On the afternoon of September 7, 2016, the Chase Alumni in and from Austria moved from our standard venue, the St. Johanns Club, in order to enjoy the brilliant, late summer views of Vienna and surrounding area that are available from Austria’s leading, dedicated, litigation and disputes resolution law firm, KNOETZL.  One Chase Alum commented that he felt able to touch the green copper domes of the Michaelertor, the gate to the Hofburg (Imperial Palace of the Habsburg Empire).  Chase Alumnus and KNOETZL Managing Partner Tim Pfister and the firm’s Senior Partner, Bettina Knoetzl, explained that our host firm has gleefully occupied the top several floors of Herrengasse 1, which provides 360 degree views all around Vienna from its beautiful center, since January 1, 2016.  Attending Chase Alumni, who turned out in large numbers for the meeting, were greeted with refreshments and guided through the firm's client spaces and specially designed litigation, arbitration and business mediation training and work areas, and around the outdoor, rooftop wrap-around terrace.  

 

Following upon an impromptu and fun exercise of identifying Vienna’s iconic landmarks in the Ausblick of the firm’s terrace, the meeting continued in the main conference room with a Weitblick presentation Bettina and Tim gave us on the subject of “Managing a Corporate Crisis—Expecting the Unexpected (When Humans Fail)”.  After the interesting and important talk, we enjoyed lunch downstairs in the famous Viennese Café Griensteidl, where Alumni business was discussed and the club’s usual bonhomie, as started in the inspiring and breathtaking views upstairs, continued to flow.
 
Tim Pfister (shown in photo) worked at Chase New York during the 1980s as a Vice President and Senior Associate Counsel.

 

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