stress and anxiety to members of the legal profession whose lives are already filled to the brim with those emotions.
With the alarming prevalence of substance use and mental health disorders in the legal profession, it is imperative that we are all armed with the knowledge and insight of how to approach someone who may be struggling. Certain approaches yield greater results than others. The “Intervention” methods shown on television, while often compelling, don’t typically produce excellent results – especially with members of the legal profession.
As lawyers, we all know that language is often the key to success. Why should we expect it to differ in the life and death struggle to help someone who suffers from alcohol or substance misuse or a mental health disorder? With the alarming number of suicides in our profession, it tells us that people would rather die than ask for help – and this must stop.
Mr. Quinn will discuss:

Recognize that one in three legal professionals will struggle with substance use and/or a mental health disorder at some point in their legal careers.
Spot the signs of impairment and learn the “Motivational Interventions” approach that yields results and saves lives.
The confidential, free, safe, and supportive services for lawyers, judges, their family members and law students that are available through Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers.
The barriers that exist that prevent lawyers and judges from asking for help with an alcohol/substance misuse or mental health disorder.
Identify the parameters of Rule of Professional Conduct 8.3 (c) – and the safe harbor that it provides to protect attorneys working with an approved lawyers assistance program or who contact a LAP on behalf of an attorney or judge who is struggling.

Speaker: Brian S. Quinn

Employment Law Webinar
2026-01-06 13:00 - 14:00
The Sea-Change in Labor and Employment Law
In just the first year of President Trump’s second term, he has totally refashioned the labor and employment law landscape not only from that of his predecessor, but also from that of prior Republican administrations. This session will highlight the changes that have occurred as well as those that are on the horizon. Topics to be discussed include:

Who are the new heads of the EEOC and the Department of Labor, and what is their agenda
The EEOC’s initiatives to root out unlawful DEI programs and reverse discrimination and to further the religious rights of employees
Questions as to the extent of protections for transgender employees
DOL’s agenda to lessen Biden-era requirements
Continued impact of Supreme Court’s Muldrow decision and likely impact of Court’s decision on making it easier to pursue reverse discrimination claims
Countering the discriminatory impact of AI

Speaker: Jonathan Mook

Telecom Webinar
2026-01-13 13:00 - 14:00
Robocall Me Maybe? The Remix: How to Comply with Federal Law when your City Makes Automated Calls and Texts
As cities seek to streamline processes and efficiently utilize funds in continually decreasing budgets, automated phone calls and text messages (“robocalls” and “robotexts”) may appear to be a cost‐effective option to communicate with citizens. This presentation discusses the applicable federal laws and regulations that govern automated calls, including the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) Broadnet Order on Reconsideration in 2020, the FCC’s rule updates in 2023, and recent court cases. Additionally, this presentation describes practical considerations and best practices for cities to ensure compliance with federal law when contacting citizens by automated calls and texts, including those related to telephone town halls, municipal court cases, and water utility service.
Speaker: David Johnson

ADA Website Compliance Webinar – Free Live For IMLA Members
2026-01-15 13:00 - 14:00
New Federal Rule for Digital Accessibility
CLE available to Kitchen Sink Subscribers and in some cases to others but fees may apply.
Learn more about the fast-approaching, digital compliance requirement for all government entities and special districts. How will this impact your cities websites, online documents, and mobile applications? Unwrap the minimum accessibility standard, what it means to cities, common pitfalls, and helpful resources for accomplishing compliance.
Speaker: Zack Looney, Megan Griffith & Kara Coustry

Jail Administration Webinar
2026-01-22 13:00 - 14:30
Inmate Litigation – Techniques for Using the Prison Litigation Reform Act
In this presentation, we will cover the background of the PLRA, and explore multiple ways that the PLRA can be used to successfully defend inmate litigation. We will look at procedural hurdles, limitations on recovery, and the critical importance of having a well-crafted inmate grievance process.
Speaker: Elmer Dickens

Environmental Law/Compliance Webinar
2026-01-27 13:00 - 14:00
Navigating NEPA and ESA Compliance in a Changing Landscape
This panel of environmental law experts will unpack recent and proposed changes to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Endangered Species Act (ESA). With a new focus on streamlining and flexibility, Federal reforms are reshaping timelines, processes, and standards. Municipal agencies face new challenges and opportunities in land use planning, infrastructure development, water supply planning, and conservation.
Speaker: Gary M. Gold & Joseph Manalili

Election Law Webinar
2026-01-29 13:00 - 14:00
Election Law 2026: Legal Challenges and Readiness for the Midterms
The 2026 mid-term elections are fast approaching amidst a continually changing environment of Presidential Executive Orders, litigation affecting voting rights and procedures, and concerns regarding the security of the nation’s elections infrastructure. While elections are generally the purview of states and localities, we will discuss the status of legal issues that may affect how elections are conducted around the country, as well as strategies for being prepared for challenges to election administration and the integrity of election results.
Speaker: Mike Haas

Environmental Law/PFAS Webinar – Free Live For IMLA Members
2026-02-03 13:00 - 14:00
Products Liability Law, PFAS, & Other Contaminants: Legal Strategies to Help Close Funding Gaps
CLE available to Kitchen Sink Subscribers and in some cases to others but fees may apply.
This webinar will provide an overview of how legal action against polluting chemical manufacturers is providing significant funding for municipalities nationwide. Ken Sansone will first provide a brief update on state and federal standards for contaminants in drinking water, wastewater, and biosolids, including the impact of recent changes to federal PFAS policy, with a focus on the anticipated challenges and costs for local governments. Additional contaminants addressed may include 1,4-dioxane, 1,2,3-TCP, perchlorate, and others pending legislation at the time of the webinar. Then, Ken will discuss how municipalities affected by contamination have used products liability law to pursue legal action against the manufacturers responsible for pollution, referencing case studies from cities that recovered funds in 2025 through the PFAS drinking water settlements. Ken will explain the full legal process used in these cases, from initial detection of contaminants to the receipt of compensation. Attendees will gain a greater understanding of how legal strategies may help local governments close funding gaps.
Speaker: Ken Sansone

ESA Law Webinar
2026-02-05 13:00 - 14:30
Emotional Support Animal and Compliance Webinar
Municipalities are facing more emotional support animal requests than ever, whether in a Public Housing Agency, Section 8 and other voucher housing, animal welfare reports, or removal/ euthanasia of dangerous animals.
An estimated 60-90% of Emotional Support Animal and Psychiatric Service Dog letters for housing accommodation under Section 504 and the Fair Housing Act are invalid or fraudulent. HUD’s 2013 Assistance Animal guidelines provided a map for international website owners and unethical medical practitioners to create “internet letter mills” that immediately send Emotional Support Animal Letters after a credit card entry, sometimes after a perfunctory phone or video call. There is no medical examination with personal knowledge nor ongoing medical therapy requiring an assistance animal. To combat pervasive fraud, HUD issued 2020 guidelines and asked the FTC to investigate this internet disability fraud, but the FTC declined to do so. The result was more proliferation of fraudulent ESA disability letters.
After the Supreme Court case of Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo (2024), courts began to interpret FHA statutes and codes instead of precedents based on HUD guidelines or other disability laws. In September 2025, HUD withdrew its guidelines. (Note: HUD still has not updated its website to reflect the current state of the law.)
The risks of accommodating a fraudulent request may be just as high as denying a valid request. Requests must be considered on a case-by-case basis, and use of a third-party internet verification service may violate the Fair Housing Act. Thus, municipalities should remain the primary arbiters of ESA letter validity and attorneys should update their animal policies and training.
Federal assistance animal accommodation is a creation of law that stems from ethical medical clinicians who examine humans and treat with therapy using an animal. A request also requires an examination of the animal by a person competent to document that a specific animal alleviates a substantially limited major life activity (caring for one’s self, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, working, etc.).
Speakers: Teresa Martinez, Zenithson Ng & Joel Touchet

Federal Funding Webinar
2026-02-18 13:00 - 14:00
Federal Funding: Navigating a Changing Landscape, Winter Update
Local governments across the United States are working to understand the implications of recent Executive Orders and other federal agency actions related to federal funding. This panel will summarize ongoing litigation, federal agency directives, and best practices for localities navigating this changing landscape.
Speaker: Michael Gaffney & Ana Schwab

Wellness/Ethics Webinar
2026-03-03 13:00 - 14:30
The Care & Upkeep of the Government Lawyer: Wellness at Work
Join Zee Bishop, senior counsel for the Unified Government of Wyandotte County/Kansas City, Kansas, as she shares wisdom from her time running her office’s wellness program to help listeners create a better balance between their careers and their own well-being. Zee will also cover where ethics and wellness overlap and address model rules 1.1, 1.3, 1.4, 1.15, 5.1, 5.3, and conflict rules in this presentation.
Speaker: Zee Bishop

Public Comment Webinar
2026-03-04 13:00 - 14:00
Public Comment: The Good, The Bad, And The Legal
As Leslie Knope (Amy Poehler) from the show Parks and Rec humorously stated: “What I hear when I’m being yelled at [during a public meeting] is people caring loudly at me.” This presentation will explore the benefits of public comment, some of the issues commonly associated with public comment, and what you can do to address those issues.
Speaker: Todd Sheeran & Neal Falgoust

First Amendment Webinar
2026-03-11 13:00 - 14:00
Audit or Ambush? Legal Strategies for Navigating First Amendment Audits
Audit or Ambush? Legal Strategies for Navigating First Amendment Audits examines the growing trend of individuals who record government facilities and public officials under the guise of “First Amendment audits” and the legal, operational, and reputational risks these encounters present for municipalities. Designed for municipal attorneys and government counsel, this webinar provides a practical legal framework for assessing First Amendment protections, time-place-and-manner restrictions, and common constitutional pitfalls that lead to litigation. Participants will gain actionable strategies for advising municipal clients, coordinating with law enforcement and frontline staff, and reducing exposure while preserving constitutional rights in an era of constant recording and online scrutiny.
Speaker: Eric Daigle
