A Conversation with Rebecca Walker About the PLI Advanced Compliance and Ethics Workshop

Rebecca Walker is a co-editor of Ideas & Answers and a partner at Kaplan & Walker LLP. She also co-chairs PLI’s Advanced Compliance and Ethics Workshop, along with Julian Moore. The program is held in New York and online each fall. Fellow Ideas & Answers co-editor Adam Balfour caught up with Rebecca to discuss this year’s program.

Q:  How did you first get involved in the program, and how long have you served as a co-chair?

A:  I first became involved in PLI’s compliance programming as a faculty member more than 20 years ago, and then took on a role in chairing programs. I have chaired PLI’s Compliance and Ethics Essentials program for many years and co-chaired the Advanced Workshop for even longer, first with my wonderful former partner Jeff Kaplan and now with the fabulous Julian Moore, a partner at A&O Shearman.

Q:  What makes you want to stay engaged with PLI?

A:  For me, PLI offers the opportunity both to contribute to our wonderful compliance community and to learn from the faculty. I always leave these programs feeling that I have learned so much. At the Advanced Workshop, we assume participants understand the basic elements of a compliance program. That gives us time to focus on the thornier questions practitioners actually face in their work.

The other reason I have stayed involved is the community. Compliance and ethics professionals are unusually willing to help one another, and a program like this depends on that spirit. We have worked hard to nurture a healthy, happy PLI compliance community over the years. Many practitioners return year after year, and I love that.

Q:  Given the name, is the Workshop mainly for experienced practitioners, or will newer practitioners also benefit?

A:  “Advanced” describes how we approach the material; it is not an admission requirement. We do assume some familiarity with the core elements of a compliance program and with key standards, including the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the Department of Justice’s Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programs. That allows us to spend more time on judgment calls, recurring obstacles, and areas where experienced practitioners may reasonably disagree.

Newer practitioners can benefit from seeing how the elements fit together and hearing experienced professionals discuss the choices involved. We often have newer practitioners at the Advanced course, and I think they get a great deal out of it.

Q:  Without giving too much away, which sessions or topics are you most excited about this year?

A:  Well, Adam, would you also like me to tell you who my favorite child is? It’s impossible to choose!

But I am looking forward to the hot topics panel on conflicts of interest and cybersecurity. I have worked on conflicts of interest for much of my career, and even mature programs can have gaps. In my own practice, I have counseled on some especially thorny conflicts issues this year. Conflicts of interest will always pose challenges.

I am also interested in the artificial intelligence and compliance session. The session distinguishes between two related but distinct questions: Compliance’s role in governing an organization’s use of AI and Compliance’s own use of AI, including in investigations. Those questions require different controls and different expertise, and it is important for compliance professionals to understand both.

The ethics session for compliance lawyers and compliance officers will address issues that arise regularly but are not always discussed directly. These include the boundaries of attorney-client privilege in risk assessments, program assessments, and audits; what Model Rules 1.6 and 1.13 mean in practice for lawyers working in compliance; the tensions that can arise between compliance and legal functions; and the professional duties of E&C professionals.

One thing I am certain of: every panel will offer helpful insights and practical wisdom for compliance practitioners.

Q:  Are there any new additions to the agenda that reflect where the compliance field is heading?

A:  Yes. This year, AI has a full session of its own, while conflicts of interest has been added to the hot topics discussion alongside cybersecurity. Those changes reflect the broader range of issues now reaching compliance teams, including AI governance.

Q:  One thing that sets this Workshop apart is the live benchmarking and polling during sessions. What do you poll attendees about, and how does the polling add to the discussion?

A:  We poll on topics that support the discussion and, we hope, provide useful benchmarking data. Ideally, attendees can take the results back to their organizations to help strengthen their programs. For example, in my session on program structure and board oversight, we may ask how often the CCO meets in person with the relevant board committee or in executive session. The results may help a CCO in the audience move the needle within their own organization in those areas.

Because the polling is built into the sessions, the results can also shape the discussion immediately. Participants can see whether their approach is common or unusual and ask others what led them to make a different choice. That conversation is often as useful as the numbers themselves.

What I love about these sessions is that attendees are often willing to share candidly, including about aspects of their programs that are still developing. That openness makes the benchmarking much more useful, and I do not take it for granted. Our field has always been generous in this way. The more each of us is willing to share, the more all of us learn. I think most practitioners understand that strengthening programs across organizations supports the work every one of us is trying to do.

Q:  This year’s faculty includes speakers from law firms, government, and some of the leading corporate ethics and compliance programs. What can you share about the group, and are there any speakers you are especially excited to hear from?

A:  I know better than to name a favorite when I co-chair the program. Julian and I look for a faculty that brings different perspectives to the same practical questions. This year’s group includes in-house compliance leaders, outside counsel, and speakers with current or prior government experience.

That mix matters. A recommendation that looks sensible on paper may be difficult to implement with a small team, while a practice that feels workable internally may raise different questions when viewed across industries or through an enforcement lens. The discussion is strongest when speakers approach a question differently and explain why.

One session that illustrates that mix is the luncheon discussion on government perspectives, featuring the CFTC’s Director of Enforcement. The CFTC has been at the center of the rapidly evolving regulatory landscape for prediction markets and event contracts, an increasingly important area for compliance professionals, making the discussion especially timely.

The faculty members are all experts in their fields, and I am very grateful for their willingness to share their experience and insights.

Q:  What do you hope attendees take away from this year’s Workshop?

A:  I hope attendees leave with practical ideas they can use in their programs: specific steps they can implement when they get back to their desks. That might be a change to an escalation protocol, a different approach to a training module, or a question worth raising at the next board meeting. I also hope they leave with a clearer sense of how their program compares with others and with new colleagues they feel comfortable contacting when a difficult question arises.

That last point is important. Compliance can be an isolating job, especially for someone who is the entire function or part of a very small team. Relationships formed at the Workshop often continue well beyond the two days, and the community that has grown up around these programs is one of our profession’s real strengths. This is difficult work in a complicated world, and it helps to be reminded of the many smart, thoughtful people doing it alongside you.

More broadly, I hope attendees leave with a renewed sense of purpose and commitment to the important work they do. If the program helps someone return to their work with fresh ideas and renewed energy, knowing that they also have a trusted peer to call later, it has done something useful.

The PLI Advanced Compliance and Ethics Workshop will be held October 29-30, 2026, in New York and online. For more information, visit https://www.pli.edu/programs/advanced-compliance-and-ethics-workshop/443690.

Thank you, Adam, for your wonderful questions. This has been a pleasure!