2022 Media Lawyers Conference Agenda

2022 Media Lawyers Conference Agenda

Sheraton Harrisburg Hershey
October 13, 2022 | 8:30 a.m.  – 3 p.m.

 

8:30 – 9 a.m.

Continental Breakfast

 

9 – 11 a.m.

RTKL and Sunshine Act Litigation Roundtable

Discuss case law developments related to the Right to Know Law and Sunshine Act and their impact on newsgathering and public access in Pennsylvania.

Speakers:

• • Paula Knudsen Burke
    • PennLive/Thompson v. Cumberland County
    • LNP Media/Meko v. City of Lancaster
    • Spotlight PA/Sholtis v. Bucks Co. Prison
    • PA State Police v. LNP Media/Walker
    • York Daily Record/Segelbaum v. York Co. Prison
    • Butler Eagle/Wiedenhof v. Lancaster Twsp.
    • Department of Health v. Mahon

• • Heather Elyse Murray
    • Schwartz v. Pennsylvania State Police
    • Hailer Pittsburgh Current v. Allegheny County

• • Craig Staudenmaier
    • Simon Campbell v. PIAA
    • Central Dauphin School Dist. v. Fox 43/Hawkins

• • Joshua Bonn
    • McKelvey v. PA Dept of Health
    • Sch. Dist. of Philadelphia v. Calefati
    • Pennsylvania Dep’t of Revenue v. Wagaman
    • Ford and The Boro v. Mount Pocono Borough

• • Zachary Gordon
    • Chester Water Auth v. PA Dep’t of Cmty & Econ. Dev
    • Pittsburgh Water & Sewer Auth. v. Towne
    • Town v Allegheny County

• • Charles Kelly
    • ACLU v. Fulton County

• • Melissa Melewsky
    • Office of General Counsel v. Bumsted
    • ACLU of PA v. Pennsylvania State Police
    • Pennsylvania Dep’t of Labor & Indus. v. Darlington
    • Mid-Mon Valley Publishing Co., LLC v. City of Monessen
    • McGrath v. Board of Directors of City of Scranton and the School District of the City of Scranton

 

11 a.m. – 12 p.m.

Defamation and Invasion of Privacy Update

Learn about case law developments impacting defamation and invasion of privacy practice in Pennsylvania state courts and the Third Circuit.

Speakers:

• • Kaitlin Gurney
    • McCafferty v. Newsweek
    • Judge Patrick v. Daily Beast
    • Porat v. Temple

• • Paul Safier
    • Leach v. Taylor / Leach v. Inquirer

• • Elizabeth Seidlin-Bernstein
    • Leisten v. CBS
    • Wang v. Wiley

• • Leslie Minora
    • Berisha v. Lawson
    • Palin v. New York Times

• • Charles Kelly
    • Laughlin v. The Erie Reader

• • Paula Knudsen Burke
    • Laughlin v. The Erie Reader

• • Zachary Gordon
    • Henderson v. Garrett, PG Publishing

 

12 – 12:30 p.m.

Office of Open Records Update

Representatives of the Pennsylvania Office of Open Records will provide an update on the Office, final determination interpretations of the RTKL, survey of agency website compliance, the new online appeal portal, and more.

Speakers

• • Nathan Byerly, Deputy Executive Director
  • Kelly Isenberg, Senior Appeals Officer
    • E-File Appeal Portal Users Guide

12:30 – 1:30 p.m.

Lunch

 

1:30 – 2:30 p.m.

Open Courts and 1st Amendment

Round table discussion about litigation involving access to court records and proceedings including former Senate candidate Sean Parnell and Penn State University, misapplication of Pennsylvania’s Clean Slate Law and UJS Public Access Policy, and others.

Speakers:

• • Paula Knudsen Burke
    • York Daily Record, et al. v. Byrnes
    • In re Application to Unseal Records (Rep. Perry)
    • AOPC Clerk of Courts Outreach Efforts

• • Michael Cosgrove
    • Shimkus v. Physicians Health Alliance, Inc.

• • Zachary Gordon
    • Fedorka v. UPMC/ Luketich v. D’Cunha, et al

• • Patrick Cavanaugh
    • Fraport v. Allegheny Co Airport Authority

• • Jonathan Bruno
    • Fraport v. Allegheny Co Airport Authority

• • Melissa Melewsky
    • Marshall, et al. v. Amuso (Pennsbury Sch. Dist)

 

2:30 – 3 p.m.

Legislative Update

The PNA Government Affairs team will provide insight on proposed legislation affecting the media industry including the Right to Know Law, Sunshine Act, anti-SLAPP efforts, Clean Slate Law, Marsy’s Law, and others.

Speakers:

• • Barbara Huesken
  • Melissa Melewsky