Trott & Trott PC announced that partner John Kapitan has been selected to sit on a panel discussion regarding lien-stripping in consumer bankruptcy at the American Bankruptcy Institute’s (ABI) 21st Annual Central States Bankruptcy Workshop on June 12-15 in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin.
As the largest multi-disciplinary, non-partisan organization dedicated to research and education on matters related to insolvency, ABI invited Kapitan to sit on a four-person Consumer Track expert panel titled “Lien-Stripping in Consumer Bankruptcy: Bringing or Defending Actions to Avoid Junior Mortgages.” Kapitan and his fellow panelists will focus their discussion on reviewing contemporary decisions interpreting Dewsnup v. Timm and Nobelman v. American Savings Bank, such as the Wachovia Mortgage v. Smoot, which precludes lien-stripping. The sessions will also highlight conflicting decisions involving the date that is relevant for deciding whether a particular property functions as the debtor’s principal residence.
“I am honored to have been selected by the ABI to sit on a panel of my peers to provide an in-depth discussion on consumer bankruptcy issues,” Kapitan said. “The ABI is an outstanding organization that is leading the nation in providing quality, ongoing bankruptcy educational programs that foster the exchange of ideas and information across the industry.”
A graduate of Michigan State University College of Law, Kapitan has more than 10 years of experience practicing in the areas of bankruptcy, bankruptcy litigation, bankruptcy reorganization, and commercial bankruptcy.
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Three attorneys from Southfield-based Collins, Einhorn, Farrell were administered the oath to join the U.S. Supreme Court bar.
Brian D. Einhorn, Tanya E. Juarez-Lundberg, and Kari L. Melkonian, members of the Oakland County Inn of Court, were among the 18 total attorneys sworn in on March 10.
Admission to the Supreme Court bar is given to attorneys who have practiced for a minimum of three years and have no marks on their disciplinary record. Those who apply must be of “good moral and professional character” and must present letters of support from two members of the Supreme Court.
Einhorn is the State Bar of Michigan president. For more than four decades, the Wayne State University Law School alum has been at the forefront of legal issues affecting lawyers, judges, courts, businesses, and insurers.
Einhorn has litigated numerous cases and disciplinary proceedings that have shaped Michigan law with issues ranging from lawyers’ potential liability to clients for defamation, to judicial candidates’ free speech rights.
Lundberg focuses her practice on the defense of professional liability claims and has experience representing businesses and individuals in commercial litigation, consumer financial litigation, real estate litigation and bankruptcy matters.
She graduated from Wayne State University Law School.
Melkonian defends general liability claims and has been involved with researching andwriting opinions on various civil criminal and domestic relations matters.
She graduated from the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law.
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Adrienne Dresevic, founding shareholder of The Health Law Partners, recently hosted an American Bar Association’s (ABA) webinar on the federal Anti-kickback Statue (AKS). Founding Shareholder Rob Iwrey made the announcement.
Sponsored by the American Bar Association, health care attorneys throughout the United States participated in the informative webinar which provided an in-depth overview of this complex criminal statue. Along with an expert panel, Dresevic outlined the process to analyze arrangements under AKS, discussed Exceptions and Safe Harbors, highlighted the impact of the Affordable Care Act and analyzed the differences between AKS and other fraud and abuse laws.
Dresevic is an avid writer and speaker. She has published more than 60 articles on health care law and presents at national conferences throughout the year. Dresevic’s practice encompasses the full spectrum of health care law with a substantial portion of her practice dedicated to Stark & Anti-Kickback, Fraud and Abuse. She received her law degree from Wayne State University Law School.
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Oakland County Probate Court Judge Linda S. Hallmark recently served as the chairperson and moderator for the Governor’s Task Force on Children’s Justice Summit.
This year’s Summit Conference was held on May 21-23 at the Grand Traverse Resort in Traverse City. The focus of the Summit was Medication and Mental Health Concerns for Children in Care. The keynote speaker was Dr. Bruce Perry, a Senior Fellow of the Child Trauma Academy in Houston and author of “The Boy Who was Raised as a Dog.”
Hallmark is chief judge pro tem of the Oakland County Probate Court and also serves in the Circuit Court Family Division. She is one of eighteen members of the multidisciplinary Task Force appointed by Governor Snyder to focus on setting policies and
protocols for victims of child abuse and neglect.
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For the seventh consecutive year, Honigman, Miller, Schwartz, and Cohn LLP is the only Michigan law firm to receive the highest ranking, Band One, for its Corporate/M&A and Real Estate practices in the 2014 edition of Chambers USA. The firm also achieved a Band One ranking for its Litigation practice along with individual rankings for 25 lawyers with eight of those lawyers achieving Band One or higher. Honigman had more attorneys rated than any other law firm in Michigan. The firm’s Corporate/M&A, Real Estate and Litigation practices serve clients locally and nationally.
Local Honigman lawyers rated Band One or higher are:
•Norman C. Ankers (Litigation: General Commercial - Detroit)
•Richard J. Burstein (Real Estate – Bloomfield Hills)
•David Foltyn (Corporate/M&A - Detroit)
•Philip J. Kessler (Litigation: General Commercial - Detroit)
•Donald J. Kunz (Corporate/M&A - Detroit )
•Howard N. Luckoff (Real Estate – Bloomfield Hills)
•Lawrence D. McLaughlin (Real Estate – Detroit and Bloomfield Hills) *Star Individual - given to lawyers with exceptional recommendations in their field
•Lowell D. Salesin (Real Estate – Bloomfield Hills)
Two local Honigman lawyers were distinguished as “Up and Coming” ranked individuals “at the forefront of their generation” who are driving their firm’s growth: Tricia A. Sherick and Aaron M. Silver (Banking & Finance: Bankruptcy -Detroit).
Additional local Honigman lawyers recognized as “Notable Practitioners” by Chambers USA are:
•Joseph Aviv (Litigation: General Commercial – Bloomfield Hills)
•Donald F. Baty Jr. (Banking & Finance: Bankruptcy - Detroit)
•Gregory J. DeMars (Real Estate - Detroit)
•Michael D. DuBay (Corporate/M&A - Detroit)
•Raymond W. Henney (Litigation: General Commercial - Detroit)
•Barbara A. Kaye (Corporate/M&A – Ann Arbor)
•J. Adam Rothstein (Real Estate – Bloomfield Hills)
•E. Todd Sable (Banking & Finance: Bankruptcy - Detroit)
•William D. Sargent (Labor & Employment - Detroit)
•Gregory G. Schermerhorn (Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation - Detroit)
•Alan S. Schwartz (Corporate/M&A - Detroit)
•I.W. Winsten (Litigation: General Commercial - Detroit)
•Richard E. Zuckerman (Litigation: White-Collar Crime & Government Investigations - Detroit)
In addition, Bryan J. Beck has joined Honigman, Miller, Schwartz, and Cohn LLP as an attorney in its Corporate Department. Initially, he will be located in the firm’s Detroit office and by the end of 2014 he will be located in the Kalamazoo office.
Beck has experience in the field of mergers and acquisitions, and he will assist with those transactions as well as develop a general corporate practice.
He earned a law degree from Michigan State University College of Law. Beck received an MBA with a finance concentration from Michigan State University’s Eli Broad Graduate School of Management. He earned a B.S. from the University of Michigan. He is admitted to practice in Michigan.
Beck joins Honigman from Germany-based Commerzbank, AG in its New York City location where he most recently served as a director in the bank’s Corporates and Markets Division. His responsibilities included leading the firm’s North American cross-border merger, acquisition and divestiture activities. Before joining Commerzbank, Beck worked in the Investment Banking Division of Dresdner Kleinwort, which merged with Commerzbank in 2009.
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On May 16, Bruce W. Haffey of Giarmarco, Mullins, & Horton PC gave a presentation on “Tips and Take-Aways re. Business Succession Planning: A Survey of Recent Cases” at the Annual Meeting of the Michigan Defense Trial Counsel.
Haffey concentrates his practice in the areas of business planning, commercial transactions, mergers and acquisitions, franchise law, and taxation. He has handled small and middle market business clients for more than 25 years.
Haffey has represented clients in numerous complex merger and acquisition transactions for businesses, including the automotive supply industry and health care entities. Representation covers all aspects of a transaction, including strategic analysis, tax analysis, due diligence, preliminary agreements, transaction planning, negotiation and documentation, financing, closing and post-closing.
Haffey is an expert in business entity selection and design, including the analysis of tax and non-tax issues, the formation of corporations, limited liability companies and other business entities, business reorganizations, liquidations and dissolutions and buy-sell arrangements among owners.
Haffey has represented franchise companies, assisting in the preparation of franchise agreements, offering circulars and other legal documents, structuring franchise systems, complying with state and federal franchise laws, and resolving issues that arise with the franchisees.
Haffey received his BA from the University of Michigan, and his law degrees from the University of Michigan Law School and Wayne State University Law School. He is admitted to practice in Michigan and the U.S. Tax Court.
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Secrest Wardle is pleased to announce that William P. Hampton has been selected to receive the Oakland County Bar Association’s Distinguished Career Achievement Award. Hampton is a former Oakland County Circuit Court judge and state legislator. He will also be recognized by the State Bar of Michigan this year for his 50 years of service to the legal profession.
Hampton was elected to the Michigan House of Representatives in 1964, the same year he was admitted to the State Bar. He served six years in the State House, four of those years as Republican Floor Leader. In 1970 Governor William Milliken appointed him to the Oakland County Circuit Court where he served for six years. Hampton has also served as chairman of the State Officers Compensation Commission by appointment of Governor John Engler.
Hampton served on the State Bar Board of Commissioners from 1977 until 1986. In that capacity he served on various Board of Commissioner committees. He also served as co-chairman of the State Bar Committee on Judicial Qualifications. He further served, for six years, on the Attorney Discipline Board, four of those years as chairman, by appointment of the Michigan Supreme Court.
Hampton was the recipient of the Professionalism Award awarded by the Oakland County Bar Association in 2007 and received the Michael Franck Award from the State Bar of Michigan in 2010. Throughout his career, spanning 50 years, Hampton has been recognized on numerous occasions for his achievements, particularly as a leading authority in the area of municipal law.
Most recently, he was named “Municipal Law Lawyer of the Year” for 2012 in the State of Michigan by Best Lawyers in America® and in 2013 was named by Michigan Lawyers Weekly as a “Leader in the Law.”
Hampton is a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers, is listed in Who’s Who in American Law® and has been named to DBusiness magazine’s list of “Top Lawyers.” Hampton has also been included in the list of Michigan Super Lawyers® by a vote of his peers from 2006 to 2013, consecutively.
The OCBA Distinguished Career Achievement Award was established in 2001 to recognize an attorney whose career exemplifies extraordinary achievement in the ideals of the profession throughout the active legal career of the recipient.
The OCBA Distinguished Career Achievement Award will be presented to Hampton at the 80th Annual Meeting of the Oakland County Bar Association on June 11.
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Warner, Norcross, & Judd LLP has named Frank E. Henke executive partner of its growing Macomb County office.
Henke, who concentrates his practice in estate and trust planning, will lead the 10 attorneys and paralegal who practice in the office. Macomb County is one of eight offices in the state – and the second in the Metro Detroit area – for Warner Norcross.
Engaged in the community, Henke serves as legal counsel for the Macomb County Chamber of Commerce, Macomb Township Community Foundation, Macomb Charitable Foundation and Sterling Heights Community Foundation. A graduate of Leadership
Macomb, he also serves on the board of trustees for the McLaren Macomb Healthcare Foundation.
Henke has been recognized as a Michigan Super Lawyer and a Top Lawyer in Trusts and Estates by DBusiness.
In addition, two Warner, Norcross, & Judd LLP partners have been named co-chair of firm committees.
Michael G. Brady will serve as co-chair of the firm’s Automotive Industry Group, which provides legal counsel to auto suppliers on contracting, employment matters, antitrust, product liability, recalls, intellectual property, environmental law and other issues.
Brady concentrates his practice in complex business litigation and class-action matters with a focus on representing automotive suppliers in contract negotiations, supply chain disputes, internal investigations and antitrust actions.
Homayune A. Ghaussi will serve as co-chair of the firm’s Inclusion Committee which works to make the law firm a more diverse and inclusive work environment for attorneys and staff. Ghaussi has developed a litigation-focused practice with experience
counseling auto suppliers in warranty, supply chain disputes and related matters as well as representing financial institutions. He also serves on the firm’s 10-member Management Committee and Professional Staff Committee.
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Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak, & Stewart PC is pleased to announce that Margaret Carroll Alli and Thomas A. Cattel, shareholders in the firm’s Detroit Metro office, have been included in the 2014 edition of Chambers USA.
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