With more businesses investing in technology, are they properly prepared for the associated risk? "The Invisible War, Securing Your Technology & Preventing Cyber Risks" will be held from 8:30 to 10 a.m., June 19 at Burchfield Penney Art Center, 1300 Elmwood Ave., Buffalo. Sponsors are Lumsden & McCormick, Jaeckle Fleischmann & Mugel, Escape Wire Solutions, Insyte Consulting, Vanner Insurance Agency, World Trade Center Buffalo Niagara and UB Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership. The program  will feature a panel discussion moderated by Michael Beecher, president of Escape Wire Solutions.

Panelists include Peter Ahearn, a retired special agent in charge, FBI Buffalo office; Michael McCartney, president/CEO, Digits LLC; John Walp, chief information security officer, M&T Bank; and Kevin Burke, litigation partner, Jaeckle Fleischmann & Mugel.

"For this forum, I am going to be focusing on how best to prepare corporate clients and health-care industry clients on how to protect themselves against both internal and external breeches," Burke said.

Despite major hacking and virus cases in recent years, he said many companies are underprepared when it comes to protecting their information, as well as the information of their clients.

"We see this especially when a company has a breech," he said. "We try to help them address how to recover and what immediate steps they have to take, but it is amazing as we look into the situation to see how lax some of the security is."

The program is designed to give attendees tangible information to take back to their companies, but Burke said he has another goal.

"I want to scare them a little bit by giving them some representative examples of what can happen to a company that experiences one of these attacks on proprietary information," he said. "People can read about it in the newspaper and it may not register, so I want to give them a look at what can absolutely happen to them. Then we want to give them the tools to better prepare."

Free admission. To register, visit www.businessleadershipforum.com. For more information contact Paul Herlan at [email protected] or 716-856-3300.

Fifteen new section chairmen of the New York State Bar Association took office June 1. In all, there are 25 sections of the state Bar that publish material dealing with the individual fields of expertise, much of which is not available through commercial publishers. Sections also sponsor conferences and seminars, monitor legislation and conduct studies. Each section contributes to policymaking, both in subject areas and associationwide. The new officers are:

• Deborah Doxey of Phillips Lytle LLP, named chairman of the 4,024-member Business Law Section. She practices in the areas of banking and commercial lending, including secured transactions, asset-based finance, acquisition financing and commercial real estate transactions.

• Bethany Hills Trachtenberg of Hodgson Russ, chairman of the Food, Drug & Cosmetic Law Section. A graduate of SUNY Buffalo Law School, she practices health law, FDA regulatory law, fraud and abuse, and health-care reimbursement.

• Ellen Weissman of Hodgson Russ, chairman, Health Law Section. She leads the firm's Health Law Practice Group, concentrating on reimbursement, regulatory and compliance matters for health-care clients.

• Tracee Davis, chairman, commercial and federal litigation section. She concentrates her practice in consumer class actions defense, banking, commercial real estate and insurance litigation.

• Rona Shamoon, chairman, Dispute Resolution Section. Shamoon has represented U.S. and international clients in arbitrations worldwide and in complex corporate and commercial litigation, both in state and federal court.

• Anthony Enea, chairman, Elder Law Section. He concentrates his practice in elder law and trusts and estates.

• Carl Howard of Manhattan, chairman of the Environmental Law Section. His work focuses on regulation of hazardous wastes and toxic substances.

• Pamela Sloan of Manhattan, chairman, Family Law Section. Her practice encompasses all aspects of family law.

• Zachary Abella of Manhattan, chairman, General Practice Section. His practice areas include contract law, intellectual property law, entertainment and media law.

• Kelly Slavitt of Irvington, chairman, Intellectual Property Law Section. She concentrates her practice in contract drafting and negotiation, general corporate matters, mergers and acquisitions, compliance, legal department management and intellectual property.

• Andrew Otis, chairman, International Section. He represents international clients concerned with environmental matters in transactions and litigation and before government agencies.

• John Gaal, chairman, Labor and Employment Law Section. He practices labor and employment law on behalf of management, with an emphasis on higher education, construction and health care.

• Justice Paul Feinman, chairman, Judicial Section. He was elected to a 13-year term on the bench in 2008.

• Steven Alden, chairman, Real Property Law Section. His practice covers all aspects of the real estate business.

• Michael Fox, chairman, Young Lawyers Section. He concentrates his practice in commercial litigation and general, federal and state civil litigation.

Jill Apa, special counsel at Damon Morey LLP, has a new immigration blog featuring immigration news, litigation and border issues affecting Canadian citizens.

"This is something we have been planning for a while," she says of the blog, which started this week. "Immigration is a natural fit for a blog because of the fact that it is constantly changing and evolving."

Since 2001, she has focused her practice exclusively in U.S. immigration law. While she will be the primary author of the blog, she said she works closely with some Canadian firms and may look for contributions from them down the road. Ultimately, she sees the blog as an information hub for the latest in court decisions and legal changes in immigration law.

"Also, we represent clients from all over the world," she said. "So having this resource online is, again, a natural fit."  

Go to www.immigrationattorneyresource.com.