Webinar: Demystifying Discovery: Fundamental Tools and Tactics for Law Clerks and New Lawyers

**Program hosted in (ET) Time Zone**

This CLE course will provide a foundational overview of discovery in federal civil litigation, including the use of interrogatories, requests for production, requests for admission, and depositions. The program offers practical tips for drafting clear discovery requests and responses to minimize objections and disputes in court and also will address tips for navigating discovery disputes that do arise in litigation. 

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Presented by the FBA’s Judiciary Division & Federal Judicial Law Clerk Committee

Presenters

Marty Fulgueira Elfenbein was sworn in as a United States Magistrate Judge for the Southern District of Florida on March 11, 2024. Before joining the judiciary, from September 2018 to March 2024, Judge Elfenbein served as an Assistant United States Attorney in Miami, prosecuting cases in the Major Crimes and Economic and Environmental Crimes Sections. In her last year as a prosecutor, she was the Chief of the Collateral Litigation Section, overseeing all post-conviction litigation and filter reviews on a district-wide basis. Prior to joining the U.S. Attorney’s Office, she worked as a law clerk for the Honorable Beth Bloom in the Southern District of Florida. From 2006 to 2016, Judge Elfenbein was an associate and later a partner at Rumberger, Kirk, and Caldwell, P.A. where she focused her federal and state practice in the areas of aviation law, products liability, premises liability, and insurance defense. She earned a degree in newspaper journalism in 2002 and a Juris Doctor degree in 2005, both from the University of Florida.

Prof. Debra M. Strauss, Professor of Business Law, Fairfield University

Debra M. Strauss is a Professor of Business Law at Fairfield University Charles F. Dolan School of Business, where she teaches international law, business law, and applied ethics. A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Cornell University and Yale Law School, she clerked for the Honorable Charles L. Brieant, Chief Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, and practiced commercial litigation at Rogers & Wells (now Clifford Chance LLP). Professor Strauss is the author of Behind the Bench: The Guide to Judicial Clerkships (West Academic Publishing, 3rd ed. 2023), a leading resource on the courts and judicial clerkships. She previously served as the founding Director of Judicial Clerkship Counseling and Programs at Yale Law School and authored the National Judicial Clerkship Study for the American Bar Association and the National Association for Law Placement. She is a founder and officer of the Connecticut Chapter of the Federal Bar Association and serves as Co-Chair of the Federal Judicial Law Clerk Committee of the FBA Judiciary Division. Professor Strauss frequently presents and consults on federal practice and effective advocacy in the courts, including practical guidance on litigation, legal writing, and judicial clerkship success.

Anoosheh Shaikh, Associate, Duane Morris LLP

Anoosheh Shaikh has developed a well-rounded practice focused on complex commercial litigation, securities, and employment litigation. She is well-versed in litigation strategy including managing discovery, drafting motions, and preparing for trial.

Prior to joining Duane Morris, Ms. Shaikh served as law clerk to the Hon. Embry Kidd of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida.

Ms. Shaikh is a 2022 cum laude graduate of the University of Miami School of Law and a cum laude graduate of The George Washington University. During law school, she was Vice President of the Charles C. Papy Jr. Moot Court Board and member of the International and Comparative Law Review. Additionally, she was inducted into the Order of Barristers National Honors Society for excellence in oral advocacy and brief writing.

Kaitlin Farrell, Partner, Haug Partners

Kaitlin Farrell has extensive patent law experience, focused primarily on patent litigation and pre-lawsuit investigations in matters related to pharmaceuticals, medical devices, chemicals, cosmetics, food/beverage, automotives, and consumer products. Kaitlin has developed significant trial and appellate experience that informs all elements of her litigation and due diligence practice. Kaitlin has experience with a wide range of pharmaceutical products, including treatments for neurological, hematologic, dermatologic, gynecologic, and rare-disease conditions, as well as various extended-release, topical, subcutaneous, and biologic drug formulations. Kaitlin has litigated major patent disputes before the PTAB, the ITC, and in major patent venues across the country. She has also represented clients before U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. She is an active contributor to local, national, and international intellectual property associations. She is a graduate of Notre Dame Law School and Fordham University.

Christina Dines, Law Clerk at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit (Moderator)

Christina Dines is presently serving as a judicial law clerk for the Honorable Adalberto Jordan of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.  She previously clerked for the Honorable John L. Sinatra, Jr. of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York and for Justice John D. Couriel of the Florida Supreme Court, and serves on the Federal Bar Association’s Federal Judicial Law Clerk Committee.
In addition to her clerkships, which have informed her advocacy, Christina has extensive litigation experience.  As a senior associate in the Miami office of Baker McKenzie LLP, she was a member of the firm’s Litigation & Government Enforcement Practice Group.  She has assisted clients in navigating high-stakes matters involving complex civil disputes, internal and external investigations, and federal civil RICO.  She has worked on cases across several state and federal courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court.
A graduate of the University of Notre Dame and Notre Dame Law School, and a former Division I coxswain, Christina serves on the Notre Dame Monogram Club Board of Directors.

Registration

Register Now!

• Live Broadcast | FBA Member: $0
• Live Broadcast | Nonmember: $95
• On-Demand Broadcast | FBA Member: $50
• On-Demand Broadcast | Nonmember: $95