BESLA Heads to Mexico for 36th Annual Conference: Jim Brown, Beverly Bond, Dr. Harry Edwards Confirmed
Jim Brown, Beverly Bond, George Cheeks
The Black Entertainment and Sports LawyersAssociation (BESLA) has announced their 36th Annual Conference will take place October 19-23, 2016 at the Hyatt Ziva Los Cabos in San Jose del Cabo, Mexico.
Dr. Harry Edwards, W. Drew Hawkins
Hundreds of legal pros will gather to network, exchange ideas and reflect on this year’s conference theme: “The Doctrine of Success: Addressing Global Business Challenges through Excellence and Inclusion.”
Conference highlights include the Welcome Reception; the BESLA Sports Legend Lunch honoring NFL Hall of FamerJim Brown; an all-white sunset cruise; and the Gala Dinner & Awards Program hosted by tv personality Towanda Braxton, where Brown will receive a “Lifetime Achievement Award” and Fox Audience Strategy will receive the “Corporate Diversity Award.” BESLA will also recognize its 2016 HBCU Law School scholarship recipients during theGala.
“We are honored to serve as co-chairs for BESLA’s 36th Annual Conference,” says BESLA co-chair Khadijah Sharif-Drinkard, “where we will offer premier panels that delve into some of the hottest legal topics in the entertainment and sports industries, as well as provide opportunities for attendees to hear from leading social change agents on panels like the Sports Legends Lunch with NFL Hall of Famer and humanitarian Jim Brown and sociologist Dr. Harry Edwards. For the past 36 years we have provided continuing legal education seminars, scholarships to law students at HBCUs and professional networking opportunities and we are proud to continue that tradition.”
Adds co-chair Tony Brackett: “As co-chairs of BESLA’s 36th Annual Conference, we have spent hundreds of hours over the past year working to help make this Conference a success. We are very proud of the high level panels and networking sessions that the programming and conference teams have put together as we continue to build upon the hard work of our founders and past board members. My first BESLA event was as a law student in 1993, and in the 23 years I’ve been coming to the BESLA Conference, I’ve met deal makers that I’ve negotiated with and made life-long friends in the process.”
BESLA conference attendees will enjoy various panels featuring over 50 guest speakers from the entertainment, sports, new media and related industries. Some of those speakers include: George Cheeks (NBCUniversal), Beverly Bond (Black Girls Rock), Dr. Harry Edwards (Professor, Author and Sociologist), Brian Walker (Color of Change), W. Drew Hawkins (Morgan Stanley), Max Siegel(USA Track & Field), Tamara Tunie (actress), Antoine Walker (former NBA player), Jelani Lawson (Fox Entertainment Group), Adrienne Williams (Microsoft), Derek Jackson (Under Armour),Leron Rogers (Lewis Brisbois), Kendall Minter (Minter & Associates), Mason Ashe (Ashe Sports & Entertainment Consulting), Robert Celestin (Entertainment Law Office of Robert A. Celestin) and many more.
Sponsors of the 36th Annual Conference are BMW, Morgan Stanley, BET Networks, Viacom, Comcast/NBCUniversal, Sound Exchange, Fox Audience Strategy, Merrill Lynch, Microsoft, ASCAP, Cary Hall, Covington & Burling, Disney/ABC Television Networks, Fox Rothschild, Garvey Schubert Barer, Loeb & Loeb, Manatt, Phelps, Phillips, LLP, Mitchell, Silberberg and Knupp, TV One, Bennett Thrasher, ColorofChange.org and Discovery Communications.
To register for the conference, visit www.besla.org/annual-conference. Pre-conference registration closes October 7!
ABOUT BESLA
BESLA (Black Entertainment and Sports Lawyers Association) is a nationally recognized leader in legal education and professional development within the United States for lawyers and professionals in the entertainment, sports, and related industries. The mission of BESLA is to advance the excellence of professionals in the entertainment, sports and related industries.
