"Use AI, but be responsible," says Joshua L. Grimes, Esq. (MPI Philadelphia Area Chapter), of Grimes Law Offices LLC, a leading attorney in the association, nonprofit, meeting and hospitality industries. "Don’t input personal, proprietary and confidential information without considering that it may become available to anyone; and verify that AI output is correct and free for you to use. And think about whether the law or ethical concerns direct you to disclose that you’re using AI as part of the meeting."

We caught up with Grimes, who recently presented "Leveraging AI in Meetings & Events: Opportunities and Legal Pitfalls" at MPI’s 2025 World Education Congress (WEC) in St. Louis, to take a deep dive into the intersection of AI and events, how he got into meetings law and some of his career highlights.

Is there a specific area of meeting professionals’ work that they should pay particular attention to when using AI?

Both privacy and intellectual property considerations are critical to using AI responsibly.

Personal information about attendees and confidential or proprietary business data should never be uploaded into commercial AI platforms such as ChatGPT. There’s just no way to ensure that a platform won’t use this valuable information in output provided to some other third party.

It’s also important to confirm that an image produced by AI may be used without permission. Some images may be copyrighted by other AI users; and photos or video with a recognizable person should be avoided.

In addition, new European Union laws require some forms of AI output to be identified as such. And even in areas without laws requiring disclosure of AI use, meeting attendees often want to know if their faces, names and other personal information will be captured by AI and used for any business purposes.

Is there a question meeting professionals should be asking more frequently when it comes to AI use and possible legal concerns?

Users should always ask if they’ve reviewed AI output for accuracy and originality. AI’s work product is only as good as the information inputted. So, if its database includes false information, that may become part of the work product. And a copyrighted text or image may be produced in response to a prompt without disclosure that the output cannot be used without someone else’s permission.

Similarly, contract clauses produced by AI may be incomplete or inaccurate, based on the legal data included in the database.

You recently presented on AI and possible meeting industry legal concerns at WEC 2025. What kind of feedback did you receive from attendees?

Meeting professionals want to use AI, but they are concerned about proper disclosure, as well as legal and ethical implications. Many at my WEC session felt that better disclosure of AI uses in advance would promote transparency. They were particularly interested in considering if meeting guests should be allowed to opt out of their images and expressions being captured by AI cameras, even if anonymized. At a time when technology companies are subject to hacking and data theft, and AI technology is developing rapidly, there was a consensus among attendees that promoting disclosure and allowing guests to opt into AI usage of their information can significantly increase attendee comfort.

How did you get started in law, and subsequently in the meeting and event industry?

I’ve been active in government and civic affairs since high school, so law was a natural fit given my interests. After starting my legal career with large law firms, I worked for Philadelphia Mayor Ed Rendell (later governor of Pennsylvania). Rendell put me in charge of legal work for the opening of the Pennsylvania Convention Center, as well as other hospitality and tourism initiatives. In fact, I still represent The Betsy Ross House and several other attractions in Philadelphia.

Once I resumed private practice, I initially focused on representing hotels. I also began speaking about legal issues to hotel managers and meeting professionals. While I still represent hotels in operational matters, over time I developed more clients in the meeting industry. Through many years of membership in MPI and other industry organizations, I’ve worked with companies and associations of all sizes across the U.S. and around the world. I’ve also become a frequent speaker for many organizations involved in the meeting industry.

Tell us about some of your career highlights.

I’ve negotiated contracts for high-profile meetings in Las Vegas and throughout the world, often involving unique venues or challenging logistics. I’ve also helped manage tribute boxing events honoring former champions Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier and George Foreman. Saving millions of dollars getting meeting groups out of non-performing contracts during COVID was another highlight.

Much of my work for clients involves unique legal matters that require critical thinking and careful deliberation to solve, which can be memorable in its own right; but I realize that only lawyers may find that exciting.

My speaking career has also been a highlight. Through my affiliation with MPI and other organizations, I’ve presented meetings legal programs in virtually every part of the U.S., as well as Canada, Mexico, Europe and the Middle East. Aside from visiting many memorable destinations, I’ve met thousands of industry colleagues through my programs.

Discuss someone inside or outside of the meeting and event industry who has made an impact on you.

My father Paul Grimes was a travel writer for The New York Times and Condé Nast, and he also reviewed five-star hotels and resorts for the Mobil Travel Guide. By his example, I learned the "ins and outs" of hotels and the hospitality business. I’ve also been fortunate to know and work with many "legends" of the meeting industry, some of whom became friends. I’m not going to mention names to avoid forgetting someone, but they know who they are.

What has changed the most during your tenure in the meeting and event industry?

The importance of relationships to doing business in the industry has waned over time, in favor of financial considerations. When I first joined MPI many years ago, in-person networking among planners and suppliers seemed essential to successful meeting planning. Nearly everyone attended the large industry meetings, and trust was established that would prove important when negotiating the contract and executing the event.

Over time, revenue managers have taken more prominent roles in negotiating meeting terms for hotels and venues. This is particularly true since COVID. Relationships are still important, but profits are usually more important than a fair meeting contract or customer satisfaction.

One manifestation of this change is the incredible explosion in meeting contract length. What was once a very short document with "names, dates and rates" is now often 20 pages or more of terms intended to maximize revenue and minimize potential legal liability.

What is the one thing the meeting and event industry needs right now?

More cooperation from all major industry players to discuss and overcome the significant challenges facing meetings and events given recent U.S. government policy changes. Hotels need to be more flexible with group room blocks, given government funding cuts that impact meeting attendance, hassles at border entry points, safety concerns from non-U.S. attendees and economic uncertainty. At the same time, groups should consider sharing the risk of cost increases facing hotels and other suppliers due to tariffs and labor shortages. Concessions from all parts of the industry would reduce the risks causing booking hesitancy and lead to more meetings and events, as well as more revenue for suppliers. A more unified front from the industry might also help persuade government officials to change their policies [that are] hampering the success of the meetings and events business.

What are you most passionate about outside of your career?

I am a die-hard Philadelphia sports fan but raised in an era when the local teams were mostly terrible. This makes me probably the last person most people would want to be with during a Phillies or Eagles game. I am also an elected commissioner in Lower Merion Township (Pennsylvania). In this role, I work hard to maintain a community that serves all residents and visitors in an era when many people are wary of government and those who disagree with them politically.