Getting to Know: Laura Donnelly Faussie'

Attorney Laura Donnelly Faussié was born and raised on the East Coast, spending most of her young life in Westport, Conn.

After receiving a bachelor’s degree in English literature from Wheaton College in Massachusetts, she came to Michigan in 1990 to attend the University of Michigan Law School. 

On Jan. 1, 1996, she and attorney Jonathan Walton Jr. founded the law firm of Walton & Donnelly, P.C. a boutique-style commercial law firm in Detroit.

Twenty years later, they merged the practice into the firm of Fraser Trebilcock, Davis & Dunlap PLLC, where Faussié has continued to practice commercial, real estate and banking litigation, and related transactional and appellate work in the firm’s Detroit office.

Faussié is admitted in Michigan state courts, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, the United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. She is a member of the Business Law, Litigation and Real Property Law sections of the State Bar.

Faussié has lived in the Grosse Pointes since her graduation from law school in 1993. She is the proud mother and stepmother of four children ages 15 through 20, and a devoted pet parent to a Labrador, a Malshipoo, and a chubby orange cat.
 
Her husband, Daniel, is a teacher.

By Jo Mathis
Legal News

What is your proudest moment as a lawyer? Winning. 

What inspired you to enter the field? My parents always told me I should be a lawyer. I don’t think they meant it as a compliment, however.

What would surprise people about your job? That there is a large creative component to it.  

When you were considering law school, what was Plan B? I wouldn’t call it a Plan B per se, but medical school was definitely an option. My father was a doctor and my mother a lab technician so I was pretty steeped in the medical field as a kid. As a mom, I’m an armchair physician.

Favorite local hangouts? T N Thai Bistro.

Favorite websites?  New York Times puzzle page; Allrecipes; Amazon; Overstock.

What was always written on your grade school report card? I remember in second grade I apparently liked to sleep at my desk more than was considered desirable.

What is your happiest childhood memory? Spending time with my dad; he was my favorite person in the world until that position was usurped by my kids. 

When you feel overwhelmed, what do you do? Clean something or cook something.

What do you wish someone would invent? A cure for cancer.

Favorite stamp on your passport? They’re all good; my husband is a French citizen so the stamps are a little heavily weighted towards France.

When you look back into the past, what do you miss most? The times when my children were babies.

If you could have witnessed any event in history, what would it be? Something involving dinosaurs.

What were you doing in your last selfie? Trying to look thinner and younger.

Can you think of a failure that ultimately became a positive? There’s almost always a silver lining if you adjust your perspective.

What’s something you changed your mind about recently? I’m done with the whole Paleo thing; bring me carbohydrates.

What is one thing you would like to learn to do? Speak French and Spanish fluently.

What is the best advice you ever received? “This too shall pass.”

What purchase of $50 or less has most positively affected your life? My e-reader.