On October 12, 2016, the Berkeley Center for Law, Business and the Economy (BCLBE) welcomed Dave Kling (’97), Vice President, Deputy Counsel, and Corporate Secretary of Facebook for a Q&A discussion about his career, his role at Facebook, and the variety of legal challenges Facebook faces as a company.
Recap: “Venture Capital Speaker Series—The Tech Counsel”
Recap: “Innovating for Social Impact”
On October 3, the Berkeley Center for Law, Business and the Economy (BCLBE) held a speaker series entitled “Innovating for Social Impact.” The center welcomed three leading attorneys in social entrepreneurship and nonprofit legal strategy: Joel Beck-Coon, Nancy McGlamery and Will Fitzpatrick.
Recap: “Law Firm Hot Topic: Andrew Thorpe and Karen Dempsey, Orrick”
On October 5, 2016, the Berkeley Center for Law, Business and the Economy (BCLBE) hosted Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP (Orrick) attorneys Andrew Thorpe, Karen Dempsey, and John Palmer, for a conversation on how to best serve as a trusted advisor to clients.
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Recap: “Venture Capital Speaker Series—Paul Vronsky, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers”
On February 10, 2016, the Berkeley Center for Law, Business and the Economy (BCLBE) welcomed Paul Vronsky, general counsel of Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, for a discussion of his role at Kleiner Perkins and the future of venture capital.
A graduate of Stanford Law, Vronsky made his start at Gunderson Dettmer Stough Villeneuve Franklin & Hacigian, LLP, where he first encountered venture fund formation and management. Venture funds are unique among corporate work in that they require long-term legal strategies to anticipate the unpredictable life cycles of companies. The exceptionally high tax rate on capital gains also necessitates skills in tax law in order to truly master venture fund work, which Vronsky honed in a post-graduation class at his alma mater. Subsequently, by the end of Vronsky’s four years at Gunderson, 70 to 80 percent of his time was being dedicated to Kleiner Perkins alone.
Event Recap: Berkeley Sustainable Business & Investment Forum (Part I)
On November 10 & 11, 2015 the University of California, Berkeley School of Law and Berkeley Haas School of Business jointly hosted the inaugural Berkeley Sustainable Business & Investment Forum at the University Club on campus. Key players from across all industries and academia attended the two-day event to share perspectives and insight on evolving topics of risk management, capital investment, and sustainable business practices with a focus on long term growth and value creation for all stakeholders.
The event was co-sponsored by PepsiCo, Visa, and PriceWaterhouseCoopers (“PwC”). The forum focused on the advancement of risk management, capital allocation, and sustainable business practices, with an emphasis on long-term value-creation
This is part one of a three-part series dedicated to coverage of the event.
Event Recap: Berkeley Sustainable Business & Investment Forum (Part II)
On November 10 & 11, 2015 the University of California, Berkeley School of Law and Berkeley Haas School of Business jointly hosted the inaugural Berkeley Sustainable Business & Investment Forum at the University Club on campus. Key players from across all industries and academia attended the two-day event to share perspectives and insight on evolving topics of risk management, capital investment, and sustainable business practices with a focus on long term growth and value creation for all stakeholders.
The event was co-sponsored by PepsiCo, Visa, and PriceWaterhouseCoopers (“PwC”). The forum focused on the advancement of risk management, capital allocation, and sustainable business practices, with an emphasis on long-term value-creation
This is part two of a three-part series dedicated to coverage of the event.
Event Recap: Berkeley Sustainable Business & Investment Forum (Part III)
On November 10 & 11, 2015 the University of California, Berkeley School of Law and Berkeley Haas School of Business jointly hosted the inaugural Berkeley Sustainable Business & Investment Forum at the University Club on campus. Key players from across all industries and academia attended the two-day event to share perspectives and insight on evolving topics of risk management, capital investment, and sustainable business practices with a focus on long term growth and value creation for all stakeholders.
The event was co-sponsored by PepsiCo, Visa, and PriceWaterhouseCoopers (“PwC”). The forum focused on the advancement of risk management, capital allocation, and sustainable business practices, with an emphasis on long-term value-creation
This is part three of a three-part series dedicated to coverage of the event.
Recap: “Practitioner Speaker Series – Life of a Corporate Finance Attorney: A Conversation with Philip Jonathan Tendler, Partner in Pillsbury’s SF Office”
On October 22, 2015, the Berkeley Center for Law, Business, and the Economy (BCLBE) welcomed Philip J. Tendler, Partner in Pillsbury’s SF Office, for a Q&A discussion about his career and how law school can arm students with the skillset needed to succeed in the wild world of debt finance.
A former equity securities analyst in the Global Energy and Power Group at Schroders, Mr. Tendler joined Pillsbury after graduating from Boalt in 2000.
Travelling back in time, Mr. Tendler reflected on the things he learned in law school that helped him demystify the concepts and themes of finance in his practice. The conversation was weaved around two anecdotes that he shared from his time at Boalt.
Recap: “Venture Capital Speaker Series: Stephanie Brecher, General Counsel of New Enterprise Associates”
How does a Berkeley Law graduate end up as the General Counsel of one of Silicon Valley’s top venture capital firms? What does a day in the life of a General Counsel look like and what are the best steps to take to reach a similar prestigious career?
On September 29, Stephanie Brecher, a 1993 U.C. Berkeley Law graduate and General Counsel of New Enterprise Associates (“NEA”), addressed these questions and others to a group of law students in Boalt Hall on the U.C. Berkeley campus.
Ms. Brecher discussed her path from Berkeley Law to NEA. In the start of her career, she described herself as an “accidental tourist” in corporate law. After graduation, Ms. Brecher held a clerkship in the Central District of California. Upon completion of her clerkship, she decided not to take the position she had initially planned on, and instead she accepted a position as an associate at Steptoe & Johnson in Washington, D.C., where she hoped to work in international law, but was placed on the corporate team. After this position she worked as in-house counsel in Silicon Valley and spent nearly a decade at Nortel. Following her time at Nortel, Ms. Brecher returned to work at a law firm and became a partner at Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton before she acquired her position at NEA.
Regulation and the Future of Money: Mobile Payment and Virtual Currencies
What exactly is Bitcoin? You may have heard a great deal about this in the media. You may know that it is a virtual currency. You may have heard news that the evaluation of Bitcoin once skyrocketed to a record of $900. But you may not have heard an analysis of Bitcoin and other virtual currencies in the legal community.