Q&B Securities Partner Jon Hackbarth will moderate a discussion on crisis communication with two experts who have many years of practical experience in crisis situations drawing high levels of media scrutiny; Q&B Litigation Partner Dan Conley, who leads the Quarles Crisis Communications Team, and Jody Lowe, President and Managing Director of The Lowe Group, Financial Communications. The panel will focus on the complicated attorney-client privilege, litigation and public relations issues that can surprise management in a crisis situation, and best practices for promptly gathering the facts, and putting together and controlling your message in such circumstances. The panel will emphasize the importance of preparation before the crisis arises, and the importance of coordinating media and legal strategies, whether the issues involve arise from actual or potential lawsuits, regulatory enforcement, executive departures, corporate restructuring or workplace tragedies.

1. Crisis Communications: Finding Out What
Happened and Controlling Your Message in
the Face of Intense Media or Other Scrutiny
Presented by: Jon Hackbarth, Dan Conley and Jody Lowe
Thursday, October 3, 2019

2. © 2019 Quarles & Brady LLP
1. Identify/Gather Key Decision-Makers (or Their Proxies); Confirm or Assign Responsibilities.
2. Consider Need to Bring in Outside Expertise or Depth.
 Accounting experts
 Environmental experts
 Legal experts
 Public relations experts
 Computer/web
security experts
 Insurance recovery
specialists
 Forensic engineers
 Other outside technical
expertise
 Objectivity
 Issue spotting
 Privilege/Expert/
Evidentiary
Implications
3. First Things First in a Crisis.
 First fix the problem/stop the bleeding.
 Focus on the people involved and most affected by the problem.
 These are often individual personal tragedies and doing the right thing is important.
 These are often business problems needing business solutions.
4. Quickly Find Out What Happened in a Disciplined Way.
 Protect work product/attorney-client privilege if possible.
 Balance importance of limiting early information on a need to know basis against
importance of promptly gathering/providing accurate information from/to target audiences.
 Be sensitive to attorney-client and work product privilege; conflicts of interest; organization
as client; fairness to opposing party; truthfulness in statements to others; communications
with people represented by counsel; dealing with unrepresented person; respect for rights
of third persons.
 Remind organization about press/e-mail/social media/attorney-client privilege policies.
5. Focus on Key Audiences/Relationships and Coordinate Appropriate Messages/Responses to Each.
A. Victims/families.
B. Employees/recruits
C. Regulators (e.g., D.A., SEC,
OSHA, DNR, EPA, etc.)
D. Customers
E. Police
F. Politicians
G. The press (most
unpredictable and uneven)
H. Competitors
I. Suppliers
J. Investors/Donors
K. Distributors
L. Trade groups
M. Potential jurors
N. Advocacy groups
O. Potential plaintiffs and
plaintiffs’ attorneys
P. Insurers
Q. Opponent(s)
R. Others
6. Promptly Resolving and Prioritizing Conflicting Objectives of Internal/External Audiences/Constituencies:
What's The Tail and What's The Dog?
CRISIS COMMUNICATIONS
Dan Conley | Quarles & Brady LLP | daniel.conley@quarles.com | (414) 277.5609

3. © 2019 Quarles & Brady LLP
7. Litigation/PR Objectives and Concerns.
 Typical attorney concern: Don’t volunteer anything; first do no harm; attorney-client
privilege; ethical uncertainty; changing facts/early mistaken understanding; uncertain
judicial reaction; defamation; admissions; inexperience with press or too eager for
spotlight.
 PR concerns: Get in front of story; never look like you’re hiding anything; protect the
company brand and image; no comment never an option.
 Best communication strategies often consistent with PR and litigation objectives in and out
of court.
 A failure to have a communications strategy simply lets someone else set the
agenda/coverage/conversation and leads to misinformation, gossip and unnecessary
negativity, both within and without an organization.
8. Identify Messengers/Vehicle/Timing of Internal and External Communications.
 Ethical rules at play: Trial publicity, impartiality and decorum of the tribunal, truthfulness in
statements to others, confidentiality of information, role as independent and candid
advisor, fairness to opposing parties and counsel, respect for the rights of third persons.
 Important for speaker to have credibility with audience (whomever it is) and also to
understand or work with someone who understands the “rules” (i.e., confidentiality, off-
the-record, privilege, etc.).
 Be mindful that facts and key messages can change over time; early press can set story
(positively and negatively).
 Be very careful if there is the potential for the company or for individual employees, officers
or directors to face criminal liability—standards for culpability may not be what you think.
 Privilege/discovery component of internal/external PR/press communications.
9. Normal Decision-Making Processes/Timelines Will Not Work.
 Pressures of time.
 Limitations of single individual to make all decisions.
 Requirement of acting on imperfect information.
 Requirement to act.
 Some people aren't available or good in a crisis.
 Not a good time for decision-makers to “learn the ropes” about litigation or dealing with the
press.
10. Mistakes Will Be Made.
11. Most Important Takeaways.
 Ethical traps that can catch you in even more slow paced scenarios arise and pass quickly in
crisis context.
 You cannot act quickly enough in terms of getting additional help and in immediately
responding to a crisis.
 Although the information you provide must be accurate, a failure to promptly get involved
in a larger communication strategy can allow a situation to spin out of control.
 Advance planning can make a difference.
 Risk management audit
 Advanced media training
 Crisis response plan and team
Dan Conley | Quarles & Brady LLP | daniel.conley@quarles.com | (414) 277.5609

4. I The Lowe Group
FINANCIAL COMMUNICATIONS
October 3, 2019
Crisis Communications
Strategies

5. 1. Introduction & Background
2. Process
3. Media Strategy
4. Post-mortem
5. Q&A
2

6. 3
Regulatory and other sensitive corporate
announcements require preemptive
planning and careful strategy to head off
a potential crisis
Regulatory settlements
Lawsuits (workplace
discrimination, etc.)
Key executive
departures
Corporate restructuring
(consolidation,
divestiture, layoffs, etc.)

7. 4
▪ Incomplete information
▪ Reputation risk for key executives
▪ Being put in the “penalty box”—
especially challenging for firms serving
institutional investors
▪ Keeping key personnel
▪ Additional scrutiny by other authorities

8. 5
The Wells Fargo fraud scandal, which the
LA Times first reported in December 2013,
continues to be the source of negative
headlines well into 2019.2013
2019
“Since September 2016, when the bank’s fake-
account scandal erupted, its advisor
headcount has declined by 1,258, or 8.3%.
Wells Fargo has reeled from subsequent
scandals and received criticism and
punishment from regulators including the
Federal Reserve, which slapped a cap on the
bank’s assets.”

9. 6
Research current and past related
matters
Consider other similar situations in
the industry
What other skeletons or negative
information could come out
concurrently or as a result?

10. 7
Include decision makers
from the executive
team as well as internal
and/or external legal
counsel
Who
How
Many
Keep the team small
enough to be quick,
nimble and effective

11. 8
Once the crisis communications team is established, clearly communicate:
Confidentiality guidelines Code names
Preference for calls or written
communications—and if
email, whether to include an
attorney to maintain
privileged status
Where and how electronic
and written documents
should be stored
Priorities—time is always
of the essence; staff and
delegate accordingly

12. 9
Keep messaging tight
and limited to key
(often three) points
Define Apply
Customize message
for various audiences

13. 10
Consider spokespeople carefully

14. 11
Who will be impacted?
Employees Owners/partners Clients
Prospective
clients
Shareholders Vendors Local community

15. 12
In the case of regulatory matters and lawsuits, traditional crisis
management strategies may not apply
Less is
more
Evolve
Monitor whether the story escalates

16. 13
When is it helpful to conduct an
interview or respond to a media
inquiry?
→
→

17. 14
Define what you can and cannot
address
Define how much time you have
Stick to the message triangle
Assume the interview is “on the
record”

18. 15
BE CAREFUL if “off the record”

19. 16
If anything is inaccurate, seek to
correct errors immediately—
misinformation can spread quickly

20. 17
Monitor media and social media
channels
Monitor what associates are hearing
from their clients, prospects, etc.—
ensure you and/or your client have
ways to do so
Recalibrate response if necessary

21. 18
Search engines can be a problem
for firms dealing with crisis
communications issues

22. 19
Distribute news releases
Develop an earned media strategy,
including creation and
dissemination of quality digital
thought-leadership content
Leverage social media
Track results and monitor coverage
Engage an SEO firm if needed

23. 20
Evaluate outcomes
Try to see
beyond the crisis
Stay engaged
and follow-up
with your clients
Stay visible

24. 21

25. Questions?

26. Thank you!
Jonathan Hackbarth: Ph. 414-277-5603, jon.hackbarth@quarles.com
Daniel Conley: Ph. 414-277-5609, daniel.conley@quarles.com
Jody Lowe: Ph. 414-376-7663, jody.lowe@lowecom.com