We just got back from time away at summer 2021 legal industry events over the last few weeks and wow are we energized!
First up, our President & COO Scott Shrum, Director of Business Development Rob Coleman, and Director of Sales Brian Mossman represented Hennessey Digital at AAJ, the American Association for Justice’s annual conference.
Dubbed JUSTICE 2021 for this year’s event, AAJ was at The Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas. Check out the highlights in this awesome video from the Hennessey Studios team:
AAJ in Photos
After a year without live events during COVID, the AAJ Annual Convention ushered in the summer conference season in true Vegas style.
It was great connecting with clients, vendors, and friends at AAJ. Although Hennessey Digital was an exhibitor at AAJ’s 2020 winter event, we opted to attend as sponsors and attendees for the 2021 summer conference.
We walked the exhibition hall and saw friends at other SEO and digital marketing agencies. It was exciting to see people out and enjoying themselves again!
With the event in Las Vegas, the nightlife was of course a highlight. Top Class Actions hosted a great reception one evening, and we had an amazing dinner at Javier’s at ARIA with clients and friends.
But the highlight of the week was a group lunch with Hennessey Digital’s Vegas-based team members Jason Simons, Gina Ibarra, and Justin Najar. It was a great meal and we loved the opportunity to see each other in person.
Summer 2021 Legal Industry Events Takeaways
We learn something new with every legal industry conference we attend. Here are our key takeaways from the AAJ 2021 conference:
- Events are back in a big way. The conference had nearly 2,000 in attendance this year and AAJ was very COVID-cautious with strict protocols for on-site attendees. AAJ brings a different crowd than the National Trial Lawyers Summit and we made several new connections at this event.
- AAJ is a great opportunity for attorneys to earn CLE. Lawyers could get up to a year’s worth of Continuing Learning Education credits (CLE) at the event. Virtual CLE was also an option for those not attending the live conference.
- AAJ marks the start of “conference season.” Summer 2021 legal industry events kick off with AAJ. Legal industry conferences happen through the fall and September and October are especially busy. Legal digital marketing partners should plan to attend multiple events throughout summer and fall to stay connected with industry trends.
Right after AAJ ended, Brian Mossman attended Law-Di-Gras, the ortho spine conference bridging doctors and lawyers. We can always count on him to keep the energy up: thanks for repping Hennessey Digital, Brian!
NACDL Recap
The week following AAJ, we attended the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) annual meeting in Milwaukee. NACDL inaugurated a new President at the event.
We learned a lot about criminal defense cases and the challenges attorneys face. Courts are still closed in parts of the country due to COVID and have a backlog of cases being heard. This was our first NACDL event, and our impression is that it’s a great group doing outstanding work.
The NACDL DWI conference is coming up in October, also in Las Vegas. The Milwaukee Bucks also won the NBA Finals while we were there and the victory parade came right past the conference: the city felt electric!
Criminal defense law is about protecting constitutional rights and equal protection under the law, regardless of guilt or innocence. These attorneys are passionate about making sure the law is followed, and we really respect the work they are doing.
Rob Coleman
Will we see you at any upcoming 2021 legal industry events? Tweet us at @HennesseyDgtl and let us know where you’ll be!