PHOTOS COURTESY OF MILLER JOHNSON AND WARNER NORCROSS & JUDD
by Cynthia Price
Legal News
One thing on which the two local attorneys who have just received appointments to committees of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel agree: just being invited to be a member of ACTEC is in itself a great honor.
ACTEC was established in 1949 as a nonprofit association whose members are elected because they have the highest level of integrity, commitment to the profession, competence and experience as trust and estate attorneys. There are fewer than 55 members of ACTEC in Michigan, and only about 2600 nationally.
Robert D. Brower of Miller Johnson and Warner Norcross and Judd’s W. Michael Van Haren also agree that the further honor of being accepted as a committee member is likely to be beneficial to their practice and their clients.
Brower’s appointment is to the 2011-2012 Fiduciary Litigation Committee. “The committee is made up of folks nationwide who handle some of the most cutting edge trust and estate issues. It’s going to be a good group to participate with and it will provide a learning experience, to keep up on some of the leading theory and practice in litigation. I am very pleased to have the appointment and to be a part of ACTEC.”
Brower focuses his practice on representing closely held business owners and executives, their families, fiduciaries, and other individuals on contested estate matters as well as business and estate planning, succession/transition planning, and probate and trust administration.
Brower was the Managing Member of Miller Johnson from 1992 to 2000, and received his J.D. University of Michigan Law School in 1972.
He has been a Fellow in ACTEC for “15 plus years,” which he says has already positively impacted his practice. He has appeared on the Super Lawyer Top 100 list and has been listed in “The Best Lawyers in America®” for both tax law and trusts and estates. He participates in the Western Michigan Estate Planning Council.
He has also served in many community capacities including on boards of the Grand Rapids Community Foundation, Albion College, and Grand Rapids Area Center for Ecumenism.
The ACTEC Executive Committee appointed Van Haren, a partner with Warner Norcross and Judd, to its current Business Planning Committee, on which he has served before. “It provides me access to the best and brightest in the county who are working in the area,” he said. He was also the ACTEC State Law Coordinator from 1997 to 2001.
Van Haren’s practice concentrates on family held businesses and all the issues associated with passing them on. He helps high net worth individuals, their family offices, and the businesses they own, with gift, estate, and sophisticated tax planning.
He graduated magna cum laude from University of Detroit Law School, and has since been a chair of the Probate and Estate Planning Council for the State Bar of Michigan. He was a board member of the Western Michigan Estate Planning Council in the 1980s.
Van Haren was named the 2011 Lawyer of the Year for Trusts and Estates in the Grand Rapids area by “Best Lawyers in America®,” where he has been recognized since 1987, and has also been recognized as Michigan Super Lawyer.
Van Haren served as an adjunct professor at Grand Valley State University’s Master of Taxation Program, and lectures for the Institute of Continuing Legal Education. His community affiliations have included serving on the Goodwill of West Michigan board, the Wege Foundation board, and as a member of the steering committee for Leave a Legacy West Michigan in1999 to 2000.
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