LEGAL PEOPLE

The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences has named Henry Baskin, principal of The Baskin Law Firm PC in Birmingham to its National Legal Committee. Previously, the Academy has awarded Baskin with an Emmy® Award for his work on the long-running public affairs program "Due Process" and with its Silver Circle Medallion for his longtime contributions to the television industry. In his law practice, Baskin specializes in matrimonial, litigation and personal service contracts. The chair of the Oakland University Board of Trustees, he established the Baskin Family Foundation to support scholarships for children of single parent households attending the university. * * * Southfield-based Maddin, Hauser, Wartell, Roth, & Heller PC is pleased to announce that shareholder Michael S. Leib has been selected for inclusion in the first annual Top Lawyers, published by Corporate Counsel. Leib focuses his practice in the areas of insolvency law and commercial, bankruptcy, and real estate litigation. A member of the State Bar of Michigan, serving on the Judicial Qualifications Committee of the State Bar of Michigan, he is admitted to practice before the U.S. District Court, Eastern and Western District of Michigan, Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, and United States Supreme Court. Leib also is a member of the Federal Bar Association of the Eastern District of Michigan. Additionally, Leib has been named to both Super Lawyers and Best Lawyers in America. Leib is a graduate of Kalamazoo College, the University of Montana, and Wayne State University LawSchool. Additionally, in 2010, Maddin Hauser formed a Charity Committee which is committed to the well being of our employees, clients and community. Normally Maddin Hauser's dress code is suit and tie. However, once a month, Maddin Hauser holds a casual blue jeans day. Those desiring to wear blue jeans to work must pay $5 or more for the privilege, and the proceeds of the day are donated to a charity chosen by our staff. Since the formation of the committee, Maddin Hauser has supported its community by raising funds and donating to the following charities: * Koman Three Day Walk. * Cancer Relay for Life. * Alzheimer Charity. * Diabetes Charity. * Gilda's Club. * Detroit Rescue Mission. * Military - USO Operation Phone Home. * Gleaners Community Food Bank. * * * Detroit law firm Barris, Sott, Denn, & Driker PLLC is pleased to announce that member Rebecca Simkins was selected as one of 25 "Leaders in the Law" by Michigan Lawyers Weekly for 2012. Simkins will be honored at an awards luncheon in March 2012 and profiled in a special supplement of the publication. Simkin's practice is concentrated in employment, labor, and healthcare law and in business litigation. She is active in the State Bar of Michigan, having been appointed as the chair of its Practice Management Resource Center Advisory Committee, as a fellow of the Michigan State Bar Foundation, and as a member of its Leadership Liaison Advisory Committee and of its Character and Fitness Committee for District H. She graduated from Michigan State University College of Law in 1988 and graduated from the University of Michigan with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1982. * * * Sarah Weston has been named partner at Southfield-based Jaffe, Raitt, Heuer, & Weiss PC. Jaffe CEO Richard Zussman made the announcement. Weston is a member of the firm's Finance and Corporate practice groups, specializing in finance, electronic banking, business law and general corporate matters. She counsels financial institutions and businesses on mobile payments, merchant-acquiring, electronic fund transfers, loyalty cards and payment systems, merger and acquisition matters and represents both buyers and sellers of merchant portfolios and businesses in the payments industry. Weston earned her bachelors degree from James Madison College at Michigan State University and is a graduate of Michigan State University College of Law. A published author and regular speaker, Weston is a member of the State Bar of Michigan and the Electronic Transactions Association, ISO Best Practices Committee. In addition, Michael A. Weil has been named partner at Southfield-based Jaffe, Raitt, Heuer, & Weiss PC. Jaffe CEO Richard Zussman made the announcement. Weil is a member of the firm's Tax and Estate Planning practice group, where he specializes in tax planning for businesses and individuals, as well as overall estate planning. Weil graduated from the University of Michigan School of Business Administration and is a graduate of the University of Michigan Law School. He is a member of several professional associations and organizations, including the American Bar Association, Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants Mergers & Acquisitions Task Force, Financial and Estate Planning Council of Metropolitan Detroit, and American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. * * * Attorney Steven Cole, partner and founding member of Lipson, Neilson, Cole, Seltzer & Garin, was recognized by the American Committee for Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem with the 2012 Jerusalem Peace Award. He was honored at the Jerusalem Peace Dinner on Saturday, Feb. 25, at The Henry in Dearborn. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Jesselson Heart Center at the Medical Center. Former U.S. Senator and U.S. Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham and Dr. Shukri David, chief of Cardiology at Providence Hospital in Southfield and director of the Cardiovascular Center of Excellence at St. John Providence Health System, were also be honored at the event. Cole has a strong desire to foster close friendships and working relations among Jews and Arabs. He has family in Israel and close friends in Jordan, and has traveled to both countries. "This is a tremendous honor from an organization that gives so much to the residents of Jerusalem and the surrounding region, and is truly a beacon of hope as a leading provider of healthcare," Cole said. "This hospital helps build cross-community ties among Jews, Arabs and others, by welcoming and treating everyone from the local populace in Jerusalem. We have a wonderful base of community support in the metropolitan Detroit area, and are continuing to build more support every year." As a firm co-founder and member of its executive team, Cole's practice focuses on real estate, business transactions, corporate and tax law and estate planning. He has been an adjunct professor in the Master of Science in Taxation program at Walsh College, and has taught many continuing education programs for insurance professionals and CPAs. In addition to his support for Shaare Zedek Medical Center, Cole is a member of the executive committee and board of directors of the Michigan Israel Business Bridge. * * * Scott F. Cooper, partner and managing attorney in the Troy office of Fragomen, Del Rey, Bernsen, & Loewy LLP, has been named to the board of directors of the Detroit Regional Relocation Council (DRRC). Cooper will share responsibility for overseeing the group's programs and events. "Having worked closely with the DRRC over the years, I have witnessed firsthand the benefits and valuable services the group provides to it members," said Cooper. "Metro Detroit hosts a globally diverse workforce that needs a resource like the DRRC. I am honored to be a part of this organization." DRRC is a forum for professionals to share the latest information and resources available in the corporate mobility arena. Its goal is to give corporate human resource managers and service providers the tools to effectively address the complex issue of domestic and international relocations. Cooper's practice is focused in employment-based immigration and immigration-related compliance for a broad range of clients from Fortune 100 companies, universities and national research, cultural and health care institutions to senior executives, professionals, entrepreneurs and investors (including EB-5). He also is an adjunct professor of law at the University of Detroit Mercy College of Law. * * * Gail Haefner Straith is honored to be named the 2012 Lawyer of the Year for Mergers & Acquisitions Law in Detroit by Best Lawyers. Throughout her 26-year career, Straith has enjoyed guiding business owners and management teams through the process of buying or selling a business. She has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America since 2003. Straith is a graduate of the University of Michigan and Cornell Law School. She is the founder of Straith Law, a firm based in Birmingham. Straith Law provides legal services to businesses, with a focus on mergers and acquisitions, formation and growth of business entities, registration and protection of trademarks, and negotiation and drafting of business contracts. Straith Law is a proud sponsor of the ACG Cup, a case study competition for MBA students. For additional information, visit www.straithlaw.com. Prior to returning to her hometown of Birmingham, Straith enjoyed a career of more than 20 years with Paul Frank + Collins in Burlington, Vermont. * * * Thomas M. Cooley Law School professor and director of the school's graduate degree program in Corporate Law and Finance, E. Christopher Johnson Jr. has been selected as one of the nation's most influential black attorneys in the "Pipeline Builder" category by On Being A Black Lawyer Media Company (OBABL). Johnson's selection will place him on OBABL's inaugural Power 100 Special Edition list. OBABL's mission is to help advance diversity in the legal profession. "I am honored to receive this award for making a difference in diversity in the legal profession," said Johnson. "Whatever I have accomplished in life is attributable to my strong Christian faith and keeping my family and Jesus Christ at the center of my life. God has provided me with some wonderful mentors over the years and I want to also be a mentor to those coming behind me." Johnson has been working for more than 20 years in various inner-city pipeline programs designed to increase diversity in the legal profession and help to develop responsible citizens. While at General Motors, where he served as the vice president and general counsel for GM North America, Johnson championed a number of initiatives in the access-to-justice and access-to-law school and diversity arenas. Currently, he is actively involved in Cooley's high school and college pipeline programs, which are designed to expand access to law school, and he serves as the chair of City Mission, a Detroit elementary school and K-12 mentoring program. His service through the years mirrors these passions and has included serving as chair of the Council for Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Educational Pipeline; member, Council of Legal Education Opportunity; chair of ABA Africa; co-chair, West Point Leadership and Ethics Conference; and co-chair of the Detroit Metropolitan Bar Foundation. Johnson has received many awards for his work, including the ABA Spirit of Excellence Corporate Award, the National Bar Association Clyde Bailey Award for Corporate Leadership, the State Bar of Michigan Michael Franck and Champion of Justice Awards and the D. Augustus Straker Bar Association Trailblazer Award. He was also inducted into the National Black Law Students Association Hall of Fame. Johnson joined Cooley in 2009 as a visiting professor and launched the school's graduate degree program in Corporate Law and Finance. Currently, he serves as chair of the Michigan United Negro College Fund Leadership and a member of the Board of the Great Lakes Division of the American Cancer Society. While on a mission trip, Johnson was exposed to slavery and human trafficking which compelled him to join the anti-slavery and human trafficking movement. Currently, Johnson serves as co-chair of the Community Committee of the State of Michigan Human Trafficking Task Force and works with a number of governmental and non-governmental entities on this crisis. He also leads Cooley's initiatives in this area and he recently led a statewide human trafficking awareness event at Cooley's four Michigan campuses. On Being a Black Lawyer has been recognized by the American Bar Association, National Black Law Students Association and National Association of Black Journalists. Johnson and other honorees will be recognized in Washington, D.C. on Feb. 29 at an event emceed by CBS News Correspondent Michelle Miller. * * * Alexandra Papasifakis recently joined the Banking, Bankruptcy & Creditors' Rights Practice Group of Plunkett Cooney. An attorney in the firm's Bloomfield Hills office, Papasifakis represents financial institutions in the areas of loan workouts and foreclosures, commercial real estate, loan documentation and bankruptcy. Prior to joining the firm, Papasifakis was a member of Plunkett Cooney's 2010 Summer Associate Class, worked as a summer clerk to U.S. District Court Judge Marianne O. Battani, Eastern District of Michigan, and interned as a clerk for U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Helene N. White, Sixth Circuit. Papasifakis is member of the State Bar of Michigan, the Oakland County and Women's bar associations and the DRI--The Voice of the Defense Bar. She is licensed to practice in Michigan's state and federal courts. A graduate of Wayne State University Law School, Papasifakis received her undergraduate degree from Albion College. * * * David H. Fink, managing partner of Bloomfield Hills-based Fink + Associates Law, has been appointed to the Board of Directors of Jewish Family Services of Metropolitan Detroit. Fink, along with other board members, will support executive leadership, strategic planning and overall operational direction for Jewish Family Services (JFS). JFS is a non-profit organization providing social and mental health services to individuals and families throughout Metropolitan Detroit. Fink serves on the Finance Committee of the Board. Founder of Fink + Associates Law, Fink concentrates his practice in the areas of complex commercial and class action litigation, focusing on business disputes, antitrust, consumer fraud, environmental law, intergovernmental disputes, securities fraud, shareholder derivative litigation and construction contract matters. Fink was named a 2011 "Leader in the Law" by Michigan Lawyers Weekly and has been listed as a Super Lawyer in Michigan Super Lawyers Magazine every year since 2007. He is a graduate of Harvard College and a graduate of Harvard Law School and serves on the Michigan State Officers Compensation Commission (SOCC) and the Michigan State Bar Committee on Judicial Qualifications. Published: Mon, Feb 27, 2012