2022 Annual Conference Report – Fred Marcinak and Melissa Richardson

Association Business

The 2022 Annual TLA Conference

Williamsburg, Virginia

Fred Marcinak and Melissa Richardson, Program Committee Co-Chairs

TLA and CTLA members gathered in Williamsburg, Virginia, for this year’s Annual Conference. Historic Williamsburg Lodge provided a wonderful venue for the educational meetings and activities, complete with a musket reception and a fife and drum sendoff.

The conference began with two days of golf, chaired by Charlie Riley and Allen Jones. On Tuesday, the Golden Horseshoe-Gold Course was the chosen venue, and on Wednesday, it was the Golden Horseshoe-Green Course. First place in Tuesday’s annual Train Wreck game went to Matt Austin, and the first place team for Wednesday’s scramble event went to Dan Larson, Jim Griffin, Sierra Chamberlain and Susan Griffin. Don Vogel earned the Ugly Jacket as a result of his golfing mastery or lack thereof.

On Wednesday, the TLA officers hosted a New Member and First Time Attendee Orientation immediately prior to the welcome reception, giving them an opportunity to meet the officers and each other, and learn about TLA and what to expect during the conference. The Wednesday evening welcome reception venue was held on the Virginia Lawn and featured a musketry demonstration.

President Steve Canty welcomed everyone on Thursday for the official start of the conference. CTLA President Carole McAfee Wallace made a pitch for the CTLA annual conference in Toronto. As the Educational Program chairs, we kicked off the education program which started the three-day series of panel discussions and committee meetings. The Educational Committee, including Paul Mello, Jaclyne Reive, Jeff Cox, Marshal Pitchford, Peter Quinter, Katherine Vaughn, Greg Summy, Kristen Johnson, Stephen Dennis, and Steve Block, planned and implemented an innovative and informative program that integrated Canadian, Mexican, in-house, and industry perspectives into the panel discussions. The presentations covered a variety of topics, including maritime law, FAAAA preemption, mock jury trials/focus groups, ethics, buying and selling aircraft, supply chain/port congestion, buying and selling a trucking company, California and the independent contractor model, and preparing company witnesses for testimony. TLA’s committees met on Thursday and Friday afternoons, providing multiple opportunities for additional discussions of current issues and presentations by members.

The TLA annual business meeting was held on Thursday afternoon. By operation of the Association’s by-laws, Chris Kelly succeeded to the position of President, Eric Benton was elected President-Elect, Kathy Garber was elected First Vice President, Louis Amato-Gauci was elected Second Vice President, and Jeff Pincus was elected Secretary/Treasurer. Additionally, Peggy Smith Bush, Chris Cotter, Kristen Johnson and Thomas Martin were elected to the Executive Committee as representatives-at-large. Jean-Francois Bilodeau was elected to the Executive Committee as the CTLA representative.

This year’s Tennis Tournament was chaired by Beth Anne Lashuk.Beth and Marcy Reeb got their skills honed during a tennis clinic with Williamsburg pro Hoy!

The Thursday evening event involved an axe-throwing competition, which was a first for TLA. CTLA members, having honed their wilderness skills, dominated the competition. Now Past President Steve Canty demonstrated why he should continue his legal career instead of working to become an “axpert.”

Friday evening began with a reception followed by the annual banquet. The dress code was “black tie optional” and the food and beverages were excellent. Steve Canty was honored and praised for his outstanding year as President, Chris Kelly was congratulated on becoming President, Eric Benton was presented with a bound volume of the TTLs published under his watch as Editor, and TLA’s officers were all thanked for their service. Distinguished Service Awards were presented to Jeff Pincus and Bill Pentecost. TLA’s highest award, the Lifetime Service Award, was presented to Pat McMonigle. These three gentlemen have openly displayed consistent, meaningful assistance to the TLA and, as such, were supremely worthy of the honors bestowed upon them.

The annual Fun Run, held on Saturday morning, was overseen by Stevan Baxter.The winner of the run was Ashley Winsky, one of the three winners to cross the finish line together. Stevan Baxter also was presented with the “Ironman Award” the night before; this award was given to him as a result of his ongoing involvement in TLA and, specifically, for his continuous involvement in all parts of this particular TLA conference.

Final festivities were held at the at Shield’s Tavern on Saturday evening, which provided a relaxed environment on the final evening of the conference.A fife and drum corps escorted the attendees from the Williamsburg Lodge to the tavern.

Congratulations to Steve for an excellent and fun- filled conference! Special thanks go to Roger Watts for his gracious hosting of the hospitality suite, and to Jill Gabbert and Rebecca Pierucci of Kellen for their invaluable assistance in organizing the conference educational events and activities, including adapting to last-minute changes that always arise.