The Summit Broadened Our Existing Connections and Helped Develop New Ones

A Marcus Evans Success Story

“We started a direct relationship with a foreign firm that handled some work for us through a third party. We are now looking into consolidating our matters with this firm. If we had not met at the Summit, we would have probably selected another firm in that jurisdiction,” said Hilary Libka, VP, Chief IP Counsel & Associate General Counsel, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, a speaker and delegate at the Marcus Evans Chief Litigation Officer Summit.

What new opportunities has the Summit introduced you to?

It was a very interesting event. I was able to meet with a number of domestic and international law firms, and vendors that are not frequently at other events in the New York and Boston areas. It was a good opportunity to broaden my connections with law firms I already knew but don’t normally come across in person.

I came away with four firms and one vendor that I not only enjoyed meeting myself, but also introduced to my colleagues. One of the firms has now taken part in an RFP for legal work. We had not heard of that firm before. I enjoyed speaking with the partner and learning about the firm in ways that would not have translated as well over email.

We are negotiating an engagement letter with a second firm, which we knew of but may have overlooked. It took an event like this to make that connection.

For the foreign firm that handled some work for us through a third party, we had never met in person and may not have considered consolidating our matters with them.

Did the face-to-face meeting help you build a relationship and make that decision?

Yes, it gave us valuable insight into the firm, which would have been difficult to achieve in a more formal or virtual setting. The firm currently handles less than a quarter of our patent portfolio in that jurisdiction and was not high up on our list. But meeting their folks and talking to them was very influential in my decision to look closer at them as an option for consolidation.

Do many law firms and vendors reach out to you? Is it easy to get your attention?

I receive emails from vendors on an hourly basis, more than I could ever possibly engage with. At the Summit, law firms and vendors had my full attention. There was a real effort by Marcus Evans to make sure everyone’s time was spent in a meaningful and valuable way.

How would you compare the Summit with other industry events?

The quality of the attendees, vendors, and firms is very high and more geographically diverse than other events I’ve attended. It led to interesting conversations and connections. The speakers were excellent. I enjoyed meeting like-minded people dealing with similar challenges.

Over those two days, I was very much engaged with the content and the people. The Summit was set up in a way that facilitated new relationships. I don’t normally go back to my office and ask colleagues to meet firms or vendors after a conference.

Find out more about the upcoming Chief Litigation Officer Summit.