Every March, the city of Austin, Texas hosts the South by Southwest (SXSW) Conferences & Festivals. This year’s dates are March 8th through March 17th. There are three components: Music, Film, and Interactive. The combined events attract thousands of peoplefrom all across the world. One little known aspect of SXSW is the many opportunities that the event provides for lawyers. Here is a brief lawyer’s guide to SXSW
In addition to a small number of law-oriented panels, SXSW offers an extensive continuing legal education (CLE) program. Attorneys who purchase a SXSW badge can also complete up to 13 hours of CLE. The number of CLE courses one can access depends on the type of badge purchased. For example, the Music badge provides access to 8 hours of CLE; Film provides 2 hours while Interactive provides 3 hours. Check the SXSW website for a more specific breakdown. The quality of the CLE program is quite good. One of the reason for the quality is that the program draws upon the pool of experienced industry lawyers who are already present at the festival. Younger lawyers might be interested in the SXSW Film Mentor Sessions in which newcomers can have one-on-one discussions with people experienced in the industry. Lawyers usually participate as mentors.
In the near future, I am finally going to post some notes from the SXSW 2012 CLE program. I will also post updates about the 2013 program as more information becomes available.