Would you like to support the IPA’s Patricia Murphy Coleman Scholarship Fund?

This pin is the Standard IPA Scholarship Pin, and 100% of your purchase goes directly toward the scholarship.

Pins will also be available for purchase on-site at the Education Conference.

At this time, I am looking for volunteers to serve as proctors. We cannot run this conference without volunteers and we need your help. Proctors are responsible for introducing the speaker, reading some brief announcements, passing out handouts and evaluation forms, overseeing the sign-in/sign-out process, distributing CLE certificates, and thanking the speaker. It is very simple to do, but so very important. If you would like to proctor any of the seminars that you are attending, please indicate here.

Artificial intelligence is becoming part of everyday legal work, but responsible use requires more than knowing how to use a tool. This session examines how paralegals can protect confidential information, use AI responsibly, and adhere to their firm’s policies and procedures. Participants will gain a practical overview of the differences between public AI platforms and enterprise accounts, including related privacy and third-party vendor considerations, along with leading AI tools, legal-industry trends, and the evolving U.S. AI-governance landscape. The session will leave time for discussion of real-world questions and practical use cases.

Katrina Hernandez, MJ, ILAP, CP, CRP

This presentation provides an inside look into the daily operations and critical responsibilities of a debtor's bankruptcy and tax resolution paralegal. Attendees will explore core procedural workflows, including petition preparation, CM/ECF docket management, client communication, and the strict ethical guardrails governing unauthorized practice of law (UPL). The session also examines the distinct dynamics of solo versus large firm environments, offering practical techniques for navigating complex schedules, tight filing deadlines, and emotionally distressed clients. Drawing on real-world experience, the presentation weaves in practical "war stories" from the trenches of consumer bankruptcy and tax controversy to illustrate common pitfalls and effective resolution strategies. Attendees will gain both actionable procedural insights and an appreciation for the unique rewards of guiding clients toward financial relief.

Julianne M. Di Benedetto, CP®, CRP®, AACP, ILAP, Paralegal

This session provides essential copyright knowledge needed to spot risks and support legal compliance in daily workflows. The presentation covers core IP principles—including fair use, ownership, and infringement—while addressing modern workplace challenges like social media usage and AI-generated content. By focusing on real-world scenarios rather than academic doctrine, attendees will learn how to identify copyright "red flags" when handling evidence, marketing materials, and digital assets.

Shawn Duckworth, Attorney, Convergence IP Law

Navigating Uncertain Waters: What you need to Know About Government Contracting in 2026: From “revolutionary” changes to the FAR and new Executive Orders to shifting procurement priorities and a growing emphasis on supply chain security, federal contractors face a rapidly evolving compliance environment under the current Administration. This session will explore some of the most significant recent developments in government contracting, with an emphasis on the practical issues you may encounter day-to-day and best practices for identifying and navigating these uncertain waters.

Ariel (Debin) Collinsworth, Associate, Sheppard

Collecting and Preserving Online & Electronic Evidence - Best Practices: What are the challenges in gathering evidence in a world where AI, Social Media, text messaging, and ephemeral apps? What must we do to collect and preserve evidence when so much evidence is intangible? Jim Fine will talk about this issue and encourage attendees to share their experiences and challenges in their own practices.

Jim Fine, Attorney, Professor, Roosevelt University Paralegal Studies Program

Financial discovery can get messy quickly. Statements are missing, transfers do not make sense, reported income does not match the spending, personal expenses are buried in business records, and sometimes assets are being hidden.

When discrepancies appear, the bigger question is often where the money went and whether it may be considered dissipation.

This session will focus on a paralegal’s role in sorting through the records and helping put the financial picture together. We will discuss what documents should be collected, compared, where missing information may turn up, how to identify spending that deserves a closer look, and how to organize everything in a way that is useful for the attorney.

Topics will include financial affidavits, tax returns, bank and credit card statements, retirement and business records, payment apps, cryptocurrency, subpoenas, third-party discovery, and when it may make sense to involve a forensic accountant.

Caroline M. Powell, Attorney, Sterk Family Law Group, P.C.

This session is designed to provide legal professionals a practical understanding of corporate filings, entity compliance, and the life cycle of a business entity. The program is intended to help participants build confidence in handling corporate transactions, understand key terminology and filing requirements, and avoid common filing errors and delays. The training combines foundational concepts with practical, real-world guidance that participants can apply in their day-to-day work.  The program is particularly beneficial for paralegals who support business entity formation, maintenance, and compliance activities.

Krista Abair, Product Manager, Capitol Services

This seminar will begin with an overview of Illinois Workers’ Compensation Law. It will then go into a specific focus on what happens if a worker is injured on the job and there is evidence that the worker may have been intoxicated at the time of the accident. We will then discuss what happens if a worker is injured in a fight or altercation with a coworker.

Dan DeBias, Partner, Horwitz, Horwitz & Associates

A successful defense starts with a fair assessment.

In a healthy office culture, you recognize that no one can have a legitimate stake in an improper, illegal, incorrect or unfair property tax assessment. Assessing officials have a very significant stake in the fairness and equity of the ad valorem taxation system as a whole, upon which taxpayers who pay the bills, taxing bodies which require steady income streams, and the public in general must rely.

So initial values should be as accurate as possible to reflect the true market-as well as it may be discerned and understood. Then, a vibrant appeals process should be encouraged to give the final assessment credibility and reliability so that the public may have confidence in its fairness.

In this presentation, Tatia and Christina will talk about the importance of:

a. accepting and embracing all stakeholders in the property tax system;
b. understanding the issues and limitations of computer statistical models in the mass appraisal valuation process;
c. appreciating that the valuation process is both an art and a science;
d. continuing education on real estate appraisal and valuation;
e. being open-minded and receptive to reasonable differences of opinion on value; and
f. a vibrant appeals process.

Tatia Gibbons, Chief Legal Counsel, and Christina Lynch, Office of the Cook County Assessor