Total Credits: 3.25 CLE, 0.5 Ethics, 3.25 Personal Injury and Wrongful Death Litigation Specialization
This year’s CLE in the Red Rocks offers advanced insights into litigation preparation and strategy for both plaintiff and defense practitioners. Addresses critical aspects such as expert testimony, specialized claims, emerging tools, ethical considerations, jury selection techniques, and contingency planning when cases encounter challenges. Topics include:
Chairperson
Amy Hernandez, Hernandez Linton Law, PLLC
Day 1 Agenda
Registration Opens: 11:00 a.m.
Break: 2:30 p.m.
Welcome Happy Hour: 5:00 p.m.
1:00 pm – 1:15 pm Welcome, Conference Overview, and Overview of Bar Member Benefits
Amy Hernandez, Hernandez Linton Law, PLLC
Ted Schmidt, Schmidt Sethi & Akmajian; President, State Bar of Arizona Board of Governors
1:15 pm – 2:30 pm The Job is Hard Enough—Don’t Make it Harder: Strategies to Get Along with
Opposing Counsel and Move Your Case Along
Amy Hernandez, Hernandez Linton Law, PLLC
Rachelle Sanchez, Lightfoot, Franklin & White LLC
2:45 pm – 3:45 pm Litigating Premise Liability Cases in the Wake of Perez v. Circle K
Jason Bliss, Aspey Watkins & Diesel PLLC
Lou Diesel, Aspey Watkins & Diesel PLLC
Todd Springer, P.E., CXLT, Augspurger Komm Engineering, Inc.
3:45 pm – 4:45 pm How to Avoid Cognitive Fallacies which can Cripple Your Witness
Kira Barrett, Senior Counsel, Clyde & Co
Rachel Werner, Clyde & Co
5:00 pm Welcome Happy Hour
Hotel Reservations
Hotel reservations are separate from conference registration. Use this link below to secure your room now: https://group.hilton.com/hzogv6. Room rates are guaranteed through Feb. 8, 2025.
Amy Hernandez received her law degree in 2003 from Drake University (with Honors). After law school she served as a law clerk at the Arizona Court of Appeals. Ms. Hernandez has served on the Civil Practice & Procedure Committee for the State Bar of Arizona and as the Chair of the State Bar Trial Practice Section. She is a former member of the Morris K. Udall Inn of Court and a former board member for the Arizona Association of Justice. Ms. Hernandez served in the United States Army from 1996 - 2000 as a military intelligence analyst. Ms. Hernandez owns Hernandez Linton Law, PLLC where she focuses her practice on plaintiff’s medical malpractice, legal malpractice, and general personal injury.
Jason Bilss practiced law in Phoenix, Arizona for 20 years before moving to Flagstaff and to Aspey, Watkins & Diesel in 2017. As a litigation attorney in Phoenix, Mr. Bliss focused his practice on complex and serious lawsuits, from tire failure cases involving catastrophic injury and death to multi-party construction defect and insurance coverage litigation. He has litigated wrongful death, quadriplegia/paraplegia, amputation and brain injury cases as both a plaintiff and defendant. Mr. Bliss has significant experience litigating construction-related disputes in various contexts, including on behalf of or adverse to design builders, architects, engineers, materials testing consultants, and specialty trade subcontractors in both residential and commercial construction settings. He also has considerable experience litigating other commercial matters including real estate disputes, partnership or corporate disputes, copyright infringement issues, and commercial and residential landlord tenant matters.
In his Phoenix practice Mr. Bliss handled insurance coverage matters on behalf of various insurers, including general liability insurers, professional liability insurers, and auto and property insurers. He has authored coverage opinions as well as litigated insurance-coverage related disputes. In addition, Mr. Bliss defended commercial lines and professional insureds in various subject areas focusing on medical malpractice, construction litigation, liquor liability lawsuits, tire defect lawsuits, and other serious personal injury and death litigation.
Mr. Bliss is a frequent presenter on personal injury, construction law, and trial practice issues. Mr. Bliss co-authored the chapter entitle “Risk Transfer Through the Tender of Defense” in the most recent edition of the Arizona Construction Law Practice Manual.
is an Arizona native who graduated from ASU with a degree in mechanical engineering in 2006. He has been practicing in the field of forensic engineering since 2008 and has testified in a variety of matters involving building construction issues, electro-mechanical failures resulting in personal injury and property damage via fire and flood. He is a licensed engineer and has testified in multiple trials in various venues. 06/17
