Daily Briefs . . .

 Snyder signs bills increasing courtroom efficiency in Michigan

Gov. Rick Snyder last week signed legislation aimed at streamlining the district court system by creating more flexibility for magistrates.

Senate Bill 931, sponsored by state Sen. Rick Jones, allows court magistrates to electronically authorize search warrants for their district from any location in the state. The bill also calls for a police officer to file search warrant documentation directly with district judges or magistrates rather than through the court.
 
“These bills help modernize our district court system to enable our magistrates to be more efficient and better serve Michiganders,” Snyder said.

SB 932, also sponsored by Jones, grants magistrates the authority to hear, preside over and decide certain motions for civil cases.
The bills are Public Acts 383 and 384 of 2014, respectively.

 

ACLU of Michigan awards Wayne Law  professor Hammer

Wayne State University Law School Professor Peter Hammer was honored by the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan on Monday, Dec. 15, at the organization’s celebration of the Bill of Rights ratification.
 
“This year, the ACLU of Michigan is proud to honor Peter Hammer, director of the Damon J. Keith Center for Civil Rights, for his work improving access to true justice for all members of society,” the organization said.

The celebration took place at the Swords Into Plowshares Gallery and Peace Center in Detroit. Hammer is a member of the Board of Directors for the ACLU of Michigan and director of the Detroit Equity Action Lab at the law school’s Keith Center.

The professor, who joined Wayne Law’s faculty in 2003, has become a leading voice on the economic and social issues impacting the city of Detroit. He sits on the Population Health Council of the Detroit-Wayne County Health Authority, as well as serving on the Advisory Board of the Arab American Anti-Discrimination Committee and the Housing Project Partnership of the Michigan Roundtable for Diversity and Inclusion.

Hammer also has spent more than 20 years engaging issues of human rights, law and development in Cambodia. He was a founding board member and past president of Legal Aid of Cambodia, an organization providing free legal services to Cambodia’s poor. He is a board member of the Life & Hope Association, an organization in Siem Reap, Cambodia, founded and run by Buddhists monks to address the needs of orphans, vulnerable children and at-risk young women.

Hammer received his undergraduate education at Gonzaga University and completed his professional and graduate education at the University of Michigan, where he earned a law degree and a doctorate in economics.

––––––––––––––––––––
 Subscribe to the Legal News!
 http://legalnews.com/Home/Subscription
Full access to public notices, articles, columns, archives, statistics, calendar and more
Day Pass Only $4.95!
One-County $80/year
Three-County & Full Pass also available