Gene Podesta, shareholder and co-chair of Baker Donelson's Hospitality Industry Service Team, will present "Second Verse, Same as the First: The Plaintiffs’ Bar’s Latest Attempts at Forum Shopping and How to Defeat Them" on Thursday, September 22 at 11:10 a.m. during DRI's Strictly Hospitality Seminar in Scottsdale, Arizona. During this program, Mr. Podesta will explore how the modern reservation practices and Internet marketing activity have opened the door for plaintiffs' counsel seeking to sue a distant hotel or other hospitality related entity in fora unrelated to where the incidents occurred. Franchisors and franchisees should be cognizant of the ramifications of personalized Internet marketing offers based on initial interest about the brand's products or services, given many courts' practices of allowing parties great leeway in proving jurisdiction. If contacts are sufficient, both parties could be forced to litigate in the jurisdictions where their guests reside or in other unrelated jurisdictions. Learn from Mr. Podesta about how to prevent this scenario from playing out.