2021 TIDA Young Professionals Symposium
Wednesday, October 13, 2021 | 4:00-5:00 pm Eastern  

The TIDA Young Professionals Committee invites you to join us at the Young Professionals Symposium on Wednesday, October 13 at the 2021 TIDA Annual Seminar. While the symposium is aimed at young professionals in the industry, it is open to all attendees – we promise we won’t ask for your age! 

The event will feature speed networking and a Q&A panel session with Patricia Baxter, Shari Belitz, and Meghan Henry; contributing authors of the 20-chapter anthology #Networked. Our guests will discuss their approach to networking, cultivating community and building a business in the midst of a global pandemic and beyond.

The fun doesn't end there! Should you have no dinner plans on the evening of the 13th, the committee welcomes you to join our dine around networking event. TIDA will coordinate a time and place to meet for dinner as an additional opportunity to network with your fellow attendees.

RSVP TODAY! 

Learn more about our guest speakers!

Patricia Baxter, Morgan & Akins, PLLC

Patricia J. Baxter is the Managing Partner of the Philadelphia Office, responsible for the day-to-day management of litigation filed in federal and state courts across the county, with a specific focus in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.  Ms. Baxter is an active trial attorney, who has tried cases to verdict, but who also specializes in early and efficient dispute resolution. 

She triages every new file at the onset of assignment in order to assess viable exit strategies (i.e. voluntary dismissal, settlement, motion practice and/or trial) and exposure in the context of indemnity, defense costs, and expert fees.  Ms. Baxter does this to provide our clients, insurers and TPAs with a comprehensive plan of action (weighing liability strengths and weaknesses against exposure, costs and business concerns) within 60 days of assignment in order to implement the appropriate exit strategy and determine viability of early resolution.  Ms. Baxter also specializes in early Mediations when appropriate, prior to the filing of a Complaint and/or during the pleadings/written discovery phases. If early resolution is not desired by the client or achieved, thereafter she will work closely with risk managers, in-house counsel and insurance adjusters to ensure litigation guidelines are met, within budgets and company guidelines. 

Ms. Baxter's practice is concentrated in the areas of 1) premises liability (representing larger commercial landowners, facility management companies, and various retail establishments), and 2) products liability (representing manufacturers and distributors of various powered industrial machinery/equipment; industrial/commercial equipment; medical devices; salon equipment including pedicure stations, laser equipment, electric towel warmers, etc.; food service products; cosmetic products; automotive OEM and aftermarket component parts; elevators; plumbing, electrical and lighting fixtures; and recreational equipment and related component parts. Additionally, her practice also includes property/fire, construction, trucking/automobile liability, aviation, professional liability, insurance coverage (first and third party), medical malpractice, and transportation.

Shari Belitz, Shari Belitz Communications LLC

Shari Belitz, Esq., is a Nationally Recognized Litigation Consultant, Keynote Speaker, Best Selling Author, Chief Executive Officer of Shari Belitz Communications LLC, and the Founder of EnPSYCHLAWpedia™.

Shari is an attorney with over twenty years of experience in the legal profession. Prior to her litigation consulting career, she was an accomplished insurance coverage attorney at a law firm and litigation manager in-house at an insurance company where she handled complex mass tort lawsuits for Fortune 500 insured clients. During her legal career, Shari studied forensic psychology, including advanced jury science and research at the graduate level.

Shari has spoken at various legal and insurance industry conferences as well as universities and law schools about applying psychology to litigation, juror decision making, the reptile theory, and nuclear verdicts. Shari earned her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, cum laude from Syracuse University; a Juris Doctor, cum laude from The New York Law School; and studied toward a Master of Arts Degree in Forensic Psychology, from John Jay College of Criminal Justice.

Meghan Henry, Morgan & Akins, PLLC

Meghan F. Henry has been practicing in Pennsylvania and New Jersey since 2007 with the focus of her practice on premises liability, commercial trucking and transportation, automobile liability, products liability, sexual abuse and assault and catastrophic construction injuries.  Meghan has devoted her practice to defending business owners, contractors, corporations and individuals against claims in state and federal courts.  She has also helped countless businesses, agencies and individuals with presuit investigations in an effort to protect their interests in the wake of a potential lawsuit and even avoid filing of suit.

It is Meghan’s philosophy to evaluate each matter with a laser focus with the best possible outcome for her clients in mind.  Specifically, each matter must be assessed in detail to determine the potential exposure and whether early resolution is possible.  Meghan prides herself on finding creative and unique strategies to resolve matters efficiently.  Meghan also does not shy away from vigorously defending her clients’ interests up until verdict and on appeal should that be in the best interests of the client.

Meghan is particularly in tune with the impact litigation has on small businesses.  As a small business owner with her siblings and mother, she knows firsthand how litigation can affect the livelihood of a small business as well as how confusing and overwhelming the litigation process may be for business owners.  Meghan utilizes her personal experience developed from growing up surrounded by a family run business.  She connects with her clients to ensure the process is not overly disruptive and is as seamless as possible.  This also includes advising and aiding her clients on best practices to lower potential future exposures.

Meghan is a Connecticut native but spent her college years in Washington DC earning a degree in mathematics and psychology at Georgetown University.  She then attended Villanova University School of Law and planted her roots in the Philadelphia region.