As part of our ongoing commitment to grow and expand our relationship with foreign law firms, is thrilled to be sending a 17-person team of business litigation, corporate, international trade, real estate, labor & employment, luxury brands, maritime, and white collar defense and investigations professionals to the International Bar Association’s (“IBA”) 2026 Annual Conference, being held October 4 through 9, 2026, in Copenhagen, Denmark.

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Blank Rome partner Francesco Di Pietro will serve as a table moderator for the “Hot Topics in International Commerce, Trade, Franchising, and Product Law” session, which will take place on Monday, October 5, from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m.

About the Session

This hot topics session is designed to be interactive via a series of table where speakers discuss “late breaking” topics in the areas of international commerce, trade, franchising, and product law, selected to be of current interest and likely to stimulate discussion and debate. Moderators at each table introduce and briefly discuss the table topic, then participants weigh in with their views.

Moderators:

  • Dalton James Albrecht, EY Law/DJA Legal Corporation, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Member, International Commerce and Distribution Committee Advisory Board
  • Silvia Bortolotti, Studio legale Buffa, Bortolotti & Partners, Turin, Italy; Secretary, International Franchising Committee
  • Nicola Broadhurst, Stevens & Bolton, Guildford, England; Diversity and Inclusion Officer, International Franchising Committee
  • Francesco Di Pietro, Blank Rome LLP, New York, New York, USA; Chair, Financial and Tax Aspects of International Sales Subcommittee
  • Chiga Erege, British American Tobacco, Nairobi, Kenya; Institution Officer, Product Law and Advertising Committee
  • Leonard Freiherr von Rummel, BLOMSTEIN, Berlin, Germany; Conference Quality Officer, International Trade and Customs Law Committee
  • Olivia Gast, Gast Avocats & Mediation, Paris, France
  • Alan Greenfield, Greenberg Traurig, Denver, Colorado, USA; Vice Chair, International Franchising Committee
  • Simon Hotte, Ernst & Young Société d'Avocats, Lyon, France; Vice Treasurer, International Commerce and Distribution Committee
  • Beata Krakus, UB Greensfelder LLP, Chicago, Illinois, USA; Conference Quality Officer, International Franchising Committee
  • Sara Landini, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
  • Laura Opilio, CMS Adonnino Ascoli & Cavasola Scamoni, Rome, Italy; LPD Council Member, LPD Council
  • Tayo Osuntogun, Barnes & Thornburg LLP, Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Website Officer, International Trade and Customs Law Committee
  • Cristobal Porzio, Porzio Rios Garcia, Santiago, Chile
  • Marc Ruttloff, Gleiss Lutz, Stuttgart, Germany; Corporate Counsel Forum Liaison Officer, Product Law and Advertising Committee
  • Talha Salaria, Lawyers At Work, Bangalore, Karnataka, India; Vice Chair, India Working Group
  • Marcio Sperling, Sperling Advogados, São Paulo, Brazil; Deputy Webinar Officer, International Commerce and Distribution Committee
  • Andrada Tiru, Simmons & Simmons LLP, Amsterdam, Netherlands; Chair, Supply Chain and Logistics Subcommittee
  • Quentin Vander Schueren, Bennett Jones LLP, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Diversity and Inclusion Officer, International Trade and Customs Law Committee
  • Peter Wagner, Jordan & Wagner Rechtsanwaltsgesellschaft mbH, Stuttgart, Germany; Programme Officer, International Commerce and Distribution Committee

For more information and to register, please visit the event webpage.