18th Annual Public Sector Conference

Friday, May 11, 2012

Registration and continental breakfast will open at 8:15 am

CONCURRENT SESSIONS

9 a.m. - 10:15 a.m. (1.25 Hours of CLE Credit)

I Still Know What you Did Last Night!: When Can An Employee Be Disciplined For Off-Duty Conduct

A panel discussion about conducting investigations and taking disciplinary action for offduty criminal conduct and other off-duty conduct in light of Spielbauer and recent cases on free speech rights of public employees. Topics will include due process issues, investigations, use of criminal convictions in discipline, what constitutes protected free speech and privacy issues including search of employee work areas, lockers and computer/e-mail files.

Moderator:
Arlene Prater, Partner,
Best Best & Krieger LLP

Panelists:

Demond L. Philson, Staff Counsel III (Specialist),
California Department of Health
Care Services

Anthony Santana, Legal Counsel,
California Association of Highway
Patrolmen

What’s New at PERB?: A Discussion of PERB Under The (New) Brown Administration

A panel discussion of changes and trends at PERB in the first year-and-a-half of the “new” Administration. Topics include regulations currently under consideration, attempts to streamline and speed up PERB processes, hot issues being litigated before PERB, and, of course, what all this means for you and your clients.

Moderator: Erich Shiners, Associate, Renne Sloan Holtzman Sakai LLP

Panelists:

Jason Jasmine, Partner, Carroll, Burdick & McDonough LLP

Kristianne Seargeant, Senior Associate, Kronick, Moskovitz, Tiedemann & Girard

Disability Law Update: The Top
Five Things Every Public Employer
Needs to Know

Join two experienced disability law practitioners in a session analyzing recent critical developments under the ADA and FEHA. This session will explore five questions that California public employers should be asking, and prepared to answer, following recent case law developments: (1) When can an employer discipline an employee for misconduct or performance problems caused by a disability (2) What is the impact of Workers’ Compensation disability ratings on the accommodation process? (3) When can an employer properly order a fitness for duty examination? (4) How much medical documentation is needed to support an accommodation request? (5) What must an employer do when due process rights and disability retirement intersect?

Panelists:

Nikki Hall, Renne Sloan Holtzman Sakai LLP

Stephen M. Murphy, Law Offices of Stephen M. Murphy

10:15 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. Break

CONCURRENT SESSIONS

10:30 a.m.–11:45 a.m. (1.25 Hours of CLE Credit)

Session 4:

Employee Privacy v. The Public's
Right To Know Under The Ralph M. Brown Act And The California
Public Records Act

Experienced practitioners discuss
recent cases and current issues
including disclosure of
investigation reports, written
reprimands and pension
information, and the status of
email.

Moderator:
Arnie Braafladt, Deputy Chief Counsel, California School Employees Association

Panelists:

Terry Francke, General Counsel,
Californians Aware

Laura Juran, Attorney, California Teachers Association

Janae Novotny, Partner, Burke Williams & Sorensen, LLP

Session 5:

Best Practices In Settlement
Conferences Before PERB

This will be an interactive program. Each audience member will be given information known only to the Union or only to the School District Employer, and we will try to come up with ideas for resolving their dispute. The moderator and panel member will offer tips for successful mediation of disputes.

Moderator:
Anita Martinez, Chair of the Public Employment Relations Board and former Director of the PERB San Francisco

Regional Office Panelists:

Priscilla Winslow, retired attorney for the California Teachers Association

Patti White, Shareholder, Littler Mendelson

Session 6:

Public Sector Labor Relations:
What’s Hot In 2012?

What’s hot in public sector labor relations? This panel of three public sector labor relations experts will dive into issues ranging from AB 646 to the debate surrounding fiscal emergency vested retirement rights.

Moderator:
Katherine Thomson, California Public Employee Relations, Institute for Research on Labor and Employment

Panelists:

Christopher Platten, Partner, Wylie McBride Platten & Renner

Charles Sakai,Partner,
Renne Sloan Holtzman Sakai LLP

11:45 a.m. - 1:15 p.m. Keynote Speaker Luncheon

General Plenary Session

1:45 p.m. - 3:15 p.m. (1.5 Hours of CLE Credit)

The 2011-2012 Top Ten: Winners, Losers And Draws

An interactive and lively discussion of 10 of the most important and/or interesting cases and changes in the
law since May 2011. Find out from the perspective of management, labor and a neutral arbitrator who won,
who lost and where the outcome was mixed.

Moderator:
Carol Koenig,Wylie McBride Plattern & Renner

Speakers:

• Christy Bouma, California Professional Firefighters Association, President, Capitol Connection
• Alicia M.B. Fowler, Senior Assistant Attorney General, Office of the Attorney General
• Carol Vendrillo, Arbitrator, Former Director of the California Public Employee Relations Program

3:15 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. Break

Concurrent Sessions

3:30 p.m. - 4:45 p.m. (1.25 Hours of CLE Credit)

Session 7:

A Brave New World – Internet and Ethics

A panel discussion of emerging issues and trends with internet use and how it affects your ethical obligations. Topics include investigations using social network sites and recent case law and ethics decisions covering internet use.

Moderator:
Anne Giese, Staff Counsel,
SEIU Local 1000

Panelists:

Jennifer Lynch, Electronic Frontier Foundation

Suzanne Mellard,Of Counsel,
Rogers Joseph O’Donnell

Session 8:

Everything you Wanted To Know And More About Conducting Hearings Before The Alphabet Soup Of State Administrative Entities – SPB, OAH and PERB

Come learn the basics for appearing before the State Personnel Board, Office of Administrative Hearings and the Public Employment Relations Board. Learn the do's and don'ts to successfully litigating your case before the ALJ, from filing the appeal through final board decision. Hear the latest developments and what is in store for the future at all three agencies.

Moderator:
Suzanne M. Ambrose,
Executive Officer,
State Personnel Board

Panelists:
Shawn Cloughesy,
Chief Administrative Law Judge

Catherine Frink, Administrative Law Judge

Paul Ramsey, Chief Administrative Law Judge, State Personnel Board

Session 9:

Disciplining A Public Employee Who Engages in Protected Activities: Is Liability For Retaliation Inevitable?

A panel of seasoned employment
litigators will discuss the complexities of navigating between employee discipline and protected activities. The panel will also offer practical advice to mitigate and may be avoid liability for retaliation claims under the Fair Employm ent & Housing Act, Title VII or other similar employment statutes prohibiting retaliation.

Moderator:
Michael E. Whitaker, Supervising Deputy Attorney General, California Department of Justice

Panelists:
Steven J. Horvath,
Law Offices of Steven J. Horvath

Arlene Prater, Partner,
Best Best & Kriegler LLP