Greater Newburyport

Bar Association

2025 Schedule

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​​Annual John C. Stevens Family Law Symposium: Benched

Thursday, May 1, 5-7, Nicholson Hall, 7 Harris Street, Newburyport

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Faculty

Hon. Michael Anderson

Hon. Theresa Bisenius

Hon. Mary Black

Hon. Caryn R. Mitchell-Munevar

Hon. Carla A. Salvucci

Hon. Jennifer Rivera Ulwick

Hon. Michelle A. Yee

Moderators: Judith Cowan & Gary Todd

 

Issues for discussion:

 

• Uniform Parentage Act—How are the courts implementing

• GALs—Use & effectiveness—When to seek; When E/ F: Limited GALs;

       What judges want to see in reports; Use of GAL in removal case; School                        choice; Does the Court want recommendations?

• Parenting Coordinators—When are they warranted; What are their limitations?

       What happens when they are appointed over the objection of one party?;           

• The Role of ARC Counsel—How to present evidence to make sure voice of the  child is heard; How to include in all correspondence; How to handle                       inherent conflicts between what child wants and what ARC counsel thinks          is best

• Legal Custody—When can you get sole legal custody; When can you get joint        legal custody; When under joint custody should one party have ultimate                decision making

• Who pays for college

• What are the new judges views/pet peeves

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Registration: https://gnba.ticketbud.com/annual-john-c-stevens-family-law-symposium-benched-15a056ac27ed

 

 

The Intersection of Family Law, Child Welfare and  Criminal Law 

Thursday, June 5, 2025, 4:30-6:30, Zoom

Approved for Two CAFL & CPCS credits

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Many of our cases walk in the door presenting like an essay question on the bar

exam, spanning disciplines ranging from family law to criminal law to child welfare

and juvenile law. Our expert practitioners will give you an overview of each area and

answer common questions many of us have, and we’ll take an interactive walk

through a hypothetical case involving all of these areas.  

 

Attend & Learn:

• Who qualifies for legal counsel in CAFL cases, criminal defense cases, and other times a person might be eligible for appointment of counsel by CPCS; 

• At what point in the various legal processes can counsel be appointed.

• How to manage the collaboration between a client's divorce, criminal defense and/or CAFL counsel in terms of aligning case strategy, sharing potentially relevant information/discovery/pleadings. 

• What types of information/documents from separate cases might be relevant to each other (example: mitigation documents / evaluations in criminal cases)

• What rights do incarcerated clients have who are going through a divorce; to participate in custody / parenting time proceedings and what rights do they have to both? Are there priorities we have that might conflict even while representing the same client in different legal settings/proceedings 

• How does a restraining order affect a case; what court(s) can issue them and what court(s) can modify them? 

• The affect of a divorce case… who says what to whom, and how – it matters! 

 

Faculty

Maureen Booth, TurcoLegal, Newburyport, Chair

Jacquelyn O’Brien, Managing Director, Children and Family Law Division, Committee for Public Counsel Services

Christine Sunnerberg, Esq., Ramirez & Sunnerberg, LLC, Weymouth

 

To register: https://gnba.ticketbud.com/the-intersection-of-family-law-child-welfare-criminal-law

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8th Annual CLE by the Sea:
NE Conference for Solos and Small Law Firms

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Thursday, July 17, Blue Ocean Event Center, Salisbury Beach, MA
 

Greater Newburyport Bar Association in partnership with The Maine State Bar, Massachusetts Bar, New Hampshire Bar, Women’s Bar of MA, Essex County Bar, Starting Out Solo, LCL/MA
 

SCHEDULE/AGENDA
 

8:00-9:00         Registration & Breakfast

 

9:00-10:15        Concurrent Workshops

 

A.    Valuing a Cash Business  (75 NHMCLE min.)

David Consigli, FAZ Forensics, NY

• Distinguish the businesses that operate primarily with cash

• Recognize the risks of valuing a cash-based business

• Identify how to quantify potential cash-based normalization adjustments

• Identify available source documentation to support valuation and income conclusions

 

B.    Artificial Intelligence Meets Legal Practice: Efficiency, Ethics, and Innovation (75 NHMCLE min., incl. 60 Ethics min.)

Todd Scott, Minnesota Lawyers Mutual Insurance Company, MN

• Understand various AI tools and their applications in legal practices.

• Learn how AI can increase efficiency and accuracy in legal document production and office management.

• Identify ethical considerations and professional responsibility issues when using AI in legal practice.

• Develop strategies for integrating AI tools into a law office while maintaining compliance with legal standards.

 

C.    When to Get Help from an Employment Attorney – Early Identification of the issues  (75 NHMCLE min.)

Maureen Pomeroy, Pomeroy Law, MA & Mark Whitney, Whitney Law Group, MA

• Why you should you care

• When to call us 

• Traps for the Unwary

• The “Bermuda Triangle” (intersection of disability/leaves/workers comp)

• Hot wage and hour issues

• Key Company Policies and Handbooks

• What to Expect with the New President

 

10:15-10:30     Networking Break

 

10:30-11:45    Concurrent Workshops

 

D.    Leveraging Alcohol Monitoring Technology to Mitigate Conflict and How to Avoid Common Mistakes  (75 NHMCLE min.) 

Mike Fonseca, Soberlink, Maureen Booth, TurcoLegal, MA and Gary Todd, Todd & Weld, MA

• How to manage cases that involve one or both parents being accused of abusing alcohol while parenting child(ren).  

• What are the dynamics involved with successful parenting when Alcohol Use Disorder is a factor.  

• How to apply the facts around the disease of Alcohol Use Disorder and how AUD plays into developing parenting plans and custody decisions.

• What are the old and new testing methods. 

• Current options to avoid tampering and ensuring accountability without alcohol monitoring being used as a weapon. 

• Best practices around testing and recognizing compliant and non-compliant behavior. 

 

E.    Uncommon Ethics Issues  (75 NHMCLE Ethics min.)Jared D. Correia, Esq., Red Cave Law Firm Consulting, Afton Pavlectic, Mass. Office of Bar Counsel & Suzanne Thompson, Board of Bar Overseers, Maine 

Topics include:

• Artificial Intelligence

• Payment methods

• Financial Management

• Marketing

• Supervision

 

F.    What Every Lawyer Should Know About Homeowners’ Insurance Policies (75 NHMCLE min.)

Liam McCarthy, Crowley & McCarthy & Christie Franklin, Esq., Andover Companies

The important details that everyone should know about limitations on the time for suit, the arbitration (Reference) condition, notice requirements under both sections, cooperation clauses, concealment or fraud exclusions, and the insureds’ duties after loss. 

 

11:45-1:00        Lunch (Included)

    12:00-12:45 Optional lunchtime session with Peak Marketing: "Local SEO Blueprint for Boosting Your Intake".Learn the ins and outs of how to improve your local SEO to bring on more clients and improve your bottom line. *Walk away with a Local SEO checklist!*

 

1:00-2:15        Concurrent Workshops

 

G.    Upward Mobility: How to Grow a Law Firm, Like a Boss  (45 NHMCLE min.)

Jared Correia, Red Cave Law Consulting & Damian Turco, TurcoLegal

Learn how to build a law firm with massive growth potential from top experts in the field. Find out how to utilize specific technology, marketing and financial management strategies to take your law firm to the next level. Learn about:

• Hiring & retention

• Financial management strategies

• Marketing strategies

• Technology implementation & maintenance

• Managing a team

 

H.    How Parenting Coordinators and Supervised Parenting Time Professionals Can Positively Impact High-conflict Family Law Cases (75 NHMCLE min.)

Howard Yaffe, L.I.C.S.W. & Tony Pelusi, Parenting Coordinator and Relationship Coach

• • The role and purpose of Parenting Coordinators and Parenting Time Supervisors/Professionals 

  • The range of services that Parenting Time Professionals can provide to litigants and their attorneys with high conflict and resist/refusal issues

  • The benefit of close collaboration between Parenting Coordinators, Parenting Time Professionals, litigants and their attorneys

  • Parenting Coordinator and Parenting Time Professional resources in Massachusetts, NH and Maine

 

I.    Powerful Content Creation on a Budget – Easy, free and cheap tools to help get the job done. (75 NHMCLE min.)

Andrew Nicastro, Chief Streamographer

• Create Professional-Looking Content – Learn to make quality videos, podcasts, and graphics with free or low-cost tools.

• Master Video & Audio Basics – Discover simple techniques for recording, editing, and enhancing content using your smartphone or computer.

• Use AI to Save Time – Leverage ChatGPT to streamline content creation.

• Hands-On Practice – Visit our booth to receive real world practice creating content and using some of these tools

 

2:15- 2:30    Networking Break

 

2:30-3:45    Concurrent Workshops 

 

J.    Collaborative Law: Effective Divorce Without Litigation (75 NHMCLE min.)

Richard J. Reade, Jr., Reade Law Firm, Peabody; Dr. Nadia Delshad, PSYD, The Bedford Center for Couples, NH, Karen Van Kooy, MA

• Pros and Cons of Collaborative Law

• Understanding the Paradigm Shift

• How Collaborative Law Can Improve Quality of Life

 

K.     The Intersection of Immigration Law and Your Practice (75 NHMCLE min.)

Nicole Reilly, Chair, MA, Ronald Abramson, Shaheen & Gordon, NH, Ogor Okoye, MA, Stephen A. Roth, MA & Shannon McKinnon, ME

The issues regarding representing non-US citizens are numerous, complex and of vital importance. Understanding the basics of the immigration process is critical for all lawyers. 

• What Every Criminal Defense Attorney Should Know about Representing Non-US Citizens

• Navigating the Immigration Consequences of Crimes from Arrests through Convictions

• Crimmigration; a Guide for Criminal Defense Practitioners 

 

L.    Uniform Parentage Act (75 NHMCLE min.)

 Michael Xavier, Chair, Prince Lobel, MA, Patience Crozier, GLAD, Christine M. Hanisco, Life Stages Law, PLLC, MA & NH, & Adrianne Ramos, Prince Lobel, MA

Parentage is the legally recognized relationship between a child and parent(s). The law clarifies who can be legally recognized as a parent and how to establish parentage. This is critical to ensuring that all children can access the security of legal parentage, regardless of the circumstances of their birth.

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3:45-5:00    Concurrent Workshops

 

M.    Harassment Prevention and Managers’ Essential Duty to Act:  What Do Lawyers Need to Know? (75 NHMCLE min.)

Samia M. Kirmani, Jackson Lewis

How to recognize and avoid harassment and discrimination in our workplaces

• Equal employment opportunity

• Unlawful harassment and discrimination

• The Managers’ essential duty to act

• Key issues in investigationsHarassment & Discrimination

 

N.    A Deep Dive into the Intersection between Alimony and Child Support (75 NHMCLE min.)

Marc D. Bello, Strive Partners, Attorneys Judith Cowan and Donald Pitman

• Providing insight into allocation of income between alimony & child support

• The importance of tax implication in running support analysis

• The risk of not running an alimony analysis

 

O.     What Every Lawyer Needs to Know About Cybersecurity (75 NHMCLE min.)

Amie T. Geary, JD, VP, NBM

Today’s cyber landscape is constantly changing and evolving, making it imperative for lawyers to stay up to date on industry standard cybersecurity tools. Learn about the latest cyberattack tactics, tips and tricks to protect yourself, your firm, and your clients, and minimum cybersecurity tools that every lawyer should be implementing in their practice.

 

CONFERENCE INFORMATION Tuition includes, continental breakfast, lunch, gourmet reception and materials. Parking is provided by GNBA for free in the Blue Ocean Parking Lot. 

 

Thank you to our sponsors!!

 

Speaker Sponsors  

 

FAZ Forensics

We are a multifaceted and boutique CPA firm specializing in forensic accounting, business valuation and litigation support services. We help to resolve even the most high-stakes financial situations from the corporate office to the courtroom, and we use our complex analytical and investigative experience to reach solutions and reconciliations efficiently.

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NBM is a local, award-winning office technology company specializing in copiers, printers, network hardware (laptops, desktops, servers), IT support, cybersecurity solutions, and print management services. Family owned and operated, we are proud to be celebrating our 40th year in business this year.

 
Soberlink
With 55,000 custody cases each year that involve alcohol, parents, attorneys, and  judges need a reasonable, trusted, and court-validated way to monitor alcohol consumption in real-time. In 2011, Soberlink revolutionized the way people can provide proof of sobriety without compromising child safety. Today, 10,000+ Family Law Professionals across all 50 states have adopted the system—learn how to implement Soberlink into your own practice. https://www.soberlink.com 

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Streamography Productions is a full service production company bringing cutting-edge tech with years of production experience. We offer livestreaming, storytelling, audio engineering, video storytelling, lighting design, and Event projection all under one roof. Let us take care of the tech and the storytelling, allowing you to focus on the big picture. 

 

Strive Partners provides business valuation, forensic accounting, financial damage calculations, and financial consulting services. Business valuations are conducted for the purpose of marital dissolution, civil disputes, gift and estates, exit planning and shareholder transactions. Financial consulting for martial dissolution includes asset tracing, complex compensation analysis and support calculations.  Forensics for business matters includes capital account allocations, lost profits, post-acquisition disputes.

 

Exhibitors 

 

Janice Berner, CDFA - Certified Divorce Financial Analyst

www.janiceberner.com

Divorce Financial Analyst working with individuals, couples and legal professionals at all stages of divorce and after. Collaborates with clients, lawyers, and mediators to provide financial support for case preparation and settlement.  Assess net worth, goals and needs, budgeting, asset separation and tax implications.  Works with clients on post-divorce comprehensive financial planning. 

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The Massachusetts Collaborative Law Council (“MCLC”) is a community of professionals including attorneys, mental health professionals/coaches, financial specialists and others dedicated to using an interdisciplinary team-based approach to resolving conflict and legal disputes outside of court.  MCLC’s vision is to transform adversarial court battles into interest and goal based collaborative resolutions.  MCLC offers educational and networking opportunities through a variety of trainings, workshops, practice groups, the annual meeting, roundtable, and social events. 

 

The Massachusetts Council on Family Mediation (MCFM) is a nonprofit organization established more than 40 years ago by family mediators interested in sharing knowledge and setting guidelines for family mediation.  Today, MCFM maintains a wide referral network of 220 members and offers a certification program for qualified members.  MCFM’s mission is to advance mediation to transform the way families resolve conflict by increasing public awareness of family mediation, providing mediation resources for both the public and its members, and delivering premier professional development to members

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The team at Peabody Wealth Advisors focuses on putting time back into attorney’s  lives so that they can focus on growing their practice and living their best life. We are experienced in serving attorneys and their clients locally and nationally with the highest level of skill, professionalism and duty of care. At Peabody Wealth Advisors, We Plan, So That You Can Dream™️

Peak Marketing is a full service  digital marketing agency that is fighting back against long term contracts and big marketing budgets. Peak focuses on efficient and effective marketing solutions that improve your  bottom line.  

 

BUSINESS SPONSORS 

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Brigantine

Davis and Davis

Prince Lobel

Todd & Weld

Turcolegal

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Registration: https://gnba.ticketbud.com/8th-annual-cle-by-the-sea

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