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2026 IndyBar Bench Bar Conference presented by Wilson Kehoe & Winingham LLC
Conference Agenda
This agenda is subject to change.
Want to suggest a speaker or topic for future consideration? Please complete this form.
All events will take place at the French Lick Resort unless otherwise noted. Visit here for hotel information.
Thursday, June 11
10 a.m.
Optional Golf Outing: Donald Ross Course
Boxed lunches will be provided.
Sponsored by Lewis Wagner & Trimble
1 - 4 p.m.
Pickleball Tournament: French Lick's New Pickleball Courts
Participants to self-select skill level with registration.
Sponsored by Christie Bell & Marshall
2 - 3 p.m.
Yin Yoga - Reset & Arrive: Habig
Transition out of a day of travel and into presence with a restorative yin yoga practice designed to release tension and calm the nervous system. Through supported, long-held postures, you’ll create space in both body and mind. This session invites you to slow down, settle in, and fully arrive. All you need for this class is yourself - no experience needed, and mats provided.
Sponsored by Scott Legal Group
3:30 - 5 p.m.
Adult Swim: French Lick Pools
Sponsored by Hurst Limontes LLC
2 p.m. - 6 p.m.
Conference Registration: Hoosier Business Center
Check-in to receive your name tag, meal tickets, conference materials, and more.
Hospitality amenities provided by Rebecca W. Geyer & Associates
5 p.m. - 6 p.m.
Speed Networking: Nixon
Build your practice and establish your Bench Bar connections. IndyBar's Solo and Small Firm Division, along with the Young Lawyers Division, will guide these brief, focused conversations. You can expect to engage with people seeking a genuine connection, learn about new industries, find business opportunities, and gain insights from your IndyBar peers.
6:30 - 9 p.m.
Bench Bar Kick-Off Event: West Baden Atrium
Sponsored by Bose McKinney & Evans LLP
Join us for an event that has dinner, drinks, and a place for everyone at Bench Bar to enjoy themselves!
9 - 10:30 p.m.
Dessert Reception: French Lick Lower Garden
Sponsored by JAMS ADR
friDAY, JUNE 12
6:30 - 7:30 a.m.
Morning Energizing Yoga - Set the Tone: Habig Room
Begin your day with intentional movement that builds energy, focus, and clarity. This accessible class combines breath and strength-based flow to help you feel grounded and prepared for your day. Step into your day with purpose and momentum.
Sponsored by Scott Legal Group
7 - 8 a.m.
Run/Walk: Meet in the Hotel Lobby
Sponsored by John R. Maley
7:30 - 8:30 a.m.
Coffee with the Courts (includes breakfast): Hoosier B
Start your day off by making meaningful connections at this informal breakfast event, designed to bring attorneys and other legal professionals together with members of the judiciary. We’ll have judges from a variety of courts, locations, and practice areas ready to engage in candid conversation in this relaxed setting.
- Commercial Court Section: Sponsorship available
- Family Law Section: Sponsored by Our Family Wizard
- Criminal Law Section: Sponsorship available
- Civil Law Section: Sponsorship available
8 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Conference Registration: Hoosier Business Center
Check in to receive your name tag, meal tickets, conference materials and more.
8:30 - 9:30 a.m. (1.0 General Credit, 1.0 Ethics)
Plenary Session: Championship Mindset: Resilience and Purpose in High-Pressure Professions: Hoosier A
In this one-hour interactive session, I draw from my experience as a Super Bowl champion, entrepreneur, and leadership coach to address the realities attorneys face in high-stakes, high-pressure environments. The program focuses on managing pressure, responding to adversity, navigating change, and sustaining long-term excellence without burnout.
The session includes a brief opening icebreaker to encourage engagement and reflection, followed by practical frameworks and real-world stories that connect elite performance principles to the demands of legal practice.
Key takeaways include:
• A practical resilience framework for managing stress and maintaining clarity under pressure
• Tools to reframe adversity and career transitions as opportunities for growth and reinvention
• Strategies for aligning professional purpose and supporting ethical judgment, motivation, and longevity
Sponsored by Eskew Law
Featuring: Gary Brackett, National Motivational Speaker and Former NFL Player/Super Bowl Champion
9:30 - 10:30 a.m. (1.0 General Credit, 1.0 Ethics)
Plenary Session: AI Fluency for Lawyers: Developing Your Professional AI Skills: Hoosier A
This session explores how to improve your "AI fluency" and forge more effective partnerships with your AI tools. DJ Gross, a trial lawyer and recognized AI leader, will demonstrate dynamic AI interactions, teach core AI skills, and offer a clear roadmap to advance your AI proficiency. Attendees will leave with a set of productive AI habits and workflows.
Sponsored by Lexis Nexis
Featuring: David J.F. Gross, Faegre Drinker LLP
10:30 - 10:45 a.m.
Exhibitor Break: Hoosier Hallways
Visit with our exhibitors and drop your business card to be eligible for awesome door prizes!
Sponsored by Becker Bouwkamp Walker PC
11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Breakout Sessions
Preparing for Publicity in High Profile Trials (1.0 Ethics Credit): Nixon
This program examines the Rules of Professional Conduct through the lens of real-world experience, highlighting how counsel can ethically navigate intense scrutiny from documentarians, podcasters, YouTubers, and traditional media. Gain practical strategies for managing publicity, protecting client interests, and maintaining professionalism when your case draws the spotlight.
Sponsored by Jackson Legal Services, PC
Featuring Andy Baldwin, Baldwin Perry & Wiley PC; Terrance Kinnard, Kinnard Rowley Powers Jimenez; Bryan Smith, Maryan Uliana & Smith
Establishing Estates for Wrongful Death and Civil Claims: Practical Guidance for Litigators (1.0 General Credit): Reagan
Wrongful death and certain survival claims often require the timely establishment of an estate before litigation can proceed. Understanding how and when to open an estate, and how that process impacts case strategy, can prevent costly delays and procedural complications. Gain actionable insight into integrating estate administration into litigation strategy, improving efficiency, and safeguarding claims for your clients.
Featuring Ashley Butz, FBT Gibbons LLP
Who Wants to Be a GAL? Navigating Trauma, Ethics, and the Hardest Calls (1.0 General Credit): Ford
Step into the hot seat for this interactive, game-show–style CLE inspired by Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. Using GAL scenarios, participants will tackle trauma-informed practice, ethical gray areas, high-conflict dynamics, and those moments when every option feels imperfect. Come test your instincts, compare approaches, and sharpen your judgment for the toughest calls GALs make.
Sponsored by Ruppert & Schaefer PC
Featuring The Hon. Melanie Kendrick, Marion Superior Court; Lainie Hurwitz, Ruppert & Schaefer PC; Emily Angel Shaw, Kids' Voice of Indiana
The Intentional Week: A Practice Wellness Reset (1.0 Ethics Credit): Eisenhower
The demands of legal practice are constant, and without intentional structure, work can quickly expand to fill all available space, leaving little time to take care of yourself, which can quickly lead to stress, inefficiency, and burnout. This session introduces the Intentional Week framework, a practical approach to planning your weeks in a way that supports both professional effectiveness and personal well-being.
Sponsored by Scott Legal Group
Featuring Shawn M. Scott, Scott Legal Group
12:00 - 1:00 p.m.
Lunch & Information Tables: Hoosier BC
Sponsored by Brown Carrington PLLC
1:00 - 2:00 p.m.
Breakout Sessions
Crimmigration (1.0 General Credit): Nixon
This session will cover updates to law and policy impacting criminal cases involving immigrants including the Laken Riley Act, mandatory detention, and increased use of 287(g) agreements between local and state law enforcement and the US Department of Homeland Security. We will also discuss best practices for criminal defense counsel in working with non-citizen clients.
Featuring Kevin Muñoz, Munoz Legal LLC
Crypto on Trial: Tracing, Verifying, and Explaining Digital Assets (1.0 General Credit): Reagan
Teaching attorneys about the process of verifying cryptocurrency of ownership and transfers focusing on what is possible, how it works, and a practical, foundational understanding of the steps involved. The goal is not for them to conduct the analysis themselves, but to equip them with enough knowledge to understand the process, ask the right questions, and effectively evaluate the findings.
Featuring Darin McVicker, Illinois Police Department
Hidden Assets in Complex Divorce Litigation (1.0 General Credit): Ford
Using Aulakh v. Aulakh as a case study, this session explores strategies for uncovering hidden assets, proving fraudulent transfers, and presenting complex financial evidence in a clear, compelling way. Attendees will learn how to develop persuasive case themes from the outset and leverage demonstrative exhibits to help the court navigate high-conflict, high-stakes divorce litigation.
Sponsored by CohenMalad LLP
Featuring Mike McBride and Brian Zoeller, both of CohenMalad, LLP
Meditation - Reset in Real Time: Eisenhower
Even in a well-planned week, stress and demands on your time can persist. This session includes a guided meditation followed by simple breath and grounding techniques you can integrate into your daily routine, whether between meetings, before difficult conversations, or during moments of stress. You will leave this session with practical tools to help protect your energy and support a more sustainable and effective practice.
Sponsored by Scott Legal Group
Featuring Shawn M. Scott, Scott Legal Group
2:00 - 2:30 p.m.
Exhibitor Break: Hoosier Hallways
Exhibitors will raffle off awesome door prizes!
Sponsored by Patel Defense LLC
2:45 - 3:45 p.m.
Judicial Breakout Sessions
This program will feature a panel of distinguished judges who will share insights into courtroom practices, procedures, and professional expectations. You will have the opportunity to ask questions, engage in thoughtful discussion, and gain valuable insights into judicial preferences and practice tips.
Criminal Court Judges: Nixon
Sponsored by Aware Recovery
Featuring The Hon. Angela Davis, The Hon. Charnette Garner, The Hon. Helen Marchal, The Hon. Cynthia Oetjen
Civil Court Judges: Reagan
Featuring The Hon. David Certo, The Hon. PJ Dietrick, The Hon. Tim Oakes
Family Court Judges: Ford
Sponsored by Yosha Snyder Group
Featuring The Hon. Alicia Gooden, The Hon. Melanie Kendrick, The Hon. Philip Sheward, Magistrate Pauline A. Beeson
Commercial Court Judges: Eisenhower
Sponsored by Hoover Hull Turner
Featuring The Hon. Jonathan Brown, The Hon. Christina Klineman
4:00 - 5:00 p.m.
Beer & Bull Sessions
Continue the conversation beyond the CLE in our relaxed and interactive Beer & Bull Sessions. Guests are invited to grab a drink during a short break before engaging with judges and fellow attendees on a more social level. Whether discussing practice tips, courtroom experiences, emerging legal issues, or simply building relationships within the bench and bar, these sessions provide a unique opportunity for meaningful dialogue outside the formal program setting.
Criminal Court Judges: Nixon
Civil Court Judges: Reagan
Family Court Judges: Ford Sponsored by Baker Lindsey Sadler Family Law
Commercial Court Judges: Eisenhower
6:30 - 9 p.m.
Bench Bar Sunset Soirée: Pete Dye Pavillion
After a full day of thoughtful discussion, join your colleagues for an evening designed to relax, reconnect, and celebrate the Bench Bar community. Enjoy cocktails and a thoughtfully curated dinner while mingling with conference guests in the beautiful setting of the Pete Dye Pavilion.
Sponsored by Torchlight Resolutions and The Gibson Legal Group
9 - 10:30 p.m.
IndyBar Karaoke and Late-Night Reception: Hoosier B
Sponsored by Johnson Jensen Williams LLP
Saturday, JUNE 13
8 to 9 a.m.
Breakfast: Colonnade Restaurant
Sponsored by Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani
9 to 10:30 a.m. (1.5 General Credit): Hoosier A
Plenary Session: Be the Jury: A Voir Dire Experience
In this interactive CLE, presenters will guide participants through the art and strategy of voir dire, offering real-time insight into how attorneys evaluate and engage prospective jurors.
Featuring Hon. Timothy W. Oakes, Marion Superior Court; Dina Cox, Lewis Wagner and Trimble; Lee Christie, Christie Bell & Marshall PC; Ryan Farner, Kanner & Pintaluga; Fred Schultz, Greene & Schultz; W. Kent Winingham, Wilson Kehoe Winingham LLC
Sponsorship available!