Emerging Issues Track Program 

420 Problems: Risk in the Age of Legalized Cannabis

As legalization of cannabis and cannabis products sweep the country, many industries and employers are scrambling to catch-up to comply with new regulations while working to minimize potential risk and liability associated with a product that remains illegal on the Federal level. This session will provide an overview of the most update to date regulations relating to recreational marijuana and the, often hidden, risks for businesses in the areas of employment law, workers’ compensation, and general liability.  

Augmenting the Claims Reality: Applying Building Information Modeling (BIM) to Resolve Disputes and Claims

Participants will walk away from the session with a deeper understanding of the design, build, and maintenance process involved in bringing a project to fruition, specifically through the use of Building Information Modeling (BIM). Speakers will present the cutting-edge BIM process in an education session that will create a lively discourse on topics of coverage, liability analysis, early dispute resolution, and technological trends both within the construction and the mediation industries. 

AutoBus Anaheim: Cyber Breach Issues for Public and Private Entities

“AutoBus Anaheim” is a hypothetical self-driving tour bus company working with and for the City of Anaheim, California to provide improved tourism transportation services by operating a series of autonomous buses along set routes unless otherwise called by one of the many information kiosks that the City of Anaheim has installed around popular destinations. Today, one AutoBus gets into a vehicular accident, at the same time that AutoBus Anaheim discovers a corporate network intrusion.  

By walking through a cyber breach case study, this session will review the cyber risks both private and public entities face generally, and some of the specific cyber security and data privacy liability and coverage issues such emerging technologies present.  

Lessons on Claims from the Digital Battlefield

This topic will review current online threats from malicious actors that pose the greatest risks to information systems. The session will also include a discussion of measures that can assist in managing and limiting claims arising from data security incidents and measures necessary to mitigate cyber risks, and the critical importance of being prepared for a rapid response. There will be a discussion of the component parts of rapid responses to different types of data security incidents affecting both operational and sensitive data. These responses will involve considerations of cost, scale, business impact, and regulatory compliance – all of which contribute to the management of cyber claims.  

The session will also include a discussion about why a rapid response, whether it be to an encryption attack or an email account compromise, is essential to minimizing cyber claims by preserving organizational reputation and minimizing economic harm. The session will also include a discussion about why a rapid response, whether it be to an encryption attack or an email account compromise, is essential to minimizing cyber claims by preserving organizational reputation and minimizing economic harm.

Trademark and Copyright Infringement Claims: What You Need to Know

This session will give a comprehensive overview of trademark and copyright infringement actions. The attendees will learn what actions constitute trademark and copyright infringement and potential damages. It will also include real life examples for illustration.  

The Growing Problem of Marijuana Grow Houses: Why are Insurance Claims Paying to Build them, and then Repair them for Resale?

This session covers the growing problem of marijuana grow houses and fraudulent homeowner insurance claims. Criminals, to include organized crime (OC), buy houses, even high end homes in upscale communities, and turn them into marijuana grow houses. They frequently use arson to gut the homes and cover up the construction of an industrial grow facility in the home. They are also known to make a fraudulent homeowner fire claim to fund this covert construction. When law enforcement eventually discovers the crime/home, the owner (OC) claims their renter converted the home without their knowledge. The home owner then submits a homeowner vandalism claim to fund repairing the house for resale. In 2018/19, a National Insurance Crime Bureau investigation of OC in Southern California disclosed the last three questionable homeowner claims related to this problem averaged $250,000.00 per claim. Even though marijuana is now legal in many states, this illegal grow house problem is on the rise in those same states. This session explains why. The session covers the insurance/legal & l&w enforcement aspects in recognizing and countering this “growing” problem.