When Krista Whitaker was a Stanford Law School student, she began attending the annual Sports Lawyers Association Conference to learn from industry professionals, creating a network that holds strong over a decade later.
The Bears' executive vice president of legal and business affairs & chief legal officer, who is heading into her second season with the club, gave back to that community by speaking at the 50th annual SLA Conference in Nashville last weekend. The conference is recognized globally as a premier gathering that offers a space for sports law professionals to connect and collaborate.
Whitaker, who is working alongside Bears President & CEO Kevin Warren and executive vice president of stadium development & chief operating officer Karen Murphy on the club's stadium project, sat on a panel titled "Breaking Ground: The Legal Complexities of Building a Modern Sports Stadium."
"It meant a lot to be asked and even more to share the stage with the other panelists, who I respect and admire," Whitaker said. "It was also a little surreal being in that reverse chair, being on that stage and seeing my colleagues, mentors and all the law students in the audience.
"This stadium project is a bear (pun intended), but it is exciting because I am being stretched and learning something new every day. It was meaningful to be on panel where I could speak to my recent learnings alongside others going through a similar process. That is what this conference is about — connecting with others and learning about new developments in the sports industry."
Whitaker spoke on the topic twice in back-to-back breakout sessions and appreciated that each conversation with her fellow panelists was different despite addressing the same general topics.
The panel was broken up into the three main phases of building a stadium: site selection and design, planning and construction, and opening. Whitaker spoke on phase one, as the Bears are currently in the pre-development stage and working toward a stadium deal.
"As part of stage 1, I generally spoke about what goes into picking a site and determining the feasibility of the project." Whitaker shared. "What sites are viable? Who are the stakeholders? How do we structure and finance the project? And how do we future proof to put ourselves in the best commercial position once development is done?"
Whitaker went into detail on several topics, including building on private versus public land, messaging around public benefits, financing options, land acquisition requirements and more.
Jennifer Sullivan from NYC Football Club spoke on phase two while Daniel Werly from the Tennessee Titans covered phase three. Lisa Glahn from Foley & Lardner LLP spoke about how she supports all three phases as outside counsel. Along with the traditional networking opportunities and legal education the conference provides, Whitaker came away with her own learnings from her panel counterparts.
"I was joking about taking notes during the panel as the other panelists described their respective projects," Whitaker said. "But all jokes aside, I did learn new things about their respective projects and how they navigated certain challenges. There is more to learn from each of them, and I look forward to staying in touch after the conference. That is the beauty of this event."
Having the opportunity to educate and connect with law school students at the conference felt like a full circle moment for Whitaker, who joined the Bears in April 2024 after working for the Miami Heat (2021-24) and Proskauer Rose (2014-21).
"I actually met a lot of people there when I was a law student before going to Proskauer Rose," Whitaker said. "Now I am working alongside people that I used ask to grab coffee with to learn more about their careers. So I spend a lot of time talking to law students as a way to give back. My inbox is full with students asking, 'can I have five minutes, can we schedule some time, grab coffee?' I try to respond to as many as I can and make sure to set that up, because that was really how I started navigating my career."
