LIF Salon Toronto | Control, Govern, Protect: An Executive Salon on Digital Sovereignty

Toronto City Skyline at dawn

OUR PARTNERS

OVERVIEW

Across financial services, healthcare, energy, and the public sector, general counsel and chief legal officers are confronting a new category of risk: the possibility that the digital tools and infrastructure their organizations depend on—including AI—may fall outside their legal, technical, or geopolitical control. The U.S. CLOUD Act extends American jurisdiction to data held by U.S.-based cloud providers, regardless of where that data physically resides. For Canadian corporations and institutions with fiduciary and regulatory obligations around client, employee, and operational data, this is no longer a theoretical conflict-of-laws question—it is an active compliance and liability exposure.

The LIF Salon Series convenes senior legal, privacy, risk, and technology leaders to move past issue-spotting and into strategy. In Toronto, we’ll examine what a defensible data sovereignty position requires—contractually, operationally, and organizationally—and how leading Canadian legal and compliance functions are advising their organizations to build one.

The goal here is to begin mapping the sovereign infrastructure that Canadian organizations will need to compete, comply, and lead with confidence.

purpose

Held under Chatham House Rule, LIF Salons offer an intimate, invitation-only forum for innovation-focused leaders to explore new ideas at the intersection of capital, policy, energy, and law — and to build the relationships that will shape the next industrial era.

STRUCTURE

  • Networking, discussions, and dinner at The Vintage Conservatory: The salon runs from 5:30 – 9:30 pm at the VC Yorkville.

  • Exclusive audience: Limited to a maximum of 40 senior decision-makers from large, innovative corporations, institutions, and professional services firms.

  • High-calibre speakers: A 60-minute interactive fireside chat with recognized thought leaders.

  • Intimate roundtable discussion: A 90-minute, Chatham House Rule discussion over dinner, featuring structured and facilitated debate. Tables are strictly limited, with a thought leader moderating each conversation, guided by pre-set discussion points.

  • High-value networking: Focused receptions before and after the dinner to facilitate targeted peer connections among senior executives.

KEY THEMES

  • Drivers and trends in digital sovereignty and what they mean for Canadian businesses navigating a shifting geopolitical landscape
  • Defining and executing a sovereign digital strategy: How organizations can move from policy awareness to operational clarity
  • Collaborating to innovate: Why strong partnerships, internal and external, are essential to digital sovereignty success

audience

Attendance is by invitation only and limited to a maximum of 40 senior decision-makers from large, innovative corporations, institutions, and professional services firms.

Corporations / Institutions

  • General Counsel / Associate General Counsel
  • Chief Privacy Officer (CPO)/ Data Privacy Officer (DPO)
  • Chief Information Security Officer (CISO)
  • Chief Risk Officer (CRO)
  • Head of Compliance

Professional Services Firms

  • Partners leading Technology, Investment, Regulatory & Tax Practices
  • Heads of Innovation
  • MDs from financial services firms

SPONSORSHIP

Partner with The Legal Innovation Forum to engage senior legal leaders and innovators shaping the future of the industry.

For inquiries, contact christopher@adbinsights.com

or

LIF Salon Atlanta | The Future Legal Operating Model: How AI is Reshaping the Legal Ecosystem

OUR PARTNERS

GLOBAL STRATEGIC PARTNER

OVERVIEW

Artificial intelligence is reshaping not just legal work, but the design of the legal function itself. The central question is not how to implement AI, but how legal departments and law firms must evolve—in their operating models, leadership, governance, talent, and partnerships—to create lasting business value in an AI-driven ecosystem.

The Atlanta salon explores what the next generation legal operating model looks like and how to prepare for it. Through an expert panel discussion and facilitated roundtable dialogue, participants will examine practical strategies and leadership skills for building AI-enabled firms and legal departments that are more agile, collaborative, and aligned with the evolving needs of the business.

PURPOSE

The Legal Innovation Forum Salon Series moves beyond the headlines to explore the strategic issues shaping the future of legal and business.

Held under Chatham House Rule, the LIF Salon Series offers an intimate, invitation-only forum for innovation-focused leaders to explore new ideas—and build the relationships that will shape the next phase of enterprise AI transformation.

STRUCTURE

Networking, discussions, and dinner at an exclusive venue: The Salon runs from 5:30 to 9:30 PM. at a premier Atlanta venue, bringing together senior legal and business leaders for an evening of insight, dialogue, and peer networking.

Exclusive audience: Attendance is limited to a maximum of 40 senior decision-makers from leading corporate legal departments, law firms, and legal technology providers.

Expert panel discussion: A 45-minute moderated panel featuring senior legal and business leaders who will explore how AI is reshaping legal work, organizational design, and the future legal operating model.

Intimate roundtable discussion: A 60-minute, Chatham House Rule discussion over dinner, featuring a structured and facilitated debate. Tables are strictly limited, with a thought leader moderating each conversation, guided by pre-set discussion points.

High-value networking: Curated networking receptions before and after dinner provide opportunities for meaningful conversations and relationship building among an influential group of legal leaders.

THEMES + AGENDA

5:00 - 5:45 pm | CHAMPAGNE RECEPTION

5:45 - 6:35 pm | Panel - The Future Legal Operating Model: How AI is Reshaping the Legal Ecosystem

In association with:

Artificial intelligence is transforming more than legal work—it is redefining how legal organizations are structured, how they collaborate, and how they create value. This timely discussion brings together senior legal and business leaders to examine the strategic, technological, and leadership shifts required to build the next generation legal enterprise.

THEMES

  • Redesigning the legal operating model: How AI is changing legal workflows, organizational structures, and the delivery of legal services
  • Building connected legal ecosystems: How law firms, legal departments, technology providers, and alternative service providers are collaborating to manage risk and improve efficiency, resilience, and business outcomes
  • Creating the foundations for AI at scale: The role of technology platforms, data, governance, and interoperability in enabling sustainable transformation.
  • Leading organizational change: The leadership capabilities, culture, and governance frameworks required to build AI-enabled firms and legal departments that can adapt and thrive.

6:35 - 7:00 pm | fireside chat - AI and its outcomes for business + society

7:00 - 8:00 pm | DINNER + ROUNDTABLES

8:00 - 8:15 pm | CLOSING DISCUSSION

audience

Attendance at LIF salons is by invitation only and is limited to approximately 40 senior decision-makers from leading corporations, law firms, and professional services organizations.

Corporate Legal Departments

  • General Counsel
  • Deputy/Associate General Counsel
  • Heads of Legal Operations
  • Chief Risk Officers
  • Compliance Leaders

Law Firms

  • Managing Partners
  • Innovation Leaders
  • Practice Group Leaders
  • Chief Operating Officers
  • Chief Information Officers

Technology & Professional Services

  • Legal technology executives
  • AI and transformation leaders
  • Consulting partners
  • Strategic service providers

SPONSORSHIP

Partner with The Legal Innovation Forum to engage senior legal leaders and innovators shaping the future of the industry.

For inquiries, contact christopher@adbinsights.com

or

LIF Salon NYC | Taking the Long View: Building a Future-Forward Enterprise AI Strategy

New York Skyline

OUR PARTNERS

NON-PROFIT PARTNER

OVERVIEW

The next phase of enterprise AI won’t be defined by adoption. It will be defined by economics and cybersecurity.

For legal departments, law firms, and the broader enterprise, AI is becoming a significant recurring operating expense that will reshape the next generation of innovation. It is also creating new risks. To survive and thrive, organizations must make more deliberate decisions about where AI creates meaningful business value, and become more proactive to guard against a new class of cybersecurity risks.

Our fall salon features a keynote discussion exploring the evolving economics and security considerations of enterprise AI—and the strategic decisions organizations and their legal departments, law firms, and alternative legal service providers should be making in response.

Participants will then join a facilitated roundtable discussion to examine practical strategies for maximizing the ROI of their AI investments, governing adoption, guarding against risk, and building flexible, sustainable AI strategies in the era of rising costs.

PURPOSE

The Legal Innovation Forum Salon Series moves beyond the headlines to uncover what comes next. Through expert-led discussions and collaborative dialogue, it convenes senior leaders from across sectors to examine the issues that will define the next generation of technology, governance, and business innovation.

Held under Chatham House Rule, the LIF Salon Series offers an intimate, invitation-only forum for innovation-focused leaders to explore new ideas—and build the relationships that will shape the next phase of enterprise AI transformation.

THEMES

Taking the Long View: Building a Future-Forward Enterprise AI Strategy
  • The economics of AI: From adoption to value
    As AI becomes embedded across the enterprise, organizations are balancing growing investment with rising token and operating costs—and increasing pressure to demonstrate measurable ROI. The next phase of AI adoption will be defined by disciplined investment decisions about where AI delivers the greatest strategic, operational, and commercial value.

  • The portability problem: Protecting your AI investment
    As organizations make larger, longer-term AI investments, strategic flexibility becomes increasingly important. Are they inadvertently locking themselves into proprietary AI ecosystems? How should leaders think about portability, interoperability, and the growing switching costs that AI vendors may deliberately build into their platforms?

  • Preparing for the new AI economy and what it means for legal
    What happens as organizations become more disciplined about AI spending? How will changing investment patterns reshape software markets, infrastructure projects, legal technology, and the pace of innovation itself? How should legal departments, law firms, and the businesses they work in and with position themselves for an environment where AI success is defined not by the scale of deployment, but by the value it creates?

STRUCTURE

  • Networking, discussions, and dinner at an exclusive venue: The salon runs from 5:30 – 9:30 pm at a prestigious NYC venue.

  • Exclusive audience: Limited to a maximum of 40 senior decision-makers from large, innovative corporations, institutions, and professional services firms.

  • High-caliber speakers: A 60-minute interactive fireside chat with recognized thought leaders.

  • Intimate roundtable discussion: A 90-minute, Chatham House Rule discussion over dinner, featuring structured and facilitated debate. Tables are strictly limited, with a thought leader moderating each conversation, guided by pre-set discussion points.

  • High-value networking: Focused receptions before and after the dinner to facilitate targeted peer connections among senior executives.

audience

Attendance at LIF salons is by invitation only and is limited to a maximum of 40 senior decision-makers from large, innovative corporations, institutions, and professional services firms.

Corporations/Institutions

  • General Counsel / Associate General Counsel
  • CFOs
  • Risk Leaders
  • Heads of Corporate Development/Strategy
  • Heads of Innovation
  • Heads of Legal Operations

Professional Services Firms

  • Partners leading AI, Digital or Transformation Practices
  • Heads of Innovation
  • MDs from financial services firms

SPONSORSHIP

Partner with The Legal Innovation Forum to engage senior legal leaders and innovators shaping the future of the industry.

For inquiries, contact christopher@adbinsights.com

or

Convergence Salon D.C.

OUR PARTNERS

NON-PROFIT PARTNER

OVERVIEW

The AI economy has moved fast enough that its exposure — financial, technological, and political — is now as significant as its promise. But each of these pressure points could also herald the next wave of innovations. The question now is who manages the risks well enough to capture the advantages of the technology.

The Convergence Series: Washington, D.C. brings together a small, invitation-only group of policy experts and business leaders for a focused conversation about where the AI build-out is most exposed — and where that exposure creates room to lead.

 

PURPOSE

Held under Chatham House Rule, Convergence Salons offer an intimate, invitation-only forum for innovation-focused leaders to explore new ideas at the intersection of capital, policy, and industry — and to build the relationships that will shape the next industrial era.

The purpose of this event is to create a candid, off-the-record space for a small group of principals to exchange views on the business and policy decisions that will define the next phase of the AI build-out.

THEMES

  • Market Confidence: Valuation Risk and Investment Discipline
    What a correction in hyperscaler valuations would mean for the broader build-out — and how market scrutiny is speeding the maturation of AI financing.

  • Cyber Risk and the Case for Resilience
    The cybersecurity exposure created by AI systems themselves, and the opportunity for the U.S. to lead on the standards, safeguards, and resilience architecture that make large-scale AI deployment trustworthy.

  • License to Compute
    How to achieve greater social license and mitigate the political risks of the AI buildout.

STRUCTURE

Networking, discussions, and dinner at an exclusive venue: The salon runs from 5:30 – 9:30 pm at a prestigious D.C. venue.

Exclusive audience: Limited to a maximum of 40 senior decision-makers from large, innovative corporations, institutions, and professional services firms.

High-caliber speakers: A 60-minute interactive fireside chat with recognized thought leaders.

Intimate roundtable discussion: A 90-minute, Chatham House Rule discussion over dinner, featuring structured and facilitated debate. Tables are strictly limited, with a thought leader moderating each conversation, guided by pre-set discussion points.

High-value networking: Focused receptions before and after the dinner to facilitate targeted peer connections among senior executives.

Speakers

MORE DETAILS COMING SOON

audience

Attendance at Convergence Salons is by invitation only and is limited to a maximum of 40 senior decision-makers from large, innovative corporations, institutions, and professional services firms.

Corporations & Institutions

  • Head of AI Infrastructure / Chief Technology Officer
  • Chief Risk Officer (CRO) / Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO)
  • General Counsel / Associate General Counsel
  • Head of Compliance / Head of Regulatory Affairs
  • Energy, Mining & Critical Minerals / Grid Operations Executives

Professional Services & Capital

  • Partners leading Technology, Investment, Regulatory & Tax Practices
  • Infrastructure Private Equity & Venture Capital Partners
  • Managing Directors from financial services firms
  • Global Legal Lead Architects

SPONSORSHIP

Partner with ADB Insights to engage with executives and innovators shaping the future of mining, materials, energy, and AI.

For inquiries, contact rana@adbinsights.com

or

The Legal Innovation Forum Chicago 2026

OUR PARTNERS

GLOBAL STRATEGIC PARTNER

GOLD SPONSORS

BRANDING PARTNER

OVERVIEW

The Legal Innovation Forum returns to Chicago on November 12, 2026, bringing together leaders from law firms, legal departments, technology providers, and the broader business community for a full-day event packed with critical insights and networking opportunities.

This year’s edition of our flagship annual forum is anchored by a bold, overarching theme: The 2030 mandate: Leading transformation in the global legal and business ecosystem.

As the pace of change accelerates, the legal function stands at a critical inflection point. Advances in AI, mounting economic pressure, regulatory divergence, geopolitical volatility, and evolving client and stakeholder expectations are fundamentally reshaping how legal services are delivered—and how risk and value are managed across businesses.

This year’s forum will explore what it takes to build resilient, data-driven legal departments and firms capable of thriving through 2030 and beyond.

PURPOSE OF THE FORUM

  • Examine the critical forces reshaping the global legal and business ecosystem and how these dynamics will redefine law firms and legal departments on the road to 2030

  • Explore emerging business and operating models transforming legal services, and learn how firms and legal departments can adopt agile, future-ready strategies

  • Share best practices from law firms, legal departments, and third-party partners on building resilience through innovation, technology, and data-driven decision-making

  • Cultivate a connected community of legal and business leaders committed to exchanging insights, accelerating transformation, and driving meaningful change across the legal ecosystem

Who’s attending

150+ high-level decision-makers from legal departments, law firms and third party partners from across Canada, the US and overseas

  • Legal departments:
    General counsel, associate / assistant general counsel, in-house counsel, legal operations professionals
  • Law firms:
    Heads of innovation and knowledge management, senior partners, COOs, CIOs, chief client officers

STRUCTURE

Through a series of high-impact panels and discussions, we’ll examine how technology, data, operating models, and leadership must evolve to meet the demands of a rapidly advancing global landscape.

THEMES + AGENDA

10:30 - 11:00 | REGISTRATION

11:00 - 11:05 | Welcome + introduction

11:05 - 11:50 | INTEGRATING ECOSYSTEMS: HOW LAW FIRMS, LEGAL DEPARTMENTS, AND SERVICE PROVIDERS ARE COLLABORATING TO MANAGE THE BUSINESS OF RISK

In association with:

Today’s risk landscape is complex and ever-evolving, requiring integrated management. Discover how interconnected legal ecosystems are emerging, bringing together law firms, in-house legal teams, technology companies, and alternative service providers to share expertise, integrate capabilities, and deliver stronger, more resilient outcomes.

  • Collaboration models: How are law firms, legal departments and service providers working together to drive innovation
  • Redefining value: Shared accountability for outcomes and risk—including through the lens of investor expectations on transparency, efficiency, and risk-adjusted performance
  • Data and interoperability: Enabling insight through connected systems and partners
  • Capital markets perspective: How investors evaluate scalability, resilience, and execution risk across integrated service ecosystems

11:50 - 12:00 | ELEVATOR PITCH 1: HARVEY

12:00 - 12:40 | Lunch

12:40 - 1:10 | FIRESIDE CHAT: BUILDING A RESILIENT LEGAL TECH STACK: SYSTEMS, DATA, AND ARCHITECTURE FOR THE FUTURE

Legacy systems and fragmented data limit legal’s ability to scale, innovate, and adapt. Discover how organizations can implement resilient, flexible legal tech platforms that support AI, analytics, and long-term transformation.

  • Platform strategy: Transitioning from disconnected solutions to integrated legal technology ecosystems
  • Data readiness: The data foundations required for AI, reporting, and decision intelligence
  • Risk + resilience: Balancing innovation with security and compliance
  • Change management: Building buy-in in the AI era

1:10 - 1:20 | ELEVATOR PITCH 2

1:20 - 1:30 | KEYNOTE PRESENTATION: INNOVATION IN ACTION

1:30 - 2:00: ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSIONS: THE FUTURE OF LEGAL: HOW TECHNOLOGY IS RESHAPING LAW FIRMS AND LEGAL DEPARTMENTS

Attendees participate in facilitated discussions exploring how AI and emerging technologies are reshaping legal practice, client expectations, and the future of legal service delivery.

2:00 – 2:15 | REPORT-BACK
Group leaders share key findings from the roundtable discussions.

2:15 - 2:25 | ELEVATOR PITCH 3

2:25 - 2:40 | Networking Break

2:40 - 2:50 | ELEVATOR PITCH 4

2:50 - 3:20 | FIRESIDE CHAT: THE LEADERSHIP IMPERATIVE: SKILLS, CULTURE, AND GOVERNANCE FOR TRANSFORMATION

Technology alone does not drive transformation. Leadership is key. This fireside chat examines the skills, mindsets, and governance structures required to lead legal organizations through a sustainable transformation journey amid ongoing global disruption.

  • Leadership capabilities: Skills required to lead in an AI- and data-driven environment
  • Cultural transformation: Building teams that embrace innovation, agility, and learning
  • Change management: Leading across generations, roles, and operating models
  • Governance frameworks: Balancing speed, experimentation, risk, and accountability

3:20 - 3:50 | ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSIONS: LEADING THROUGH CHANGE: BUILDING HIGH-PERFORMING LEGAL TEAMS

Attendees participate in facilitated discussions on the leadership skills, strategies, and organizational culture required to build high-performing legal teams in an era of rapid change.

3:50 – 4:05 | REPORT-BACK
Group leaders share key findings from the roundtable discussions.

4:05 - 4:15 | ELEVATOR PITCH 5

4:15 - 4:20 CLOSING REMARKS

4:20 - 5:20 | Drinks & Networking

SPONSORSHIP

Partner with The Legal Innovation Forum to engage senior legal leaders and innovators shaping the future of the industry.

For inquiries, contact christopher@adbinsights.com

or

LIF Salon Montréal | Control, Govern, Protect: An Executive Salon on Digital Sovereignty

OUR PARTNERS

OVERVIEW

Across financial services, healthcare, energy, and the public sector, general counsel and chief legal officers are confronting a new category of risk: the possibility that the digital tools and infrastructure their organizations depend on—including AI—may fall outside their legal, technical, or geopolitical control. The U.S. CLOUD Act extends American jurisdiction to data held by U.S.-based cloud providers, regardless of where that data physically resides. For Canadian corporations and institutions with fiduciary and regulatory obligations around client, employee, and operational data, this is no longer a theoretical conflict-of-laws question—it is an active compliance and liability exposure.

The LIF Salon Series convenes senior legal, privacy, risk, and technology leaders to move past issue-spotting and into strategy. In Montréal, we’ll examine what a defensible data sovereignty position requires—contractually, operationally, and organizationally—and how leading Canadian legal and compliance functions are advising their organizations to build one.

The goal here is to begin mapping the sovereign infrastructure that Canadian organizations will need to compete, comply, and lead with confidence.

purpose

Held under Chatham House Rule, LIF Salons offer an intimate, invitation-only forum for innovation-focused leaders to explore new ideas at the intersection of capital, policy, energy, and law — and to build the relationships that will shape the next industrial era.

STRUCTURE

  • Networking, discussions, and dinner at an exclusive venue: The salon runs from 5:30 – 9:30 pm at a prestigious Montréal venue.

  • Exclusive audience: Limited to a maximum of 40 senior decision-makers from large, innovative corporations, institutions, and professional services firms.

  • High-calibre speakers: A 60-minute interactive fireside chat with recognized thought leaders.

  • Intimate roundtable discussion: A 90-minute, Chatham House Rule discussion over dinner, featuring structured and facilitated debate. Tables are strictly limited, with a thought leader moderating each conversation, guided by pre-set discussion points.

  • High-value networking: Focused receptions before and after the dinner to facilitate targeted peer connections among senior executives.

KEY THEMES

  • Drivers and trends in digital sovereignty and what they mean for Canadian businesses navigating a shifting geopolitical landscape
  • Defining and executing a sovereign digital strategy: How organizations can move from policy awareness to operational clarity
  • Collaborating to innovate: Why strong partnerships, internal and external, are essential to digital sovereignty success

audience

Attendance is by invitation only and limited to a maximum of 40 senior decision-makers from large, innovative corporations, institutions, and professional services firms.

Corporations / Institutions

  • General Counsel / Associate General Counsel
  • Chief Privacy Officer (CPO)/ Data Privacy Officer (DPO)
  • Chief Information Security Officer (CISO)
  • Chief Risk Officer (CRO)
  • Head of Compliance

Professional Services Firms

  • Partners leading Technology, Investment, Regulatory & Tax Practices
  • Heads of Innovation
  • MDs from financial services firms

SPONSORSHIP

Partner with The Legal Innovation Forum to engage senior legal leaders and innovators shaping the future of the industry.

For inquiries, contact christopher@adbinsights.com

or

The Convergence Series: D.C. – New York – Houston – London – UAE

OVERVIEW

The race to build the AI economy has transcended the digital sphere, evolving into a fundamental reconfiguration of the global industrial base. This is no longer merely a technology narrative; it is an imperative to realign the architectures of energy, critical minerals, and sovereign infrastructure.

Navigating this structural complexity requires a new level of convergence—uniting the architects of capital, policy, and industry to secure the foundations of the next industrial era.

The Convergence Series aims to shine a light on these themes through an innovative set of programs run globally on an ongoing basis.

STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK

Through half-day forums and invitation-only salons, the Convergence Series provides a unique platform for innovation-focused leaders to explore new ideas at the intersection of capital, policy, and industry — and to build the relationships that will shape the next industrial era.

ENERGY & SUPPLY CHAIN
  • Expanding power capacity, streamlining permitting, and reconfiguring grids
  • Securing critical minerals and materials, hardware supply chains, and other strategic resources
CAPITAL & INVESTMENT
  • Financing hyperscaler infrastructure
  • Re-engineering data center & utility project finance
  • Structuring mega-deals for gigawatts
POLICY & RISK
  • Navigating regulatory complexity & political volatility
  • Addressing trade & supply-chain friction
  • Designing projects to mitigate social and environmental impacts
  • Answering the call for data sovereignty

audience

The Convergence Series is designed for senior decision-makers from innovative corporations, institutions, and leading professional services firms.

Corporations & Institutions

  • Head of AI Infrastructure / Chief Technology Officer
  • Chief Risk Officer (CRO) / Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO)
  • General Counsel / Associate General Counsel
  • Head of Compliance / Head of Regulatory Affairs
  • Energy, Mining & Critical Minerals / Grid Operations Executives

Professional Services & Capital

  • Partners leading Technology, Investment, Regulatory & Tax Practices
  • Infrastructure Private Equity & Venture Capital Partners
  • Managing Directors from financial services firms
  • Global Legal Lead Architects

NORTH AMERICA

WASHINGTON, D.C.

November 18, 2026
Policy, Security
& AI

HOUSTON

December 3, 2026
Infrastructure, Grid
& Energy

NEW YORK

February 2027
Capital, M&A
& Risk

WASHINGTON, D.C.

March 2027
Energy, Security
& Trade

HOUSTON

December 2027
Infrastructure, Grid
& Energy

EMEA

LONDON

October 8, 2026
Unlocking Europe's Resource & Industrial Potential

UAE

April 2027
Sovereign Capital, Trade & AI Infrastructure

LONDON

October 2027
Unlocking Europe's Resource & Industrial

SPONSORSHIP

Partner with ADB Insights to engage executives and innovators shaping the future of mining, materials, energy, and AI.

For inquiries, contact rana@adbinsights.com or:

The Commodities Innovation Forum: Mining + Metals NYC 2026

host sponsor

GOLD SPONSOR

OVERVIEW

Turning geopolitical tides have highlighted the essential nature of the mining ecosystem, lying as it does at the intersection of national security and global energy demands. At this crucial juncture, collaboration among nations is essential to building the secure, value-added supply chains needed to drive their rapidly shifting economies. Great strides are being made, but much remains to be done to bolster the Western world’s mining, processing, and supply chain capabilities and secure its economic future.

The Commodities Innovation Forum: Metals + Mining takes a deep dive into the key forces—geopolitics and policy, industry trends, economic drivers, capital markets, and technological innovation—shaping the global mining ecosystem. Through focused panels and presentations, we’ll explore the forces driving global minerals demand, the strategies that governments and industry are deploying to build resilient supply chains, the cutting-edge innovations transforming mining and processing operations, and the creative financing mechanisms required to turn strategic vision into operational reality.

For stakeholders, the innovation imperative at this critical juncture is clear. The purpose of this event is to inform, connect and frame a narrative for the ecosystem’s future. 

STRUCTURE + audience

  • Format: Half-day (afternoon) event followed by a networking reception, hosted at Clifford Chance’s offices in New York.
  • Sessions: The agenda will feature a mix of panel discussions, fireside chats, and keynote presentations focused on the evolving mining and metals ecosystem and the innovation imperative driving change within it.
  • Attendees: Expect ~100+ senior attendees from across the ecosystem: policymakers and government officials, mining and mineral processing company executives, battery technology and manufacturing leaders, OEM leaders, capital markets leaders, and professional services. This diverse audience of stakeholders across the ecosystem ensures a rich exchange of insights and connections across the value chain.
  • Objective: The purpose of the forum is to take a deep dive into the key forces—geopolitics and policy, industry trends, economic drivers, capital markets, and technological innovation—shaping the global mining ecosystem.

THEMES + AGENDA

11:45 AM – 12:50 PM: REGISTRATION + NETWORKING LUNCH

12:50 – 1:00 PM: OPENING REMARKS

1:00 – 1:50 PM The advancement of minerals & materials security in the U.S.: demand trends, geopolitics, and the strategic imperative

  • Demand drivers: How the data center boom, the recalibration of green technology policy, the modernization of U.S. defense and aerospace infrastructure, and other trends are reshaping the outlook for minerals and materials demand across the Western world
  • Shifting tailwinds: The key opportunities and challenges emerging from the shift in emphasis from price to policy in the materials industry
  • M&A and portfolio strategy: How global mining companies are using acquisitions, divestitures, and portfolio diversification to compete with China and position for the new geopolitical reality
  • Sovereign partnerships and allied cooperation:  How the U.S. is leveraging bilateral agreements, development finance, and trade negotiations — as seen in deals from Ukraine to the Western hemisphere — to build supply chain resilience
  • Canada’s strategic value proposition: The resources, infrastructure, and the regulatory and ESG frameworks that make Canada a preferred partner for Western minerals development

1:55 – 2:45 PM | The forces REshaping Western supply chains: corporate strategy, supply chain realignment, and the allied industrial network

  • A new geopolitical architecture: How procurement mandates, bilateral offtake agreements, stockpiling, allied partnerships, and public-private partnerships are reshaping mineral flows — and where the gaps between political ambition and commercial reality remain

  • Bringing it home: How large corporates are approaching their investments in U.S. mining, processing, and recycling capacity

  • The business case for diversification: The current case for broadening exposure across refining and processing geographies, and the strategies for building more resilient, multi-source supply chains that are actually delivering results

  • Regulatory momentum and its limits: Where executive orders are moving the needle for mining, refining, and recycling projects in the U.S. and Europe — and how operators are navigating the remaining constraints

2:45 – 3:05 PM: break

3:05 – 3:55 PM | Capital, clean tech, MINING and metallurgy: financing and scaling Western Mining & processing capacity

  • Investing in the future: How strategic corporate funds, dedicated critical materials vehicles, and government players are approaching investments in mining, refining and recycling projects

  • Clean mining and processing as competitive advantage: The argument for investing in novel extraction, refining, and metallurgical technologies

  • The offtake imperative: Who is signing long-term supply agreements, on what terms, and how the demand side is evolving its approach to securing processed materials supply

  • Allied capital, allied supply: What role can coordinated Western investment play in building a mining, processing and supply web that is genuinely resilient — and what stands in the way?

4:00 – 4:50 PM | Innovation in financing: the structures, instruments, and INITIATIVES drawing capital back into mining & PROCESSING

  • A new era for mining finance: How the institutional capital drought has reshaped the sector’s financing landscape — and what it will take to bring large pools of capital back into mining and processing at scale
  • The visible hand: How companies are leveraging government support as a financing tool — and what it takes to access that capital

  • Bridging the funding gap: The hybrid and alternative capital structures being deployed to move projects from early-stage development to bankable, large-scale production

4:50 – 5:00 PM: Closing Remarks

5:00 – 6:00 PM: NETWORKING RECEPTION

host sponsor

GOLD SPONSOR

SPONSORSHIP

Partner with The Legal Innovation Forum to engage senior legal leaders and innovators shaping the future of the industry.

For inquiries, contact victor@adbinsights.com

or

The Legal Innovation Forum Toronto 2026

The Law Society of Ontario: This program contains 5 hours and 25 minutes of Professionalism Content

PRESENTING SPONSOR

OVERVIEW

The Legal Innovation Forum returns to Toronto on June 2, 2026, bringing together leaders from law firms, legal departments, technology providers, and the broader business community for a full-day event packed with critical insights and networking opportunities.

This year’s edition of our flagship annual forum is anchored by a bold, overarching theme: The 2030 mandate: Leading transformation in the global legal and business ecosystem.

As the pace of change accelerates, the legal function stands at a critical inflection point. Advances in AI, mounting economic pressure, regulatory divergence, geopolitical volatility, and evolving client and stakeholder expectations are fundamentally reshaping how legal services are delivered—and how risk and value are managed across businesses.

This year’s forum will explore what it takes to build resilient, data-driven legal departments and firms capable of thriving through 2030 and beyond.

PURPOSE OF THE FORUM

  • Examine the critical forces reshaping the global legal and business ecosystem and how these dynamics will redefine law firms and legal departments on the road to 2030

  • Explore emerging business and operating models transforming legal services, and learn how firms and legal departments can adopt agile, future-ready strategies

  • Share best practices from law firms, legal departments, and third-party partners on building resilience through innovation, technology, and data-driven decision-making

  • Cultivate a connected community of legal and business leaders committed to exchanging insights, accelerating transformation, and driving meaningful change across the legal ecosystem

Who’s attending

300+ high-level decision-makers from legal departments, law firms and third party partners from across Canada, the US and overseas

  • Legal departments:
    General counsel, associate / assistant general counsel, in-house counsel, legal operations professionals
  • Law firms:
    Heads of innovation and knowledge management, senior partners, COOs, CIOs, chief client officers

Tables of eight are available for purchase. Located in a premium area of the conference venue, tables offer convenience, flexibility and a significant discount relative to individual tickets. For more information contact victor@adbinsights.com

STRUCTURE

Through a series of high-impact panels and discussions, we’ll examine how technology, data, operating models, and leadership must evolve to meet the demands of a rapidly advancing global landscape.

THEMES + AGENDA

MASTERS OF CEREMONY

8:00 - 8:40 AM | REGISTRATION + NETWORKING BREAKFAST

8:50-9:35 AM | THE LEADERSHIP IMPERATIVE: SKILLS, CULTURE, AND GOVERNANCE FOR TRANSFORMATION

In association with:

Technology alone does not drive transformation. Leadership is key. This panel examines the skills, mindsets, and governance structures required to lead legal organizations through a sustainable transformation journey amid ongoing global disruption.

  • Leadership capabilities: Skills required to lead in an AI- and data-driven environment
  • Cultural transformation: Building teams that embrace innovation, agility, and learning
  • Change management: Leading across generations, roles, and operating models,
  • Governance frameworks: Balancing speed, experimentation, risk, and accountability

9:35 - 9:40 AM | ELEVATOR PITCH 1: HARVEY

9:45-10:25 AM | INTEGRATING ECOSYSTEMS: HOW LAW FIRMS, LEGAL DEPARTMENTS, AND SERVICE PROVIDERS ARE COLLABORATING TO MANAGE THE BUSINESS OF RISK

In association with:

Today’s risk landscape is complex and ever-evolving, requiring integrated management. Discover how interconnected legal ecosystems are emerging, bringing together law firms, in-house legal teams, technology companies, and alternative service providers to share expertise, integrate capabilities, and deliver stronger, more resilient outcomes.

  • Collaboration models: How are law firms, legal departments and service providers working together to drive innovation?
  • Redefining value: Shared accountability for outcomes and risk—including through the lens of investor expectations on transparency, efficiency, and risk-adjusted performance
  • Data and interoperability: Enabling insight through connected systems and partners
  • Capital markets perspective: How investors evaluate scalability, resilience, and execution risk across integrated service ecosystems

10:25 - 10:30 AM | ELEVATOR PITCH 2: clearyx

10:45-11:00 AM | NETWORKING BREAK

11:00 - 11:05 AM | ELEVATOR PITCH 3: ALEXA TRANSLATIONS

11:05 - 11:50 AM | BUILDING A RESILIENT LEGAL TECH STACK: SYSTEMS, DATA, AND ARCHITECTURE FOR THE FUTURE

In association with:

Legacy systems and fragmented data limit legal’s ability to scale, innovate, and adapt. Discover how organizations can implement resilient, flexible legal tech platforms that support AI, analytics, and long-term transformation.

  • Platform strategy: Transitioning from disconnected solutions to integrated legal technology ecosystems
  • Data readiness: The data foundations required for AI, reporting, and decision intelligence
  • Risk + resilience: Balancing innovation with security and compliance
  • Change management: Building buy-in in the AI era

11:50 - 11:55 AM | ELEVATOR PITCH 4: LUMINANCE

12:00 - 12:45 PM | THE LEGAL DEPARTMENT OF 2030: STRATEGIC, DATA-DRIVEN, AND EMBEDDED ACROSS THE ENTERPRISE

In association with:

Legal departments are moving from reactive risk managers to proactive strategic partners. This discussion explores how legal teams are using data, technology, and new operating models to embed legal insight across the business.

  • Strategic positioning: Legal’s expanding role in enterprise decision-making
  • Data and metrics: Using dashboards and analytics to demonstrate value and manage risk
  • Enterprise integration: Aligning legal with finance, compliance, procurement, and operations
  • Talent and resourcing: New skill sets, roles, and flexible delivery models

Chair

Nicole Lee
Nicole Lee

Legal Counsel and Legal Operations Professional

12:45 - 12:50 PM | ELEVATOR PITCH 5: CO-FLO

12:50 - 1:40 PM | NETWORKING LUNCH

In association with:

1:40 - 2:30 PM | KEYNOTE SPEAKER

In association with:

2:35 - 3:15 pm | THE AGE OF AGENTIC AI: REDEFINING LEGAL WORK, DECISION-MAKING, AND CLIENT DELIVERY

In association with:

Autonomous, agent-based systems are moving AI beyond task support to actively shape legal workflows and decisions. This panel examines the current state of AI and explores the potential of agentic AI to transform legal work and add value across law firms and legal departments—while balancing ethical, regulatory, cybersecurity, and data privacy obligations.

  • Current applications: Where AI adoption stands today, what’s working, and the limitations of today’s assistive tools
  • The rise of agentic AI: How autonomous systems differ from traditional AI and how they can impact legal workflow and decision-making
  • Client service implications: How autonomous systems are changing pricing and delivery models
  • Governance, cybersecurity & data privacy: Frameworks for deploying AI responsibly, including managing data risk, protecting sensitive information, and ensuring robust cybersecurity controls

3:15 - 3:20 PM | ELEVATOR PITCH 6: LITERA

3:25 - 3:30 PM | GOODLAWYER - YACHT PARTY DRAW

In association with:

With your in-house counsel Ticket to The Legal Innovation Forum: Toronto 2026 you enter the draw to win 1 of five pairs of tickets to the Goodlawyer Yacht Party on Thursday, June 4, 2026. Canada’s largest invite-only gathering for in-house legal leaders celebrates Canada hosting the summer’s biggest international soccer tournament with chef-led food stations and live entertainment aboard a multi-level yacht.

3:30 - 3:45 PM | NETWORKING BREAK

3:45 - 4:15 PM | FIRESIDE CHAT | INNOVATION IN ACTION: REAL WORLD CASE STUDIES

In association with:

A candid conversation with legal leaders, revealing how innovation is being applied in practice across law firms and legal departments. Our speakers will share real-world experiences, hard-earned lessons, and practical insights on turning innovation strategy into measurable results.

  • The challenges driving change: Key pressures, constraints, and barriers shaping legal innovation today
  • From strategy to results: Real-world examples of innovation delivering measurable impact
  • Across the legal ecosystem: Bridging law firm and in-house perspectives on change and collaboration
  • Turning innovation into action: Practical lessons and takeaways for integrating technology, data, and new operating models into everyday legal work

4:15 - 4:20 PM | ELEVATOR PITCH 7: LEGORA

4:25 - 5:10 PM | ESG REIMAGINED: A NEW PARADIGM EMERGES

In association with:

ESG is evolving rapidly as the nature of sustainability shifts and new risks emerge. Our expert speakers will examine how ESG is being redefined—and what legal leaders must do to navigate heightened scrutiny, uncertainty, and stakeholder expectations.

  • The new ESG landscape: How ESG priorities are changing amid volatility and fragmentation
  • Risk and governance: How are the risk-management tools developed for climate and societal issues now ingrained in business culture?
  • Regulatory divergence: Navigating inconsistent global ESG standards and reporting
  • Operational integration + data: Embedding ESG and climate data into strategy decision-making, and controls

5:15 - 5:20 PM | ELEVATOR PITCH 8: LEXISNEXIS

5:20 - 6:00 PM | THE LAW FIRM OF 2030: HOW SHIFTING MODELS, ECONOMICS, AND EXPECTATIONS ARE RESHAPING THE OPERATING MODEL

In association with:

Client demands, pricing pressure, talent dynamics, and technology are forcing law firms to rethink how they operate. This panel explores how the law firm business model is evolving—and what successful firms will look like by 2030.

  • Economic transformation: Alternative pricing, financial pressures, and new revenue models
  • Workforce evolution: The impact of AI and automation on hiring, talent retention and career paths
  • Governance and structure: Rethinking partnership models and firm leadership
  • Client value: Augmenting traditional legal expertise to deliver impact through outcomes and experience

6:00 - 7:00 PM | CLOSING REMARKS + NETWORKING RECEPTION

OUR PARTNERS

PRESENTING SPONSOR

KEYNOTE partner

GLOBAL STRATEGIC PARTNER

GOLD partners

LUNCH Partner

NETWORKING RECEPTION PARTNER

PRE-EVENT RECEPTION PARTNER

EXHIBITOR PARTNERs

COMMUNITY PARTNER

SPONSORSHIP

Partner with The Legal Innovation Forum to engage senior legal leaders and innovators shaping the future of the industry.

For inquiries, contact victor@adbinsights.com

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