Getting to Know: Laurie D. Brewis

Laurie D. Brewis is an attorney with the TGQ Law Firm in Ann Arbor.

She received her law degree from Michigan State University School of Law and a certificate of completion in Estate Planning and Probate Administration from the Institute of Continuing Legal Education.

A member of the State Bar of Michigan since 2001, Brewis focuses her practice primarily in the areas of estate planning and consulting, probate law, elder law and business law.

She is a member of the Probate and Estate Planning, Elder Law and Law Practice Management sections of the State Bar of Michigan and serves as vice chair for the Law Practice Management Section.

Brewis and her husband live in the village of Manchester with their two children and two dogs.

She enjoys volunteering in her community where she is a board member and treasurer for the Manchester Area Historical Society, vice president of the Manchester Music Boosters, a member of the Manchester Ladies Society and a board member of Diuble Family Vision.

Brewis also serves on Manchester’s Planning Commission and Parks Commission and recently began delivering for Meals on Wheels out of Chelsea to help expand service to those in need in Manchester.

In her free time, she enjoys walking the dogs, yoga, cooking and relaxing with her family at their cottage on a small lake in Gladwin.


By Jo Mathis
Legal News

What is your proudest moment as a lawyer? When clients say, “Thank you” and I can see the relief in their faces. I love to find solutions for people.

When you were considering law school, what was Plan B? I had been out of undergrad and working for 10 years when I decided to purse my master’s in human resources and industrial relations. While I was taking classes in this program I decided to go to law school. If I didn’t get into law school, I would have continued with my master’s.

What would surprise people about your job? It gets dramatic, but it’s nothing like portrayed on television.

If you could have witnessed any event in history, what would it be? The signing of the Declaration of Independence.

Who is on your guest list for the ideal fantasy dinner party? Ruth Bader Ginsberg, Thurgood Marshall, Robert Kennedy, Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., Anthony Bourdain, Dan Rather, Tom Colicchio, Eric Ripert, Julia Child, Michelle Obama, David Sedaris, Oprah Winfrey and our friend Mike Thomas, because he can make friends and talk with anyone.

What was always written on your grade school report card? “Laurie is a joy to have in class.”

What is your happiest childhood memory? Sunday drives that stopped at Dairy Queen.

What do you wish someone would invent? A 100 percent self-cleaning bathroom.

What has been your favorite year so far? Honestly, all of them! Each one just keeps getting better and they are all a gift.

What were you doing in your last selfie? Boating with family and friends.

What question do you most often ask yourself? “What would you attempt to do if you knew you could not fail?”

If you could trade places with someone for a day, who would that be? Anthony Bourdain on any day he was traveling for “No Reservations” or “Parts Unknown.” I love to cook, eat and travel, and I’d love to see the world the way he experienced it.

What’s the most awe-inspiring place you’ve ever been? Any island in the Caribbean — the water is so blue it takes my breath away.

What’s something you changed your mind about recently? Allowing my daughter to attend school at home through a virtual classroom.

What is one thing you would like to learn to do? Play the piano.

What is the best advice you ever received? Listen first to understand.

Favorite websites? Of course, tgqlaw.com! Also ted.com; IMDB.com; PamperedChef.com; and surlatable.com.  And who doesn’t love Google?

Favorite local hangouts? In Manchester: Exhale Yoga, Kellie’s Restaurant (a.k.a. Stockwell’s) for breakfast or lunch and The Village Tap for a really good olive burger.