On Thursday, March 3, the American College of Governance Counsel (ACGC) hosted the inaugural James H. Cheek III program on Professional Responsibility Issues For Corporate Governance Counsel. The program explored, through presentations and hypotheticals, the professional responsibility challenges that corporate legal counsel face with respect to matters of corporate responsibility and attorney ethics, and explored the framework for navigating these challenges.
The event was in honor of ACGC Founding Fellow and Trustee and former Bass, Berry & Sims attorney James H. Cheek III. Jim passed away on August 27, 2021 and has been remembered for his legacy in the legal industry, especially in the area of corporate and securities law. In Jim’s honor, ACGC established the James H. Cheek III Program in Professional Responsibility of Corporate Governance Lawyers to support and encourage the pursuit of excellence in corporate governance lawyering and dedication to professionalism, ethics and civility. This program is specially supported by donations to the ACGC Cheek Fund with the goal of funding one or more lectures per year on legal ethics and periodically holding a call for papers on topics related to the professional responsibilities of corporate governance lawyers for a juried competition with a monetary prize.
ACGC is a professional, educational, and honorary association of lawyers widely-recognized for their achievements in the field of governance. The mission of the College is to promote a high level of professional standards among governance lawyers along with a better understanding and broader adoption of best practices within business organizations. Learn more about the organization here.