The Chattanooga Bar Association’s list of continuing legal education seminars for the fall has been announced, with an October session sure to generate discussion, brother.
On Oct. 16, Alex Long, the Williford Gragg Distinguished Professor at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville College of Law is scheduled to present “Professional Wrestling and the Law: All I Really Need to Know About Legal Ethics I Learned from Watching Hulk Hogan,” a session looking at the case that brought down the online media conglomerate known as Gawker.
From the session’s description: “In 2016, a Florida jury awarded wrestler Hulk Hogan $140 in damages in his invasion of privacy lawsuit, forcing Gawker into bankruptcy. Hogan’s lawsuit was financed by Silicon Valley billionaire Peter Thiel, who harbored a personal grudge against Gawker.
“This was the first time that many people had ever heard of third-party litigation funding, the practice of investors funding litigation with the goal of earning a profit. But since Hogan’s lawsuit, the practice of third-party litigation funding has grown dramatically,” the description continues.
“In 2023, companies that finance U.S. lawsuits in exchange for a cut of recovery are estimated to have committed between $2.5 billion and $5 billion to new transactions. Several states have recently adopted new legislation to deal with the rise in such third-party litigation funding, and numerous state bar associations have published ethics opinions on the subject.
“But much of what lawyers need to know about the subject – and legal ethics more generally – can be learned from an investigation into the Hogan/Gawker litigation. This CLE presentation will explore the host of legal ethics issues that are raised by the practice of third-party litigation funding in general and the Hogan/Gawker litigation in particular.”
Other CBA-scheduled CLE sessions in the fall include (dates and topics subject to change):
• Wednesday, Nov. 6: Low Country Ethics: Lessons from the Alex Murdaugh Saga (Sponsored by AIM: Attorneys Mutual Insurance of the South)
• Wednesday, Nov. 13: Dr. Donna Van Natten (Topic TBD)
• Thursday, Nov. 14: Bill Ramsey and Phil Hampton (Topic TBD)
• Tuesday, Nov. 19: Legislative Update
• Wednesday, Nov. 20: Domestic Appeals with Donald Caparella and Jacob Vanzin
• Tuesday, Dec. 3: Quality of Life
• Wednesday, Dec. 4: Family Law Update with Barry Gold
• Thursday, Dec. 5: John Bode & Friends Labour and Employment Update
• Tuesday, Dec. 10: Mission NOT Impossible: Learning and Applying the Rules of Civil Procedure, Chancery Court Part I with Chancellor Pam Fleenor
• Tuesday, Dec. 17: Mission NOT Impossible: Chancery Court Part II with Chancellor Jeffrey Atherton
• Thursday, Dec. 19: Federal and State Ethics in Litigation with Hon. Tom Greenholtz and Lee Davis
Information/registration