Officials of statewide bar associations that are affiliated with the ISBA are being invited to a Bar Leadership Conference Friday and Saturday, May 18-19, at the Renaissance Hotel Convention Center in Schaumburg.

The ISBA Board of Governors will meet at 9 a.m. May 18 at the convention center. Conference attendees are invited to attend the board luncheon at 12:30 p.m. Registration for bar association leaders will begin at 10 a.m.

The conference will begin at 2 p.m. with a pair of simultaneous presentations.

Track I, Hot Topics Facing Bar Leaders, will focus on “Staying Abreast of Emerging Issues and Changing News Within the Legal Profession.”

Speakers are ISBA President Irene F. Bahr, general counsel Mary T. McDermott and Chicago attorney Christopher C. Kendall of the Committee on Professional Conduct.

Track II, Trends in Print and Electronic Publications, will cover “Choosing the Right Communications Channel Is More Important than Ever.”

Speakers are ISBA Bar News editor Stephen Anderson and Bryan Sims of Thompson, Rosenthal & Watts, Naperville.

At 3:30 p.m., two more track discussions will ensue, as follows.

Track I, Getting the Attention You Deserve: Media Relations for Bar Leaders, “Learn How to Deal with Print and TV Reporters in Getting Your Message Out.”

Speakers are ISBA assistant executive director David N. Anderson and communications counsel Chris Ruys of Chicago.

Track II, Keeping Your Association Legal, “Learn About Fiduciary Responsibility and Governance,” with Samuel J. Erkonen of Howe & Hutton, Chicago.

From 6 to 9 p.m., members of the Board of Governors and leaders of affiliated bar associations will join in a social event, with food from Chicago neighborhoods, blues and jazz music.

Attendance by affiliated bar association officers, board members and executive directors is complimentary. Guests may attend for $30 each.

On Saturday, May 19, the Bar Leaders Conference will resume with a 7:30 a.m. continental breakfast and an 8 a.m. plenary session on “Passing the Leadership Baton and Winning the Race.”

The interactive session on Thanking the Veterans, Teaching the Rookies and Taking Everyone to the Next Level will feature Robert Shaver, director of the Fluno Center for Executive Education at the University of Wisconsin.

The presentation is sponsored by the ISBA Mutual Insurance Co.

Separate breakout sessions will follow at 10:15 a.m. for leaders of larger bar associations (175-plus members) and of smaller bar associations. President Bahr will address the concluding luncheon at 12 noon.

For more information, contact Janet M. Sosin at jsosin@isba.org or (312) 726-8775. For hotel reservations, at the ISBA block rate of $139 per night, call the hotel at (847) 393-4100.