Events

Upcoming Events

Berkeley Law Alumni Reunion
Best Practices in Court Administration: What We’ve Learned from COVID-19
Friday, October 2, 9:00 A.M.

Courts, lawyers and judges are accustomed to moving deliberately. The pandemic has challenged courts to do things in ways that are unfamiliar and the effects of which often are uncertain. Judge Jeremy Fogel will moderate a discussion about those challenges with leading alumni judges of both state and federal courts.

Agenda
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Past Events

The Elements of Judicial Temperament (Part Two)
Wednesday, September 9, 12:00 P.M. PT

BJI’s July 15 presentation on judicial temperament introduced Professor Terry Maroney’s groundbreaking analysis of the elements of judicial temperament, the constellation of psychological traits that predict how judges will respond to the challenges of their work. Professor Maroney explained that while a person’s temperament is largely stable by adulthood, every judge has an “envelope of possibility” in which they can adapt their temperament to the professional requirements and public expectations of judges.

At the conclusion of the presentation, many judges in the audience suggested a follow up program to examine the ways in which judges may understand their own temperamental traits and use that understanding to improve their judicial performance. This is that follow-up program. Once again, Judge Jeremy Fogel, BJI’s Executive Director, and Professor Terry Maroney will discuss Professor Maroney’s cutting edge research.

1.0 hour of CLE credit offered.

(We strongly encourage you to watch the first program before participating in the second.)

Access Professor Maroney’s Article:
(What We Talk About When We Talk About) Judicial Temperament

Slides
Event recording

Court Web: A Discussion of Implicit Bias
Federal Judicial Center
August 19, 2020

Host Brenda Baldwin-White, Senior Judicial Education Attorney, talks with Judge Bernice Donald, Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, Professor Jennifer Eberhardt, department of psychology at Stanford University, and Judge Jeremy Fogel (ret.), Executive Director of the Berkeley Judicial Institute and former Director of the Federal Judicial Center, about how the dynamics of implicit bias and social context affect decision making.  In this ninety- minute presentation, Brenda and her guests will discuss how unconscious assumptions can influence the ways in which people perceive facts and draw inferences notwithstanding their genuine commitment to fairness. 

Event recording

Judicial Temperament
Wednesday, July 15, 12:00 P.M. PT

“Sober as a judge” is a trope for good reason, but there has been little serious study about the elements of judicial temperament. Most people who have spent time in court can think of both positive and negative examples of judicial behavior, but developing a psychological framework for understanding that behavior is surprisingly difficult.  As virtual proceedings provide more transparency, judges are on public view to a greater extent than ever before.  What should viewers be looking for?

Judge Jeremy Fogel, BJI Executive Director, and Professor Terry Maroney will discuss Professor Maroney’s cutting edge research on this topic.

Access Professor Maroney’s Article: (What We Talk About When We Talk About) Judicial Temperament

Event recording

Testimony of Hon. Jeremy Fogel (ret.), Executive Director of Berkeley Judicial Institute, to the United States House Judiciary Committee, Subcommittee on Courts.
Thursday, June 25

“Expanding Electronic Access to the Federal Courts: The Unexpected Opportunity Presented by the COVID-19 Pandemic”

Event recording – Judge Fogel’s testimony starts at 26:20.

Best Practices in Court Administration: What We’ve Learned from COVID
Wednesday, June 24, 12:00 P.M. PT

Courts, lawyer and judges move deliberately. The pandemic has challenged courts to do things in ways that are uncomfortable. Judge Jeremy Fogel, BJI Executive Director, will moderate a discussion about those challenges with key court players. Participants are IAALS Executive Director Justice Scott Bales and U.S. District Court Judge Julie Robinson.

Event recording

Best Practices in Judicial Administration: What We’ve Learned During COVID
Wednesday, June 3, 12:00 P.M. PT

Good realized during a crisis would be awful to waste. Judge Jeremy Fogel, BJI Executive Director, will moderate a discussion of some of the positive impact for the courts during the pandemic, with some key players creating that positive impact. Participants are Michigan Chief Justice Bridget Mary McCormack and Professor Caitlin Moon.

Event recording

Mindful Judging: Thinking Fast and Slow
May 12, 2020

Professor Scott Rogers interviews Judge Jeremy Fogel. They explore the elegant portions of Judge Fogel’s 2016 article “Mindfulness and Judging,” this time focusing on his reference to Daniel Kahneman’s book, “Thinking, Fast and Slow.”

Event recording

Judicial Panel: PTAB’s LEAP Initiative for NextGen Lawyers

Friday, May 29
12:00 P.M.PST, 2:00 P.M. CST, 3:00 P.M. EST)

Sponsors: Federal Circuit Bar Association; Berkeley Center for Law & Technology; ChIPs

Please join the Federal Circuit Bar Association, Berkeley Center for Law & Technology, the Berkeley Judicial Institute, & ChIPs for a discussion on the USPTO’s Legal Experience and Advancement Program (LEAP), which launched earlier this month. The LEAP initiative is designed to encourage the professional development of patent attorneys and agents appearing before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) through increased opportunities for oral advocacy.

Panelists:

Deputy Chief Judge Jackie Bonilla

Judge Bonilla currently serves as the Deputy Chief Judge at the PTAB at the USPTO. Since her appointment as an Administrative Patent Judge in January 2012, she has conducted numerous post-grant patent trials under the America Invents Act, heard appeals from adverse examiner decisions in patent applications and reexamination proceedings, and rendered decisions in interferences. Previously, she worked for twelve years in private practice, including as a partner at Foley & Lardner, LLP. She also served as a judicial law clerk to the now-retired Chief Judge Randall Rader at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. Judge Bonilla graduated from the University of Virginia School of Law, and holds a Ph.D. in Pharmacology from the University of Virginia, and a B.A. in Biochemistry from the University of California, Berkeley.

Vice Chief Judge Janet Gongola

Janet Gongola manages internal and external engagement on behalf of the PTAB, including development of educational programs and PTAB procedures and rules. She was appointed to the PTAB in October 2016. Before joining the Board, Judge Gongola was the Senior Advisor to the Under Secretary and Director of the USPTO where she advised on all matters of law and policy. Before joining the USPTO, Judge Gongola served as a law clerk for the Honorable Paul R. Michel at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and for the Honorable Judge Sue L. Robinson at the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware. In addition, Judge Gongola worked as a patent attorney, patent agent, and research chemist at Eli Lilly and Company in Indianapolis, Indiana. Judge Gongola graduated from Indiana University School of Law, and she received B.S. degrees in Chemistry and Mathematics from Muskingum University.

Judge Christa Zado

Judge Zado serves as an Administrative Patent Judge at the USPTO.

The Panel will be introduced by:

Kathi Vidal. Kathi is managing partner of Winston & Strawn’s Silicon Valley office and one of the leading patent litigators and Federal Circuit advocates in the country. Kathi founded the ChIPs Next Gen effort and advises tribunals on Next Gen issues and orders.

The Panel will be moderated by Winston & Strawn Associates and PTAB advocates who qualify for the LEAP program:

Claire Fundakowski. Claire is a former Federal Circuit clerk for Judge Kimberly Moore and registered pharmacist with a Pharm.D. She represents clients in patent litigation with a focus on Hatch-Waxman litigation and appeals.

Noori Torabi. Noori is a registered patent attorney with a B.S. and M.S. in Biotechnology and a Ph.D. in Molecular Biology. She litigates patent disputes in district court and in the PTAB.