IMLA

PFAS Webinar - Free Live For IMLA Members
2024-12-20 13:00 - 14:00 (America/New_York)
New PFAS Regulations and What’s Ahead
Sponsored by Stag Liuzza.
CLE available to Kitchen Sink Subscribers and in some cases to others but fees may apply.
This webinar offers a deep dive into the current regulatory framework governing PFAS, focusing on the impact of new EPA regulations for municipal water systems. Learn about the latest EPA mandates and what new regulatory issues may be ahead for public wastewater and other contaminated municipal properties.
Speaker: Michael G. Stag & Ashley M. Liuzza

Ordinance Drafting Webinar
2024-12-17 13:00 - 14:00
Ordinance Drafting for Local Government Attorneys
City attorneys draft many kinds of important documents for their client – from contracts, policies and procedures, resolutions, to ordinances. This session will review the most common, basic elements of municipal ordinances. We’ll take a look at best practices for ordinance titles, legislative findings, statutorily required provisions, common boilerplate provisions, and clear and concise legislative drafting. This session will also review some of the key sources of model ordinances and useful resources for tips on legislative drafting.
Speaker: Kyle Shephard

RLUIPA Webinar
2024-12-12 13:00 - 14:00
Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act
The presentation will focus on the nuts and bolts of RLUIPA, including its prohibition on substantial burden, unequal treatment, discrimination, unreasonably limiting or totally excluding religious exercise, the definition of religious exercise, the types of regulations covered by RLUIPA, and other topics. Mr. Sacks will discuss real cases examples and his experiences with RLUIPA cases. Participants will be invited to ask questions at the end.
Speaker: Noah Sacks

Affordable Housing Webinar – Free Live For IMLA Members
2024-12-10 13:00 - 14:00
Creating Affordable Housing: Madison’s Experience
CLE available to Kitchen Sink Subscribers and in some cases to others but fees may apply.
Creating affordable housing is a major challenge for municipalities everywhere. In addition to the politics, financing affordable housing deals requires combinations of lending programs and creative solutions to fill financing gaps. This presentation will discuss the problems in creating and financing affordable housing for families and students, and methods the City of Madison, Wisconsin has been using to solve these issues including tax incremental financing, the creation of an affordable housing fund, and permitting density in exchange for affordability.
Speaker: Kevin Ramakrishna

Ethics in Local Government Webinar
2024-12-06 13:00 - 14:00
When City Hall is a House Divided: Ethical Challenges
Municipal Lawyers typically represent local government organizations but sometimes have individual public officials as clients. Internal Investigations, Lawsuits, Grievances, Complaints, Code Enforcement, and Politics can create factions in city leadership and raise ethical tension for attorneys. The presentation will cover ABA Rules 1.2: Scope of Representation, 1.4: Communications, 1.6: Confidentiality, 1.7: Duty to Current Clients (Conflicts of Interest), 1.9: Duty to Former Clients, 1.10: Imputation of Conflicts of Interest, and 1.13: Organization as Client.
Speaker: Alan Bojorquez

Trial Procedure Webinar
2024-12-05 13:00 - 14:00
An Overview of Voir Dire in a Criminal Trial: Tips To Overcome Some of The Challenges a Prosecutor Faces
Prosecutors typically handle a large jury trial docket, with very little time to prepare for voir dire prior to trial. However, voir dire is one of the most important parts of a criminal trial. This presentation will focus on a general overview of the process of voir dire in a criminal trial. It may touch upon some processes that are specific to a particular state, but much of the overview and tips can apply across all jurisdictions.
Speaker: Robyn Katz

Ethics and AI for Local Government Webinar - Free Live
2024-12-04 13:00 - 14:00
Ethical Considerations for the Use of Gen AI in Municipal Practice
Sponsored by Thomson Reuters.
CLE available to Kitchen Sink Subscribers and in some cases to others but fees may apply.
Join us for a virtual CLE course exploring the ethical considerations of generative artificial intelligence (AI) in the practice of law. In this course, we will delve into the evolving role of AI in the legal landscape and explore practical applications for implementing AI responsibly. In addition, this engaging session will cover the following key areas:

Foundational understanding of Large Language Models (LLMs) and generative AI
Inherent risk within the use of generative AI
Understanding appropriate times to deploy AI, as well as situations where ethically, AI requires supervision or may not be the ideal tool
Considerations of the use of generative AI regarding the ABA Model Rules
Thomson Reuters’ approach to artificial intelligence in the legal landscape

Speaker: Christie Weidemann, Esq.

Police Advisors Working Group Call
2024-12-03 15:00 - 16:00, 2024-10-01 15:00 - 16:00, 2024-08-06 15:00 - 16:00
If you care to take part in this call, please email amorris@imla.org.

Evaluating Emotional Distress Webinar
2024-11-19 13:00 - 14:00
Quantifying the Unseen: Scientific Evaluation of Mental Anguish and Emotional Distress
In today’s complex legal landscape, accurately evaluating mental anguish and emotional distress is essential. This talk will delve into scientific methodologies for assessing emotional suffering, focusing on the Quality-Adjusted Life Years (QALY) metric. This approach, grounded in medical and behavioral science research, provides a robust, science-based framework that meets the rigorous Daubert standard for admissible evidence. Key topics include defining mental anguish, overcoming subjective evaluation challenges, and seamlessly integrating quantitative and qualitative data. Through compelling real-world examples and case studies, attendees will see these concepts in action. For lawyers, this approach translates to more precise, objective, and defensible evaluations of mental distress, ensuring fairer outcomes in court. By adopting QALY, legal professionals can argue for just compensation with greater authority and confidence. Join us to enhance your practice, impress judges and juries, and better serve your clients with cutting-edge, scientifically validated tools. If you would like to get post-training resources from the trainer Dr. Geb Tsipursky, go to https://tinyurl.com/daeevent
Speaker: Dr. Gleb Tsipursky

Small/Rural Communities Working Group Call
2024-11-18 14:00 - 15:00, 2024-09-16 14:00 - 15:00
If you care to take part in this call, please email cstorer@imla.org.

Cybersecurity Webinar – Free Live For IMLA Members
2024-11-14 13:00 - 14:00
Cybersecurity Essentials for City Attorneys: Protecting Your Municipality in the Digital Age
CLE available to Kitchen Sink Subscribers and in some cases to others but fees may apply.
Join us for an in-depth look at the cybersecurity landscape facing municipalities today. This webinar will break down complex concepts into actionable insights, covering everything from the basics of the “CIA Triad” to real-life case studies of cyber incidents in cities. Participants will gain a clear understanding of their role in mitigating cyber risks, including legal and ethical considerations, and practical steps to enhance their city’s cybersecurity posture.
Speaker: Ravinder Singh Arneja & Bryan Singh Arneja

Zoning Webinar – Free Live For IMLA Members
2024-11-12 13:00 - 14:00
Regulating Pickleball Noise: Legal Strategies to Avoid Controversy in City Hall and the Community
CLE available to Kitchen Sink Subscribers and in some cases to others but fees may apply.
Too often cities are becoming embroiled in raucous public meetings, adverse publicity, and lawsuits due to conflict between pickleball players and residential neighbors. We will review the rapid growth and genuine benefits of pickleball as a recreation for your city. We give a brief introduction to acoustic sciences and why this noise is different from tennis and genuinely annoying to the neighbors. The shortfalls in the typical noise enforcement ordinances are explained, as well as why pickleball noise is so difficult to quantify with a decibel meter. We will review litigation examples around the county as municipalities defend themselves from poor planning choices. We discuss the range of costly and difficult after-the-fact mitigation solutions such as noise barrier walls, limiting hours of play, and attempts to mandate quiet equipment. We review some of the zoning, planning and permitting ordinances adopted in recent years as cities learn to avoid a problem that is so difficult to correct once the mistake has been made.
Speaker: Charles Leahy, Rob Mastroianni & Kathleen Romito

Evidence Webinar
2024-11-07 13:00 - 14:00
FRE 702 Update and Sampling of Experienced Law Enforcement Expert Utilization Strategies
Challenges, limitations, and exclusions of law enforcement operations experts have been increasing. Some federal circuits have been increasing scrutiny of expert testimony admission. The Federal Rules of Evidence (FRE) Rule 702: Testimony by Expert Witnesses was updated on December 1, 2023. This program includes: (1) review of FRE 702, (2) common grounds for law enforcement expert limitation and exclusion, and (3) strategies identified and experienced over several decades to help optimize appropriate use of and neutralization of law enforcement operational experts.
Speaker: Michael Brave, M.S., Esq.

Legal Writing Webinar
2024-11-05 13:00 - 14:00
Drafting, Editing, and AI
This workshop gives you a chance to learn about the perils–and promise–of AI-assisted writing.
Speaker: Patrick Barry

LGLC Supreme Court Preview for Local Governments: 2024-2025 Term Webinar - This is not an IMLA Webinar
2024-10-31 14:00 - 15:00
Supreme Court Preview for Local Governments: 2024-2025 Term

This is NOT an IMLA webinar and CLE will not be offered.
Hosted by the Local Government Legal Center (LGLC), join legal experts in a discussion of the new Supreme Court term and what decisions local governments should watch. The Supreme Court will rule on several major cases this term, including issues related to:

The Clean Water Act
So-called “ghost guns”
Title VII Claims and “majority discrimination”
Fourth Amendment claims and the “Moment of Threat” doctrine
The Fair Labor Standards Act, and
ADA claims involving post-retirement health benefits

Several other cases on the Court’s docket may impact local governments’ finances and obligations under various federal statutes.
The LGLC is a coalition of national local government organizations formed in 2023 by the National Association of Counties (NACo), National League of Cities (NLC) and International Municipal Lawyers Association (IMLA) to provide education to local governments regarding the Supreme Court and its impact on local governments and local officials and to advocate for local government positions at the Supreme Court in appropriate cases. Visit the Local Government Legal Center to learn more.
Speakers: Amanda Karras, Meaghan VerGow & Aileen McGrath

Preemption Webinar – Free Live For IMLA Members
2024-10-29 13:00 - 14:00
Texas’ Super Preemption Legislation: The End of Home-Rule Authority in the State?
CLE available to Kitchen Sink Subscribers and in some cases to others but fees may apply.
In 2023, the Texas Legislature passed the Texas Regulatory Consistency Act, more commonly known as the super preemption bill, which purports to preempt municipalities and counties from regulating a broad range of conduct. This webinar will provide an overview of the law, discuss its legal and policy implications, and review the pending lawsuit challenging it on the ground that it violates the State constitution’s grant of home-rule authority.
Speaker: Mary Marrero

Public Property Webinar – Free Live For IMLA Members
2024-10-24 13:00 - 14:00
Removing Individuals from Public Property
CLE available to Kitchen Sink Subscribers and in some cases to others but fees may apply.
Municipalities often must deal with members of the public who disrupt meetings, harass employees, or even threaten to harm elected officials. In such instances, officials may seek to temporarily remove that person from public property or ban them from re-entering the property. This presentation will cover the legal considerations for municipalities when removing or banning individuals from public property, including First Amendment implications, content-neutral justifications for removal, the importance of providing due process, and policy recommendations. Special focus will be given to removing disruptive individuals from administrative facilities and nonpublic forums.
Speaker: Michael Koss & Kirk T. Ridgway

Warrantless Searches Webinar
2024-10-22 13:00 - 14:00
Exceptions to the Fourth Amendment’s Warrant Requirement: Searches in Businesses and Schools
The Fourth Amendment generally requires law enforcement officials to obtain a warrant supported by probable cause before entering or searching a person’s private property. The Supreme Court has carved exceptions to this rule to allow warrantless searches in certain contexts, including regulated businesses and schools. This presentation will discuss the evolving contours of the warrantless search doctrine and offer tips for government lawyers to keep their law enforcement clients on the correct side of the law.
Speaker: Brandon Moulard & Bennett Bryan

IMLA in Italy
2024-10-16 08:00 - 2024-10-20 17:00
IMLA in Italy
Lake Como, Italy
October 16-20, 2024
Click here to learn more about the program.

2024 IMLA 89th Annual Conference
2024-09-25 08:00 - 2024-09-29 12:00
2024 IMLA 89th Annual Conference
Orlando, FL: Wednesday, September 25 – Sunday, September 29, 2024
Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek
Click here to learn more about conferences.

Section 1983 Webinar
2024-08-27 13:00 - 14:00
Section 1983 Update: What You Need to Know in 2024
This presentation will provide a case law update on Section 1983 cases in the last year and what to expect in 2024. The presentation will also serve as an overview of Circuit cases covering hot-button issues in today’s legal landscape. From COVID-19 mandates to wrongful conviction, the Section 1983 Update will cover what municipal lawyers and lawyers who represent municipalities should know and expect when facing Section 1983 cases in 2024.
Speaker: Staci J. Miller

Regular Rates for the Annual Conference End
2024-08-23
2024 IMLA 89th Annual Conference
Orlando, FL: Wednesday, September 25 – Sunday, September 29, 2024
Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek
Click here to learn more about the conference.

Police Alternatives Meeting
2024-08-20 14:00 - 15:00
If you care to take part in this call or working group, please email cstorer@imla.org.

Ethics Webinar
2024-08-20 13:00 - 14:00
AI: The Future of Humanity or the End of Civilization
AI is more than a movie starring Haley Joel Osment from 2001, it’s a force that has the potential to drastically change the practice of municipal law. This session would examine the various ways A.I. can impact attorneys representing local government. Or, as AI put it: The presentation will explore how artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming the legal profession and the justice system, by providing examples of current and emerging applications of AI in law, as well as discussing the ethical, legal, and social implications of AI in law.
Speaker: Darren Shulman

Short Term Rentals Webinar
2024-08-08 13:00 - 14:00
Regulating Short-term Rentals at the Local Level
The proliferation of the short-term rental industry has left local governments throughout the country contemplating how to balance protecting the character and integrity of their municipality while providing the necessary services resulting from increased traffic and tourism, among other things. This course will provide an overview of the tools available at the local level to regulate short-term rentals, as well as a case law overview analyzing how different jurisdictions treat short-term rentals. The session will conclude with tips on drafting local legislation that will survive court scrutiny (of course, results are not guaranteed).
Speaker: Katie Hodgdon

Diversity Webinar
2024-08-06 13:00 - 14:00
How to Advise Councilmembers Regarding DEI Initiatives (Even When They Are Against Them)
Join Jeannine Williams, Chief Assistant City Attorney for St. Petersburg, Florida, for an insightful discussion on advising council members on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives. In this presentation, Jeannine will delve into the principles of accountable government and share strategies for tailoring your advice to council members while maintaining objectivity.
Attendees will also gain valuable insights into the various DEI initiatives successfully implemented by the City of St. Petersburg. These initiatives include conducting a structural racism study and a disparity study, undertaking affordable housing projects, and redeveloping the Historic Gas Plant District.
Don’t miss this opportunity to learn from Jeannine’s expertise and learn how you can effectively guide your council members when implementing DEI initiatives within your community.
Speaker: Jeannine S. Williams

Homelessness Working Group Conference Call
2024-08-01 14:00 - 15:00
