Winston & Strawn Charlotte Hosts Two Day Event Series with Crowe

In partnership with Crowe LLP, Winston’s Charlotte office hosted a series of events throughout October.

Below are key takeaways from the panel discussions.   

Legal Implications of AI Governance   

This thought-provoking session brought together professionals specializing in legal, compliance, technology, and business domains to provide a comprehensive understanding of the challenges and opportunities associated with AI governance.

Speakers 

• Keith Agisim, Chief IP Counsel, Bank of America  
• Bobby Malhotra, E-Discovery and Information Governance Partner and AI Task Force Member, Winston & Strawn  
• Anthony Mancuso, Director and Head of Risk Modeling and Decisioning, SAS Institute  
• Mohammad Nasar, Data Analytics Principal, Crowe  

Moderators 

• Stuart Feldhamer, Principal, Crowe
• Danielle Williams, Charlotte Managing Partner and Co-Chair of the Intellectual Property Practice, Winston & Strawn   

Key Takeaways 

• Unified Governance: Internal and vendor AI governance should align, as banks hold the risk for both, necessitating consistent policies.  
• Evolving Regulations: The regulatory landscape for AI is becoming a complex patchwork, with varying laws across regions and states, complicating compliance for multinational companies.  
• Focus on Model Risk Management (MRM): Regulators are emphasizing transparency, testing, and validation within AI governance, recognizing MRM as a key component but not the entirety of governance.  
• Practical Steps: Organizations should map AI use cases, identify high-risk areas, and create cross-functional teams to ensure comprehensive governance, alongside clear definitions and inventories.  
• Architectural Context: AI encompasses different architectures, with their application context influencing regulatory acceptance, particularly in areas like risk assessment.  
• Importance of Data Quality: Poor data leads to 80% of AI failures. Effective governance must ensure data is transparent, clean, and well-managed to avoid bias.  
• Bias Management: Human biases in training data can affect AI outcomes, necessitating ongoing analysis to identify and mitigate these biases.  
• Explainability and Continuous Validation: Explainability is crucial for compliance, especially with a large language model (LLMs). Continuous monitoring is needed to assess AI models, highlighting the importance of education on AI limitations.  

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The Power of “&”  

During this executive breakfast, a diverse panel of female leaders shared stories and discussed mutually beneficial ways to bridge gaps between knowledge, culture, and generations.

Speakers 

• Kobi Kennedy Brinson, Chair, Diversity and Inclusion Committee and Co-Chair of the Financial Services Industry Group, Winston & Strawn  
• Eve Rogers, Atlanta Office Managing Partner and Audit Partner, Crowe  
• Joanna Wade, Associate General Counsel and Senior Vice President, Bank of America  

Moderator 

• Shannon Moskal, Principal, Crowe   

Key Takeaways  

• Gained a deeper understanding of the evolving landscape of women’s leadership in the financial services industry.  
• Learned from the experiences and stories of successful female leaders in banking and law on the importance of collaboration and community.  
• Identified beneficial approaches to bridging gaps between knowledge, culture, and generations in the workplace.