Legal

Gerald BaronFounder and CEOPIER SystemsBuilding Trust During the Worst of TimesCorporations call it crisis communication or reputation management, but it is all about keeping and building trust. Crises are events that are usually unexpected and threaten the reputation of the organization or its leaders. Churches and Christian organizations have special challenges because of the high standards of moral behavior expected of the leaders. But crisis events offer unique opportunities to build trust if handled properly. This presentation will focus on how to identify the risks, how to prepare to respond quickly and effectively, keys to effective response, and understanding how your organization will change after the crisis is over. It will include discussion of the technology many organizations now use to collaborate and communicate quickly with a variety of critical audiences.About the presenter:
Gerald Baron is the Founder and CEO of PIER Systems, the leading provider of crisis communication information technology. He remains president of Baron & Company, a marketing and public relations firm. Previously, he was a regional magazine publisher, co-founder of a successful vertical market software company and a university professor. He holds an MA in Communications from Wheaton College and the Doctor of Humanities (Honoris Causa) from Trinity Western University.PIER (Public Information and Emergency Response) has been adopted within the US Coast Guard and many leading oil companies, as well as industry leaders such as Boeing, Allstate and WestFarm Foods. PIER has been used effectively in many major events including Hurricane Katrina, the Selandang Ayu sinking in Alaska, the BP Texas City refinery accident, and the G8 Summit in Georgia. As a communication responder to the Olympic Pipeline accident and other significant events, Mr. Baron recognized the need for a solution for companies to meet the challenges of the instant news and Internet-dominated world.Mr. Baron has written three books, including Now is Too Late2: Corporate Survival in an Era of Instant News, published in 2006. He is a frequent speaker at national public relations and industry conferences.Includes audio (MP3), workshop slides (PDF)Electronic download only (32Meg)

Matthew R. SchantzAttorneyBingham McHale LLP
“Intellectual property” law is often misunderstood, though we encounter intellectual property every day. Mr. Schantz will outline the types of intellectual property, how rights come to exist, and what is protected by each. With a focus primarily on copyright law as it relates to creative works that churches might often use or encounter, he will discuss what works are protected by copyright, copyright duration, what acts might infringe copyright, and what exceptions protect certain acts in certain situations that would otherwise infringe. Mr. Schantz will offer and discuss some hypothetical situations and actual court cases as data points for comparison. He hopes to enable roundtable participants to analyze situations enough to know what might be clearly non-infringing or clearly infringing, and when to call your intellectual property lawyer.
About the presenter:
Matt Schantz has extensive experience in intellectual property matters, including issues of patent, trademark, trade secret, and copyright law. He has written and prosecuted patent applications in electrical, electromechanical, semiconductor, software, mail processing, and electromagnetic technology, and has performed infringement analyses, preliminary patentability searches, and prior art research both prospectively and in support of litigation. Matt has also handled document production analysis, conducted case research, evaluation, and organization, and taken several depositions in litigation. He serves on the President’s Advisory Board of Rainmakers (an Indianapolis-based professional networking organization) and on an SBIR grant review panel for the National Science Foundation.Matt has been married fourteen years, and immensely enjoys his two sons, Eli and Isaac. He and his wife co-direct their congregation’s God Made Me Ministry, serving children who have special needs, and their families.
Includes audio (MP3) onlyElectronic download only (14Meg)

Ami WilliamsEditor and Copyright SpecialistSouthland Christian ChurchLexington, KYCopyright and the Church (Part 2) What would you do if……your Senior Pastor hands you his favorite Dilbert cartoon for the front of the worship folder this week?…your youth pastor wants to post a music video of the student ministries’ latest event featuring a song by Third Day?…your creative design team wants to use clips from the Dr. Phil show?Television. Songs. Cartoons. Icons.  As the church strives to creatively connect with an increasingly visual audience, our culture is rich with enticing metaphors, perfect for the next sermon or event promotion.  Copyright. Intellectual Property. Trademark.  The law is specific about how churches can and can’t use the ideas and creative concepts of others. Learn what the law says—and how it applies to your work. How do we honor the creators of the original concepts and ideas? And, perhaps, more challenging, how do we lead our staff and teams to do the same? Did you know that most of what your church produces is copyrighted? We’ll show you how to protect the original works of your church—sermons, songs, books, websites and more!About the Presenter:Ami Williams is the Editor and Copyright Specialist at Southland Christian Church in Lexington, Kentucky. For the last seven years, Ami has worked to design and enforce a copyright policy that gives Southland’s staff members the freedom to be creative within the boundaries of the copyright laws. She manages the permission and licensing processes for all of Southland’s ministries and is responsible for training staff members on how the laws apply to the church’s use of copyrighted materials such as music, literature and images. Through the development of a comprehensive copyright policy and the administration of a staff-wide procedure, Ami has helped Southland become an example for churches in the area of copyright compliance. When it comes to Southland’s use of copyrighted materials, one of Ami’s greatest lessons has been the realization that her job is not to tell staff members why using copyrighted materials is illegal—rather it is to find out how to use copyrighted materials legally to the glory of God.Includes audio (MP3), handouts, workshop slides (PDF)Electronic download only (13Meg)