LEGAL PEOPLE

Trott & Trott PC recently announced that Melissa Byrd and Rana Razzaque have been recognized as 2014 Top Women Attorneys in Michigan by Super Lawyers magazine. Byrd joined Trott in 2011 as a litigation attorney concentrating her practice in the areas of bankruptcy and mortgage creditors' rights. Byrd earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Michigan-Dearborn and graduated from Ave Maria School of Law. Razzaque serves as a litigation attorney for Trott where her practice centers on the mortgage and banking industry, real property, and title issues in state and federal courts, including appellate work. Razzaque graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in English from McDaniel College in 2001 and earned her law degree from the Michigan State University College of Law in 2004. * * * Derek W. Kelley has joined Honigman, Miller, Schwartz, and Cohn LLP as an attorney in its Litigation Department and is located in the firm's Detroit office. He earned a law degree from the University of Michigan Law School and a B.A. from the University of Michigan. He will be applying for admittance to the State Bar of Michigan. In addition, Honigman is pleased to announce that its Partner Jonathan P. O'Brien, chair of the firm's Intellectual Property Department and leader of its Patent Practice Group, has been named one of 30 "Leaders in the Law" for 2014 by Michigan Lawyers Weekly. O'Brien concentrates his practice on life sciences (pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device), industrial chemistry, battery technology and nanotechnology. He provides clients with global IP strategies related to IP procurement and enforcement, product clearance, and various transactional and regulatory issues. Since O'Brien became chair of the firm's Intellectual Property Department, it has quadrupled in size to more than 75 legal professionals with experience in patent, trademark, copyright and trade secret services. O'Brien, along with Phillip D. Torrence, the Kalamazoo office managing partner, opened Honigman's Kalamazoo office in 2008 with 14 attorneys, staff and professionals. That total is now 55. O'Brien played an important role in a recent precedential ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals finding that the United States Patent and Trademark Office failed to follow federal statute when determining the extension of patent terms due to government delay. This decision will have a significant impact on the life science industry. He has been named in The Best Lawyers in America for 2012 and 2013, in Michigan Super Lawyers as a "Rising Star" in 2011 and 2013, and by Business Review as a "Business Leader Under 40" in 2007. O'Brien also was named an "IP Star" by Managing Intellectual Property magazine in 2013. He earned a law degree from Michigan State University College of Law. O'Brien also received a Ph.D. in chemistry from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a B.S. in chemistry from Hope College. * * * The law firm of Miller Canfield has re-elected Douglas M. Kilbourne and elected Thomas D. Colis and Robert J. Haddad to serve two-year terms as managing directors. They are part of a five-person management administration that works with the CEO to oversee the firm's offices in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Poland, and China. Thomas D. Colis (Detroit office) is a principal and deputy group leader of the Public Finance Group. A 20-year bond lawyer, he assists municipal and other governmental agency clients in evaluating, structuring, documenting and accessing capital markets for all of their capital needs. He received his law degree (1993) from the University of Michigan Law School and his B.A. (1990) from the University of Rochester. Robert J. Haddad (Troy office) is a principal and leader of the Product Safety Group. His 26 years of experience in the automotive and products industries includes coordinating national discovery efforts for automotive manufacturers, litigating product liability and warranty issues, and representing OEMs and suppliers in regulatory matters before NHTSA, the Consumer Product Safety Commission and other regulatory bodies. He received his law degree (1988) from the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law, his M.B.A. (1988) from the University of Detroit Mercy and his A.B. (1985) from the University of Michigan. Douglas M. Kilbourne (Detroit office), a principal, has more than 35 years of experience in representing banks and commercial businesses in a broad range of loan transactions and commercial, real estate and corporate transactions, as well as regulatory and compliance matters. He received his law degree (1977) from Detroit College of Law and his B.A. (1970) from Michigan State University. * * * Michigan Supreme Court Justive Stephen J. Markman has been elected to a four-year term on the board of directors of Thomas M. Cooley Law School. Markman was appointed to the Michigan Supreme Court by Governor John Engler in 1999 and was elected to that bench by Michigan's voters in 2000, 2004, and 2012. Before that, Markman was a judge on the Michigan Court of Appeals and practiced law with the firm of Miller, Canfield, Paddock, and Stone PLC in Detroit. Before joining the firm, he was U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan and previously was the U.S. assistant attorney general where he headed the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Legal Policy which develops departmental policy and coordinates the federal judicial selection process. Before serving in that role, he was chief counsel to the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on the Constitution and deputy chief counsel to the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Markman is a B.A. graduate of Duke University and earned his law degree at the University of Cincinnati College of Law. He has published articles in the University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform, the Stanford Law Review, and the Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy. He has also been a contributing editor of National Review magazine and has authored chapters in a number of books. For two decades, Markman has taught constitutional law at Hillsdale College. He is a Fellow of the Michigan Bar Foundation, is a Master of the Bench of the Inns of Court, and twice has been sent to Ukraine by the U.S. Department of State to assist in developing that country's post-Soviet constitution. Markman is the seventh member of the Michigan Supreme Court to serve on Cooley's board of directors, following Justices Thomas E. Brennan, John W. Fitzgerald, James L. Ryan, James H. Brickley, Michael F. Cavanagh, and Dorothy Comstock Riley. * * * Rader, Fishman, & Grauer is pleased to announce that Michael T. Fluhler has joined the firm as an associate attorney. Fluhler is an experienced patent and trademark attorney. He practices in all aspects of intellectual property matters including domestic and foreign patent preparation and prosecution, portfolio management, valuation and due diligence analysis, opinions, alternative dispute resolution and litigation support, monetization strategies, and drafting and negotiating technology and intellectual property agreements. Fluhler has worked in a range of technical areas including medical, mechanical, automotive, aerospace, telecommunications, software, and electrical technologies. Prior to joining Rader, Fishman, & Grauer, Fluhler served as intellectual property counsel for a privately-held medical device company. In addition, he has engineering experience in medical devices, mobile electronics, aerospace sensors, jet engines, and plastics manufacturing. Fluhler earned his law degree degree from Chicago-Kent College of Law and a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Purdue University. * * * Foster, Swift, Collins, & Smith PC is pleased to announce the arrival of Seth A. Drucker as a shareholder in the firm's Farmington Hills office as a member of the Commercial Litigation Practice Group. Before joining Foster Swift, he was a partner at Honigman, Miller, Schwartz, and Cohn LLP. Prior to his career in law, Drucker worked as an automotive engineer for more than a decade for corporations such as United Technologies Automotive, The Ford Motor Company, and General Motors Corporation. His experience in the automotive industry has led him to focus his practice on representing manufacturing and technology companies, including automotive suppliers and OEMs, in transactional and litigation matters. In addition, Drucker also has experience representing secured and unsecured creditors and commercial landlords in restructuring matters. He is a graduate of the Michigan State University College of Electrical Engineering and Wayne State University School of Business Administration. He received his law degree from the University of Michigan Law School. Drucker serves as the 2014 chair of the Michigan State University Eli Broad Executive Forum of Detroit. He is also a member of the State Bar of Michigan, American Bar Association, American Bankruptcy Institute, Michigan State University Alumni Association, and Society of Automotive Engineers. * * * The peer-review publication Super Lawyers has selected Detroit-based law firm Bodman PLC as one of only two national law firm recipients of its 2013 Pro Bono Award. The Pro Bono Award honors law firms and other organizations and individuals that exemplify excellence in providing volunteer legal services to the poor, underrepresented, or exploited. Award recipients are selected based on pro bono efforts accomplished in the previous calendar year. "With our largest office in downtown Detroit, Bodman attorneys are acutely aware of the level of need experienced by the homeless and the organizations that serve the homeless," said Bodman Chairman Ralph E. McDowell. "The Super Lawyers award is tremendous recognition for all of the Bodman attorneys whose volunteer services make a positive impact in the lives of the most vulnerable people in the communities where we live and work." The editors of Super Lawyers recognized Bodman for its involvement in the Street Outreach Court Detroit (SOCD), a specialty "homeless court" of the 36th District, which helps provide a fresh start for Detroiters who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. SOCD participants follow an action plan to address the causes of their homelessness, which may include job training, obtaining stable housing, and drug and alcohol rehabilitation. Upon completion, participants are granted relief from most of their outstanding civil infractions and misdemeanors. Bodman is a member of the SOCD steering committee and represents SOCD participants in connection with civil matters. Super Lawyers also acknowledged the volunteer efforts of Bodman attorneys at both the Detroit chapter of H.E.L.P. (Homeless Experience Legal Protection), a program that holds legal clinics for the homeless at a warming center, and a new legal clinic held at Detroit's Capuchin Soup Kitchen, which Bodman helped to establish. Bodman attorneys work with soup kitchens, community crisis centers, and other social service providers to identify and provide services to homeless or nearly homeless individuals who can benefit from assistance with legal issues. In 2013, 106 Bodman attorneys performed more than 5,300 hours of pro bono service for eligible organizations and individuals. The firm's efforts are guided by a standing Pro Bono Committee and Bodman is one of only two law firms in Michigan to employ a dedicated pro bono counsel. Kimberly Paulson, who joined Bodman as pro bono counsel in 2012, serves as the primary coordinator of the firm's day to day pro bono activities and also provides legal services directly to a number of the firm's pro bono clients. The Super Lawyers award is one of several that Bodman has garnered in recent years in recognition of its pro bono program. In December 2013, Michigan Community Resources, an organization that provides assistance to community-based organizations serving low income areas, named Bodman its Pro Bono Law Firm of the Year. Bodman is also a current member of the State Bar of Michigan's Pro Bono Circle of Excellence for having exceeded the State Bar's voluntary pro bono standard. * * * Collins, Einhorn, Farrell attorney Donald D. Campbell will be among the speakers at the International Association of Defense Counsel's (IADC) Professional Liability Roundtable on May 8 at University of Chicago Booth School of Business. Campbell is among the speakers for a session focusing on "Hot Topics in Attorney-Client Privilege." Campbell, a partner at Collins Einhorn, focuses his practice on attorney grievance defense, representation in judicial tenure matters and legal malpractice defense. Best Lawyers in America named him its 2014 Detroit Area Ethics and Professional Responsibility Law "Lawyer of the Year." The publication also has selected him among The Best Lawyers in America® five consecutive years. In addition to his law practice, Campbell has served as an adjunct professor of law at the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law for more than a decade, teaching courses in ethics and criminal law. Campbell, a Wayne State University Law School alumnus, is currently treasurer for the Association of Professional Responsibility Lawyers (APRL) and the APRL's liaison to the American Bar Association's Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility. * * * Butzel Long attorney Beth S. Gotthelf has been appointed to the newly established Macomb-OU INCubator Advisory Council. The mission of the Council is to support economic development in Southeast Michigan by accelerating high-tech business, cultivating academic innovation and encouraging research and development. Gotthelf, based in the firm's Bloomfield Hills office, is director of Innovation and External Relations at Butzel Long. She is a shareholder and member of the firm's Corporate Practice group. She is chair of Butzel's Aerospace and Defense Industry Team and co-chair of the Energy and Sustainability Practice Team. Gotthelf is an executive-in-residence with the Macomb-OU INCubator as well. She serves on the Board of Directors of the Better Business Bureau and has been appointed to its Executive Committee. Gotthelf is on the Executive Council of the Michigan Israel Business Bridge. She has been very active in bar associations, including in the State Bar of Michigan, Environmental Law Section, where she served as past chair. Gotthelf is past vice chair of several committees of the American Bar Association (ABA) Section of Natural Resources, Energy and Environmental Law. She is past chair of the Environmental Law Committee of the Oakland County Bar Association and is a past member of the State Bar Representative Assembly on behalf of Oakland County. * * * Estate planning attorney Alycia Wesley, of the Colombo & Colombo law firm, was a featured speaker during the Beaumont Parenting Program's recent "Financial Planning for Your Child's Future" seminar. This seminar was held at the PNC Building in Troy on March 12. This seminar provided an opportunity for parents to hear, and learn, important information from professionals in a neutral setting. Topics included, "What is the difference between a will and a trust?," "What is involved in establishing guardianship?," "How can I plan for my child's education?," and "What will happen to my children if we do not have any guardianship documents in place?" Wesley's law practice includes estate- and succession-planning counsel. Wesley's expertise includes the complex area of probate litigation, trust and contested wills, the administration of trusts and estates, and high net worth estates. She recently helped a client obtain a favorable outcome in front of the Michigan Court of Appeals, and defeat a subsequent attempt to appeal the decision to the Michigan Supreme Court. Wesley is a regular speaker on the topic of Estate Planning for families with new born children. * * * Regina Daniels Thomas, deputy chief counsel-broad based advocacy at the Civil Law Group of Legal Aid and Defender Association Inc. (LAD), has received a new fellowship designed to build healthcare expertise in the national legal aid community. Thomas is one of 24 senior staff members from legal aid agencies in 21 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico selected as inaugural fellows by the National Center for Medical-Legal Partnership at the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services (NCMLP) and the National Legal Aid and Defender Association (NLADA). Both organizations are based in Washington, D.C. The Public Welfare Foundation, also based in Washington, is underwriting the fellowships. During the year-long fellowship, "fellows will learn to frame legal services in a healthcare context, build strong healthcare alliances, and use population health data effectively," NCMLP said. "The fellowship will culminate in a project with a local healthcare entity." "This fellowship will allow LAD to work on a project that will result in better outcomes for children and families receiving assistance through our medical legal partnership, Legal Aid for Children and Families," Thomas said. Thomas is a graduate of Tennessee State University and Vanderbilt University Law School. * * * Six members of the Professional Resolution Experts of Michigan (PREMi) were presenters at the13th Annual Negotiation & Dispute Resolution Institute (ANDRI) held on March 12. Hundreds of litigators, neutrals, advocates, and judges participated in a thought provoking and informative coverage of cutting edge ADR issues and techniques. PREMi's Antoinette Raheem, the current chair of the ADR Section of the State Bar of Michigan, kicked off the day with her comments on the work of the ADR Section and introduction of the nationally known speaker and author of "Making Money Talk," J. Andrew Little. She rounded out the day moderating the Mediation Track that explored such issues as Reflective Techniques in Mediation; Flexible Mediation: Tools for Settling Cases; The Value and Power of Asking Questions; and Tips and Trends for Mediating with Non-Traditional Families. Richard Hurford and Jon Kingsepp, both former chairs of the State Bar of Michigan's ADR Section and current PREMi professionals, served as both moderators and panel members during various sessions in the Advocacy Track, which included: --A conversation about the potential for early ADR in Michigan's Business Courts, led by Judge Christopher Yates who shared his yearly report on the Kent County Business Court and the practices adopted in his court. --Discussion of how litigators can maximize results for their clients during mediation, including a presentation and white paper by Sheldon Stark, also a PREMi professional and member of the ADR Council. --Advice from Jon Kingsepp, Richard Hurford, Jim Vlasic, and Tom Cranmer regarding the various ADR tools that should be a part of the litigator's toolbox Martin Weisman, chair-elect of the ADR Section and a PREMi professional, moderated the Arbitrator's track, during which PREMi professional Earlene R. Baggett-Hayes provided insights on Streamlined Arbitration: Tips and Tricks to Increase Efficiency. There was also a legal update on the State of Arbitration and a discussion of the Cost of the Arbitrator's Decision and the New AAA Rules. Published: Mon, Mar 24, 2014