MCLE in LV will most likely be remembered as a gathering of Filipino lawyers from all over the U.S. and Canada. It was held from September 20 to 23, 2007 at the Palace Station Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. For four days, the participants attended lectures given by Ateneo Law School Dean Emeritus Fr. Joaquin Bernas, SJ; Court of Appeals Justice Jose Sabio, Jr.; MCLE Executive Director Prof. Myrna Feliciano, Ateneo Law School Associate Dean Sedfrey Candelaria; as well as Professors Ruben Balane, Melencio Sta. Maria, Jr., and Rena Rico.

MCLE in LV gave a chance for the participants to reunite with former professors, old friends, and colleagues, and to talk about current issues in the Philippines and in the legal profession. Ample time was given for discussion, so that participants often asked questions and even shared their opinions with the lecturers. As promised by the MCLE in LV organizers, the topics proved to be engaging and interesting for the attendees, who were all based in North America and practicing different fields of law.

The participants gave feedback on what they appreciated from this 36-unit seminar, and these are – they were able to settle their MCLE and IBP dues without hassle, comply with their MCLE requirements without having to go back to the Philippines, forge new friendships, and explore networking opportunities with other lawyers.

This event, which was sponsored by Megaworld, Robinsons Land Corporation, Sea Air, and Inquirer.net, also featured some exciting raffles. Megaworld raffled off an overnight package in one of its Metro Manila properties, Sea Air gave away free Manila-Boracay-Manila plane tickets, and CD Asia chose three lucky winners who each received the latest Lex Libris title, the Laws Premium CD ROM.

For the organizers, MCLE in LV was a venue for quality legal education, in the time-honored tradition of Ateneo Law School Center for Continuing Legal Education and Research and CD Technologies Asia, Inc. This is but the start of a commitment from these organizers, together with Atty. Asterio P. Torres, to bring to Filipino lawyers based abroad the best of the Philippine legal profession.