Crisis in the Company: A Management Workshop - How to Respond When Disaster Strikes

Christy Eikhoff represents clients in significant and high profile complex commercial litigation matters, with specialized experience and expertise in the following industries: manufacturing, technology and insurance. She is the co-chair of the firm’s Industrials & Manufacturing Litigation practice team.

Christy litigates in state and federal trial and appellate courts nationwide, and in alternative dispute resolution forums. She has handled several multimillion-dollar cases for publicly and privately held entities, with extensive experience in trial, arbitration hearings, mediation, written advocacy, settlement negotiations, and discovery management. Christy has been instrumental in helping business clients achieve successful resolution in litigated disputes involving claims of breach of contract, data breach, fraud, business torts, property torts, defamation, negligence, and unfair and deceptive trade practice and consumer protection statutes.

In August 2013, Christy was featured by the Daily Report in its “On the Rise” issue as one of the “40 Georgia Legal Rising Stars to Watch.”

Meg Blackwood is the Managing Attorney of Litigation at Colonial Pipeline Company.

Prior to joining Colonial in 2015, Meg spent fourteen years in private practice at firms in Atlanta, Georgia, including most recently Littler Mendelson, where she litigated complex, multi-million dollar matters on behalf of her clients in federal, state, and appellate courts throughout the country.

Meg has extensive experience with managing complex litigation and claims matters, including employee class and collective actions, workplace accidents, premises liability, products liability, and insurance coverage and claims disputes. Another area of Meg’s expertise is developing and presenting informative and engaging employee training on a variety of important subjects, including harassment, discrimination, retaliation, privileged and confidential matters, and workplace ethics. In addition to managing her legal career, Meg is a mother to three young children and the wife of a high school football coach. She enjoys volunteering with her children’s schools and activities, as well as other civic engagements.

Meg earned her J.D. from Emory University and her Bachelor of Arts with a dual concentration in English and Spanish from the College of William and Mary.

Carrie Kurlander is vice president of communications for Chick-fil-A Inc. Before joining Chick-fil-A, Carrie was vice president of communications for Southern Company. She previously worked as a publicist in California and as the governor of Alabama’s press secretary. Carrie has also worked as an award-winning news anchor and reporter for television stations in Alabama and Louisiana.

Susan F. Duarte is Director of Legal Affairs at T-Mobile. She provides legal support across the organization, working with executives, business partners, and consultants to implement and realize strategies by eliminating costs. Supervises, leads and has trained up to 10 attorneys and 8 legal staff. Manages 30 outside counsel and legal budgets for internal and external activities. Served as a speaker and presenter at 15 conferences to date on subjects such as social media, crisis management, advertising, cybersecurity, and litigation.

Susan received a B.A from Boston College and graduated from the Columbus School of Law at the Catholic University of America with a Certificate from the Law and Technology Institute. Susan now serves on the Board of the Law and Technology Institute at the Columbus School of Law while also volunteering her time with several community organizations.