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Center for Transactional Law and Practice Conference

Eighth Biennial Conference on the Teaching of Transactional Skills

8th Biennial Conference on the Teaching of Transactional Law and Skills Banner
 

We are pleased to announce that the Eighth Biennial Conference on the Teaching of Transactional Skills, which will take place on October 6-7, 2023. Our theme is "Preparing Future Lawyers to Draft Contracts, Do Deals, and Take Care of Business."

We look forward to seeing you in October! 

Sue Payne, Executive Director
Katherine Koops, Assistant Director
Kelli Pittman, Program Coordinator


Keynote Speaker

Stephanie Hunter McMahon
Professor Stephanie Hunter McMahon, noted legal history and taxation expert, will deliver the keynote address at the 8th Biennial Conference on the Teaching of Transactional Law and Skills. McMahon is a Professor of Law at the University of Cincinnati College of Law and has won the law school’s teaching awards for faculty excellence and scholarship. 

In her keynote address, Professor McMahon will discuss the premise of her article, "What Law Schools Must Change to Train Transactional Lawyers" (43 Pace L. Rev. 106 (2022)). Her address -- and the subsequent Q & A with participants -- will enhance our exploration of this year’s theme, "Preparing Future Lawyers to Draft Contracts, Do Deals, and Take Care of Business." 

We are excited to have Professor McMahon with us to spark a lively conversation about the important issues facing educators committed to helping law students become transactional lawyers.


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Registration for Conference and Tina L. Stark Award Dinner

Both attendees and presenters must register for the conference and pay the appropriate registration fee:

  • $250 (general)
  • $200 (adjunct professor and new professor)

Note: A new professor is someone in their first three years of teaching.

The registration fee includes:

  • drinks at the welcome reception on Thursday
  • breakfast, snacks, and lunch on Friday, and
  • breakfast, snacks, and lunch on Saturday

You may attend the optional Friday evening dinner at an additional cost of $60 per person. 

Register for the Conference and optional dinner event » 

Award: The Stark Award winner will be announced and recognized at the eighth biennial conference on the teaching of transactional law and skills on October 6, 2023.

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Conference Location and Schedule

Hosted by Emory University School of Law, all of the conference proceedings and meals – including the optional Friday night dinner – will take place at the newly-renovated Emory Conference Center Hotel

Join us at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday evening, October 5, for a welcome reception in the hotel bar. The conference sessions will begin on Friday, October 6, at 9:00 a.m., and end on Saturday, October 7, at 2:00 p.m. 

View the full schedule »

On Friday evening, we invite you to attend an optional dinner at the Hotel. As part of the festivities at the dinner, we will announce the winner of the 2023 Tina L. Stark Award for Excellence in the Teaching of Transactional Law and Skills. 

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Publication Opportunity

As in prior years, some of the conference presentations and related materials will be published in Transactions: The Tennessee Journal of Business Law, a publication of the Clayton Center for Entrepreneurial Law of The University of Tennessee, a co-sponsor of the conference.

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Travel Arrangements and Hotel Accommodations

Attendees and presenters are responsible for their own travel arrangements and hotel accommodations. Special hotel rates for conference participants at the Emory Conference Center Hotel are $173 per night.

To make a reservation at the special conference rate, use this reservation link or call the Emory Conference Center Hotel at 800.933.6679 and mention “The Emory Law Transactional Conference.” Note: the hotel’s special conference rate expires at the end of the day on September 20, 2023. 

If you encounter any technical difficulties in submitting your proposal or nomination or in registering online, please contact Kelli Pittman, at kelli.pittman@emory.edu or 404.727.3382. 

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Call for Conference Proposals

The deadline for proposals was August 31, 2023.

Emory Law's Center for Transactional Law and Practice is delighted to open the Call for Proposals for its eighth biennial conference on the teaching of transactional law and skills. We welcome your proposals related to our theme – "Preparing Future Lawyers to Draft Contracts, Do Deals, and Take Care of Business."

By design, our theme is broad. We see it as encompassing everything from how to teach the nuts-and-bolts of contract drafting through how to help students understand and advance a deal. In addition, we would like to know what you are doing to familiarize students with business and finance. On a more abstract level, consider leading a discussion about how to define the core values and guiding principles foundational to a successful transactional law practice. Or reporting your success encouraging students to engage in self-reflection about their professional identities as deal lawyers. 

Each session will be 60 minutes long. Given this time limitation, each session will be limited to one or two presenters who have submitted one proposal on a single topic. In other words, we will not split a session between two proposals or create panels, as we have done in the past. As a result, and in the interest of assuring that each presenter gets an opportunity to shine, we will likely accept fewer proposals.

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Call for Nominations - Tina L. Stark Teaching Excellence Award

The deadline for nominations was August 31, 2023.

Emory Law’s Center for Transactional Law and Practice is delighted to open its Call for Nominations for the 2023 Tina L. Stark Award for Excellence in the Teaching of Transactional Law and Skills (the "Stark Award"). Think about nominating yourself or someone else to honor their work as a transactional law and skills educator.

Eligibility: Any member of the transactional law and skills education community may self-nominate or nominate any other member of that community for the Stark Award.

The Nomination Portfolio: 

At a minimum, the nomination portfolio should include the nominee’s CV, a nomination letter, and one additional letter of support. In the nomination letter, please describe the nominee’s record of significant contributions to the field of transactional law and skills education, highlighting how the nominee has demonstrated that he or she is:

  1. committed to training students to be practice-ready transactional attorneys;
  2. dedicated to engaging, inspiring, motivating, and nurturing students;
  3. devoted to teaching with passion, using creative and innovative methods;
  4. known for achievement in curriculum or program development and pedagogy; and
  5. pledged to advance the cause of transactional law and skills education.

Screening Process: The Stark Award Selection Committee will review the nomination portfolios and select the Stark Award winner. 

Award: The Stark Award winner will be announced and recognized at the eighth biennial conference on the teaching of transactional law and skills on October 6, 2023.

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Conference Sponsors

University of Tennessee College of Law logo
West Academic logo

University of Tennessee Clayton Center seal
Hotshot logo

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