This panel will discuss the unique challenges being faced by attorneys and judges during this time of global pandemic including the unique ethical concerns faced by attorneys resulting from the pandemic, its impact on clients and their cases, and navigating the new normal of Zoom and WebEx trial practice.

Hon. Donald M. Haddock
Chief Judge
Alexandria General District Court

Hon. Donald M. Haddock, Jr., Chief Judge, has been sitting in the Alexandria General District Court since 2008.  Prior to becoming a judge, he was in private practice, the last five years of which he had a solo practice in Alexandria based primarily in litigation.  He attended the University of Virginia as an undergraduate and for law school.

Seth Guggenheim
Assistant Ethics Counsel
Virginia State Bar

Seth has practiced law in both the public and private sectors for over 35 years. He has held leadership positions in the Alexandria Bar Association and frequently lectures on legal ethics and professional regulation to bar associations and other groups.  Seth is an adjunct professor at the Washington College of Law at American University, having taught a course for nine years entitled Ethics for Trial Lawyers. He also volunteers to judge law student competitions. Between February of 2000 and April of 2012, Seth was a prosecutor for the Virginia State Bar.  He is now assistant ethics counsel for the Bar, giving Ethics Hotline advice to attorneys, presenting at seminars, and assisting the Bar's Standing Committee on Legal Ethics in the generation of legal ethics opinions. Seth earned his bachelor's degree at Boston University and is a graduate of the Washington College of Law at American University, where he was awarded a Juris Doctor degree.  Seth is an active member of the Virginia State Bar and an inactive member of the District of Columbia bar.

Kathleen Uston

Kathleen M. Uston is an adjunct professor of law at American University Washington College of Law teaching Ethics for Trial Lawyers, and served as Assistant Bar Counsel with the Virginia State Bar for thirteen years. She received her J.D. from George Mason University School of Law in 1991 where she served as President of the Student Bar Association and as a Justice on the Moot Court Board. Ms. Uston was previously in private practice focusing in the areas of attorney ethical defense work, GAL representation, and civil litigation. While in private practice, she also served as a Commissioner in Chancery for the Circuit Court for the City of Alexandria. Ms. Uston is a past President of the VSB Young Lawyers Conference during which time she served on the VSB Council and Executive Committee.  She also served as vice-chair of the American Bar Association Young Lawyers Division Solo and Small Firm Committee. Ms. Uston is a former President of the Alexandria Bar Association and the National Organization of Bar Counsel. Ms. Uston is currently serving as the NOBC's Delegate to the American Bar Association House of Delegates, is a member of the National Task Force on Lawyer Well-Being, a member of the Presidential Committee on Wellness of the Virginia State Bar, and served as a member of the Virginia Committee on Lawyer Wellness formed by the Chief Justice of the Virginia Supreme Court. Ms. Uston has lectured extensively on the subject of attorney ethics and co-authored the updated edition of Lawyers and Other People's Money with Frank Thomas, Esquire. 

Session Sponsor: The Oakley Group