Legal & Compliance Lessons Learned from Federal Investigations

Learning Objectives:

• Gain an understanding of the common types and processes of federal investigations
• Evaluate potential legal and compliance issues that may arise throughout investigations
• Explore strategies for minimizing the impact of federal investigations

Presenters:

Doug Gilfillan  |  Partner, Gilgillan Law LLC

Doug started his career at and eventually was a partner at King & Spalding on the Special Matters team, before leaving to join the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Atlanta. Doug spent 11 years as an AUSA, serving as a Deputy Chief of the Fraud Section and Chief of the Cybercrimes section, handling exclusively white collar crime cases. After leaving the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Doug practiced as a partner at Kilpatrick Townsend on the Government Enforcement & Investigations team, before hanging out his own shingle at Gilfillan Law LLC. Doug focuses on internal investigations, complex civil litigation, and criminal defense.

Melissa Hall  |  Associate VP and Chief Compliance Officer, Emory University  |  Moderator

In her role at Emory University, Melissa proactively manages compliance risks and directly engages with university executive leadership and the board of trustees. She has more than 14 years of experience in higher education, including time as the deputy chief ethics and compliance officer at Georgia Institute of Technology. Her background in higher education compliance, audits, investigations and risk assessments aligns seamlessly with the demands of an effective compliance program and integration within Emory’s enterprise risk management framework.

Danette Joslyn-Gaul  |  General Counsel and VP for Ethics, Compliance & Legal Affairs, Georgia Institute of Technology

Danette joined the Georgia Institute of Technology in 2022 as General Counsel and Vice President for Ethics, Compliance, and Legal Affairs, bringing nearly three decades of legal and leadership experience. Her career includes serving two Georgia governors, including as Executive Counsel to Governor Zell Miller, where she helped implement initiatives such as the HOPE Scholarship and supported efforts to diversify Georgia’s judiciary. She also served as Director of State Affairs for Emory University and as the inaugural General Counsel and Head of Government Relations for the Georgia Technology Authority.

Before joining Georgia Tech, Danette spent more than a decade as a litigator and partner at Wimberly, Lawson, Steckel, Schneider & Stine, P.C., handling state and federal cases nationwide. She later joined Pearson in 2014 and served in several senior compliance and legal roles, most recently as Chief Compliance Officer, where she led the transformation of the company’s global compliance function.

From Policy to Practice: Making Your Code of Conduct Come Alive

Participants will explore innovative approaches to Code design, communication, and engagement; learn strategies for embedding conduct expectations into daily operations; and discover methods for measuring effectiveness and expanding organizational reach. Through real-world examples and practical insights, attendees will leave with actionable ideas to make their Code of Conduct more relevant, accessible, and impactful across all levels of their organization.

Learning Objectives:

• Learn how leading organizations bring their Code of Conduct to life through interactive Codes and communications.
• Identify key strategies for transforming a Code of Conduct from a written policy into a practical tool that guides employee decision-making.
• Evaluate methods for measuring the effectiveness of a Code of Conduct and strengthening organizational reach.
• Apply real-world approaches for communicating, reinforcing, and embedding Code of Conduct expectations across all levels of the organization.

Presenters:

 Meredith Hunt  |  Ethics & Compliance Advisor, LRN  |  Moderator

Meredith serves as an Ethics and Compliance Advisor at LRN, where she leads code of conduct assessment and benchmarking initiatives. She advises compliance teams on key program components, emerging risks, and practical ways to strengthen and mature their programs in response to regulatory developments and industry trends. She also helps shape LRN’s thought leadership by collaborating on and drafting major research publications, including the Code of Conduct Report and the Ethics & Compliance Program Effectiveness Report, and by speaking on ethics and compliance topics at conferences hosted by leading professional organizations such as the Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics (SCCE), the International Compliance Association (ICA), and the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE).

A Certified Compliance & Ethics Professional (CCEP), Meredith brings experience in regulatory compliance, policy development, and risk mitigation across multiple industries. Before joining LRN in 2023, she worked in corporate compliance at a global healthcare company, supporting clinical research, and held regulatory roles in the biotech sector. She earned her bachelor’s degree, cum laude, from the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

Ron Engineer  |  Senior Counsel, Head of Global Compliance & Anti-Corruption, The Coca-Cola Company

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Ranjana Ramchandran  |  Managing Director, EY

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Mia Reini  |  Corporate Compliance & Ethics Sr. Management, UPS

Mia Reini manages the Corporate Compliance & Ethics team at UPS. The team’s portfolio includes Code of Conduct & Ethics, ethics hotline, Insider Trading, and compliance training for these corporate compliance programs: Anti-Bribery, Antitrust, Conflicts of Interest, Gifts & Entertainment, Insider Trading, Records Management, and Code of Conduct. Mia is a lawyer licensed in New York and Massachusetts and is a graduate of Harvard University and American University.

Mia is a member of the Board of ACE Roundtable.

Chandler Zielinski  |  Manager of Compliance Engagement & Systems, Norfolk Southern

Using & Governing AI: Compliance at the Center of the Conversation

As AI adoption accelerates, compliance has two critical roles: leveraging AI to enhance compliance programs and helping govern responsible AI use across the enterprise. Panelists will share practical examples, challenges, and insights on what effective execution looks like.

Learning Objectives:

• Identify practical ways artificial intelligence can enhance compliance program effectiveness, including risk assessment, monitoring, investigations, training, and reporting.
• Evaluate the compliance function’s role in governing organizational AI use, including policy development, risk management, and oversight responsibilities.
• Recognize key legal, ethical, privacy, and regulatory considerations associated with enterprise AI adoption.
• Apply a framework for partnering with legal, privacy, cybersecurity, HR, and business stakeholders to support responsible and compliant AI implementation.

Presenters:

Anna Grover  |  Sr. Executive Director of Compliance, NCR Voyix

Anna Grover was most recently Assistant Vice President, Global Compliance at Assurant, where she led key global compliance programs and played a leading role in the company’s enterprise AI governance efforts. Her work focused on translating emerging AI risks and regulatory expectations into practical, risk-based governance processes, including AI intake and review, human oversight, post-implementation monitoring, policy development, and employee guidance. She worked closely with Legal, Information Security, Privacy, Technology, Operational Risk, and business teams to support responsible AI adoption while enabling innovation.

Anna’s other areas of focus include: anti-corruption, sanctions and anti-money laundering, accessibility, policy governance, antitrust, M&A, and ESG matters. Before joining Assurant, she practiced law with international firms in London, Singapore, Dubai, and Australia, including Shearman & Sterling, Clifford Chance, and DLA Piper. Anna most recently joined NCR Voyix as Senior Executive Director of Compliance.

Anne Kamosso  |  Chief Ethics & Integrity Officer, Ohmium International, Inc.

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Andrea Peters  |  Sr. Counsel & Global Head of Compliance, Interface, Inc.

Andrea Peters is Senior Counsel and Global Head of Compliance at Interface, Inc. (NASDAQ: TILE), a leader in global, commercial flooring. With 30 years of legal experience, she leads Interface’s global compliance program and serves on the company’s AI Governance Committee, where she helps shape the company’s approach to responsible AI adoption. Her legal practice spans global operations across R&D, Sales, Operations, Procurement, Tax, and HR, with prior in-house roles at CAN Capital, The Weather Channel, General Electric, and GAMBRO Healthcare.

An avid AI enthusiast, Andrea is passionate about responsibly leveraging generative AI daily in her legal and compliance practice to enhance efficiency and creativity. She earned her J.D. from Vanderbilt University School of Law and her B.A. in Advertising, with honors, from The Pennsylvania State University, where she was the College of Communications’ Student Marshall (Valedictorian). Based in Atlanta, Andrea is an adventurer at heart, with skydiving, bungee jumping, and ziplining among her feats, and a foodie who enjoys culinary adventures, good wine and travel.

Steve Schlarman  |  Sr. Director, Archer IRM  |  Moderator

As a Senior Director and evangelist for Archer, Steve is responsible for applying my 30+ years of experience in Integrated Risk Management, GRC, security, product management and product marketing to Archer solutions. His current role is to provide industry expertise and thought leadership across the Archer portfolio.

Prior to joining Archer, Steve was one of the founders and the Chief Strategist for Brabeion Software, an early IT GRC technology company founded in 2005 and acquired by Archer in 2009. Before Brabeion Software, he was a Director in PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Advisory Practice focusing exclusively on information security consulting and auditing while serving as the global subject matter expert on Enterprise Security Architecture and Policy.

Practical Perspectives from Compliance Counsel

This session provides a unique opportunity for interactive question and answer with outside compliance professionals with varying expertise in elements of legal and regulatory compliance. 

Learning Objectives:

• Explore the compliance issues that often generate the most nuanced legal analysis, including questions where there is no single “right” answer.
• Understand how experienced counsel approaches risk, uncertainty, and competing legal and business considerations when advising compliance professionals and organizations.
• Engage more strategically with legal counsel on emerging issues, investigations, program effectiveness, and other high-impact compliance matters—including the questions that can materially change how an issue is assessed or addressed.

Presenters:

Elizabeth Gingold Clark  |  Chair of Securities Litigation Group, Alston & Bird

Elizabeth Gingold Clark is the chair of Alston & Bird’s Securities Litigation Group, a Chambers-USA-recognized group. She focuses her practice on representing public companies and financial institutions in securities class actions, shareholder derivative suits, M&A litigation, and government investigations.

Elizabeth’s national practice includes civil matters in federal and state courts throughout the country. She also regularly represents clients in investigations by the Securities and Exchange Commission and other regulators. Elizabeth counsels companies on securities disclosure and corporate governance, and she has served as counsel to special litigation committees formed in response to shareholder derivative demands.

Bess Hinson-Greenspan  |  Partner, Holland & Knight LLP

Amelia Medina  |  Partner, Special Matters & Government Investigations, King & Spalding LLP

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Sarah Middlebrooks  |  Founder & Managing Director, Eureka Advisors  |  Moderator

Sarah is a seasoned ethics and compliance and internal investigations executive, with an exceptional breadth of experience. She is a business partner and firmly believe that excellent ethics and compliance functions enable organizational goals.

Throughout her career, Sarah has assisted companies to assess and enhance their ethics and compliance programs to adhere to applicable laws, regulations and standards, while promoting ethical behavior. Additionally, she has driven high-profile, global investigations in partnership with C-suite in matrixed, cross-jurisdictional environments. Sarah spent the past 20 years as a forensic accountant with a Big Four firm. She has experience in healthcare, biotechnology, consumer markets, government, education, manufacturing, and other industries.

High-Performing Compliance: Insights from the World’s Most Ethical Companies

This panel will dive-in to a discussion on culture and compliance from Atlanta-based World’s Most Ethical companies: Carter’s, Global Packaging Inc., Southwire and Assurant.

Learning Objectives:

• Recognize the practices that distinguish high-performing Compliance functions and contribute to a strong culture of ethics and integrity.
• Explore practical approaches to gaining business buy-in and building relationships with leaders and employees across an organization.
• Identify actionable ideas to strengthen their own Compliance programs, drawing on the experiences and lessons shared by panelists from World’s Most Ethical Companies.

Presenters:

Kristie Brooks Purnell  |  VP & Associate General Counsel for Employment, Litigation & Compliance, Carters Inc.

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Lori Kaczynski  |  VP and Chief Audit Executive, Honeywell Aerospace (formerly SVP and Chief Audit, Risk and Compliance Officer at Global Packaging International)

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Emily Miner  |  Director, Ethisphere  |  Moderator

Emily helps organizations advance business integrity through program evaluation, benchmarking, and executive alignment. She also partners with private equity firms to assess and enhance the compliance and sustainability risk posture of companies along their value chain.

Prior to joining Ethisphere, Emily spent over a decade advising global corporations on ethical culture, program effectiveness, and codes of conduct. Her earlier career was spent in the environmental science and sustainability sectors. Emily is a Certified Compliance & Ethics Professional (CCEP).

Spencer Preis  |  VP, Associate General Counsel, Chief Privacy Officer and Deputy Chief Ethics & Compliance Officer, Southwire Company

Spencer Preis is VP, Assoc. General Counsel, Dep. Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer, Chief Privacy Officer, and Asst. Secretary at Southwire, a leading wire and cable manufacturer with $10B+ in annual revenues. He leads the company’s ethics and compliance, privacy, board governance, entity management, government affairs, and trade functions. Under his leadership, Southwire was named one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies® for three consecutive years.

Previously, Spencer held senior legal roles at Southwire supporting business units, litigation, and labor and employment. Earlier in his career, he worked in-house for another large manufacturing company, in private practice at McKenna Long & Aldridge (now Dentons), and for the Hon. Frank M. Hull on the U.S. Court of Appeals. He holds a J.D. from Emory University School of Law and a B.B.A. from the University of Michigan.

Spencer is also active in the community, including board leadership with Camp Twin Lakes.

Katie Smith  |  Vice President of Ethics & Compliance, Assurant

Katie Smith is Vice President, Ethics & Compliance at Assurant, where she leads the company’s global ethics program and oversees key compliance areas, including Connected Living compliance, trade compliance, regulatory compliance, state filings, and licensing. She brings more than 20 years of experience across the technology, energy, insurance, and financial services industries, with a track record of building, strengthening, and scaling ethics and compliance programs for multinational organizations. Before joining Assurant, Katie served in executive leadership positions at organizations including Hewlett-Packard, El Paso Corporation, and USAA.

Katie’s work has been associated with ethics and compliance programs recognized as leading practices, including USAA’s recognition by the Corporate Executive Board and Ethisphere’s World’s Most Ethical Companies distinction. Assurant has also been named to Ethisphere’s World’s Most Ethical Companies list three times. Katie earned her bachelor’s degree from Monmouth College and is a Certified Compliance and Ethics Professional (CCEP). She has been featured in outlets including the Denver Business Journal, The Wall Street Journal, Time, Fortune, NBC, and Compliance Week.