Justifying Your Attendance at the INTA’s 2014 Annual Meeting in Hong Kong SAR, China

Are you considering attending the INTA Annual Meeting in Hong Kong in May but anticipate some resistance?Here are some tips on how to approach your management for approval to attend INTA’s Annual Meeting.

Write a Justification Letter

We recommend that the first communication be a formal letter directed to your manager outlining the benefits of attending this meeting and requesting approval for attendance. Below is a sample letter with talking points that should assist you in making your case to attend. Remember to focus on the issues relevant to your organization and your daily work.You might want to consider the following:

  • Focus on what you will specifically bring back as return onthe investment.
  • Offer to prepare and deliver a short presentation and Q&A to your colleagues upon returning from the Annual Meeting to convey what you learned.
  • Share the program agenda with your colleagues.
  • Let your manager know that as an attendee, you have unlimited access to materials posted on the attendee portal such as Course Materials, recordings of the sessions, copies of the session PowerPoint’s and the Attendee Directory.
  • If you are interested in CLE, remind your supervisor that the Annual Meeting is a great way to earn CLE credits and is less expensive and requires less time out of the office than registering for separate conferences.

Dear <manager’s name>,

I would like your approval to attend INTA’s 136th Annual Meeting in Hong Kong SAR, China, May10–14, 2014. The meeting will enable me to attend a number of educational sessions that directly apply to my work and will allow me to network with a variety of trademark and IPleaders and colleagues from around the world. The subject matter of thismeeting focuses on substantive developments within trademark and IP law, hot IP topics, best practices for IP professionals and emerging technologies designed to increase efficiency in practice.

The program will feature industry experts, including seasoned in-house and outside counsel,as well as government officials,who will offer a wealth of knowledge, expertise and opportunities to learn [state your goals here].The meeting offersvarious sessions to enhance my skills. Below are the ones that particularly interest me:

  • List session(s) of interest

As you may already be aware, I am also an INTA volunteer and serve on an active committee. The [Committee Name] will also be meeting onsite to further the associations’ goals and our current projects.

The INTA Annual Meeting also features an ExhibitionHall that displays the latest technology, products and services.This is an excellent opportunity for me to speak with multiple vendors about [insert product or service here], which could greatly benefit [company name].

The meeting also offers the opportunity to network with valuable industry peers, develop new contacts and potentially acquire new business leads.

The full price to attend the conference is XXX and is detailed below.

Expense / Guideline / Cost
Conference Registration Fee / Early Bird Member Discount for 5 days / $995
Pre-Conference Event Registration Fee / Include optional Saturday and Sunday events / $
Table Topics Fee / Discussion over a meal / $
Flight / Try a Web travel service to get a quick estimate / $
Lodging / Refer to INTA’s hotel page to see contracted rates / $
Meals / There will be food served Sunday evening and Wednesday Evening at the conference. Free continental breakfast daily.
Transportation: Airport to Hotel / Train? Taxi? / $
Transportation: Hotel to Airport / Train? Taxi? / $
Mileage and Parking Reimbursement / Driving to the airport for your flight? / $

I believe this will be a great investment for [organization name] as well as an excellent opportunity for me to explore ways in which we can position ourselves and expand our business globally while increasing our ROI.

For your reference, attached is an overview of the meeting program. If you would like additional information, please go to

Thank you for considering my request to attend this very important meeting.

Sincerely,

[your name]