Romance and Courtroom Scandals | On-Demand CLE Ethics Webinar

Secrets, Scandals, and Sanctions: When Romance Corrupts the Courtroom and Firms Pay the Price | On-Demand CLE Ethics Webinar

Broadcast Date: Thursday, October 23, 2025, from 12:00 PM to 2:00 PM (ET)

What happens when a top judge hides a secret romance with a law firm partner working before him — and the firm allegedly looks the other way? This explosive case out of Texas exposes a dark underbelly of legal ethics: betrayal of trust, concealment, and systemic failure. Jackson Walker’s looming trial isn’t just about money—it’s about whether law firms are turning a blind eye to failures of integrity from within the organization.

Join Francesca Giannoni-Crystal, Attorney at Law and Founder of Crystal & Giannoni-Crystal LLC, and Marc Tassé, Director of the MBA Program at the Telfer School of Management, University of Ottawa, in this CLE ethics webinar as they dissect how this case shatters the illusion of professionalism and compels lawyers to confront the devastating consequences when private passion collides with public duty.

Key Topics:

• Spot undisclosed relationships and ethical breaches
• Understand courtroom fallout: sanctions & dismissed cases
• Gauge reputational, financial, and compliance risks
• Balance loyalty to colleagues with fidelity to the law
• Apply takeaways from recent high-profile scandals

Learning Objectives:

• Examine recent scandals and case examples to understand how conflicts of interest and ethical lapses arise in legal and corporate settings.
• Analyze supervisory obligations, firm culture, and oversight responsibilities in maintaining ethical compliance.
• Evaluate the interplay between ethical issues, litigation remedies, and choice of law in managing conflicts of interest.
• Develop effective policies, training, and governance strategies to mitigate risks and strengthen organizational accountability.

Why Attend This Webinar?

This CLE ethics webinar offers practical insights into how hidden relationships and ethical lapses can erode trust, invite sanctions, and damage reputations. Attendees will learn to identify red flags, manage conflicts, and uphold integrity—all while earning CLE ethics credits.

Agenda:

SEGMENT 1: Francesca Giannoni-Crystal, Attorney at Law, Founder, Crystal & Giannoni Crystal LLC

• Recent Illustrations and Broader Scandals
• Improper Relationships as Conflicts of Interest
• The Supervisory Obligation Dimension
• Choice of Law in Conflicts of Interest
• Ethics Issues vs. Litigation Remedies
• Broader Implications

SEGMENT 2: Marc Tassé, Director – MBA Program, Telfer School of Management, University of Ottawa

• Assessing Risks and Accountability When Ethical Lapses Occur
• Impact of Firm Culture and Oversight on Ethical Compliance
• Balancing Colleague Loyalty with Legal and Fiduciary Duties
• Lessons from Scandals for Risk Management and Governance
• Policy, Training, and Structural Strategies to Prevent Failures

Who Should Attend:

• General Counsel
• Chief Legal Officer
• Chief Compliance Officer
• Risk Managers
• Ethics & Compliance Professionals
• Law Firm Partners and Administrators
• In-House Counsel
• Litigation Support Professionals
• Human Resources Executives
• Corporate Governance Officers
• Legal Operations Managers

Uphold Ethics and Integrity in the Legal Profession!

Join this timely CLE ethics webinar presented by The Knowledge Group to explore how personal misconduct and undisclosed relationships can compromise professional judgment and expose firms to serious ethical and reputational risks.

Learn from experienced speakers as they examine a high-profile Texas case revealing the consequences when private passion collides with public duty—and what it teaches about integrity, accountability, and responsibility in the legal profession.

Earn CLE ethics credit while strengthening commitment to ethical practice and public trust.

Register for this course by clicking the “Take this Course” at the top of the page.