Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer recently announced appointments to the Michigan Committee on Juvenile Justice.
Among the appointees is Richard L. Smart III. He is the deputy court administrator of the juvenile division of the Wayne County Circuit Court. He earned a Bachelor of Arts from Michigan State University and a law degree from Wayne State University Law School.
Smart is appointed to represent public agencies concerned with delinquency prevention or treatment for a term commencing January 1, 2021 and expiring December 31, 2023. He succeeds Terri Gilbert whose term expires December 31, 2020.
The Michigan Committee on Juvenile Justice is an advisory body within the Department of Human Services that promotes the effective implementation of juvenile justice policy and greater administrative efficiency for juvenile justice programs. The committee was created in accordance with the federal requirements under the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 for receiving grant funds to support juvenile justice initiatives.
This appointments are not subject to the advice and consent of the Senate.
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Warner Norcross + Judd LLP recently welcomed two new attorneys to its Southfield office.
Christopher M. LeClair and Brianna Loder have been admitted to the State Bar of Michigan. LeClair is gaining experience in a variety of legal matters before selecting a practice group while Loder has joined the firm's Technology and Intellectual Property Group.
LeClair received his law degree from The George Washington University Law School. He earned a bachelor of arts degree from the University of Michigan in political science. LeClair served as a legal intern for Legal Counsel for the Elderly, a subsidiary of AARP, and the Washtenaw County Office of Public Defender. He also was an English language teacher for various companies throughout Japan.
Loder received her law degree from the Michigan State University College of Law. She earned a bachelor of engineering degree from the Memorial University of Newfoundland in St. John's, NL, Canada in electrical engineering.
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Plunkett Cooney partner Douglas C. Bernstein was recently named to the inaugural class of "Go To Lawyers" in business law as determined by Michigan Lawyers Weekly. Bernstein will be featured, along with 19 other attorneys, in a special section of Michigan Lawyers Weekly on Dec. 28.
A member of Plunkett Cooney's Bloomfield Hills office, Bernstein serves as the firm's Business Law Department Leader. He concentrates his practice in the areas of commercial litigation, loan restructuring, commercial loan documentation, bankruptcy, banking-related litigation and appeals. His clients include numerous regional and national banks, credit unions and loan servicers, as well as automotive suppliers and charitable foundations.
Prior to joining Plunkett Cooney, Bernstein worked as an in-house attorney at Michigan National Corporation for over 20 years. He subsequently joined the Standard Federal Bank Legal Department when the bank merged with Michigan National Corporation in 2001.
Bernstein earned his undergraduate degree in 1978 from Wayne State University and his law degree in 1982 from the Detroit College of Law. He has received several honors for his legal work, including an AV rating by Martindale-Hubbell, a leading peer-to-peer professional ratings service, and selection as a Michigan Super Lawyer by Super Lawyers magazine for over 12 years and a Best Lawyers in America® from 2014 to 2021.
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Butzel Long attorney Maura Corrigan has been a trailblazer in law and an advocate on behalf of foster and adoptive children and their families in the state of Michigan.
In recognition of Corrigan's career, the Michigan Supreme Court established the Maura D. Corrigan Foster Family Lifetime Achievement Award, an annual award to recognize some of the state's truly extraordinary and giving foster parents. The Award is presented each year prior to Thanksgiving.
Notably, more than 12,000 children remain in foster care in Michigan and continue to harbor the goal of having their own forever homes.
During her tenure as chief justice of the Michigan Supreme Court, Corrigan focused on streamlining the adoption process helping more children find "forever" families. On November 24 (Michigan Adoption Day), Corrigan presented the Maura D. Corrigan Foster Family Lifetime Achievement Award (virtually) to Veda Thompkins, director of Detroit-based Families on the Move Inc. Thompkins, a foster mother herself, also has served on Michigan's Task Force on Child Abuse and Neglect.
"Veda Thompkins is an amazing example having led a life that made a difference a life full of purpose and meaning," said Corrigan. "She has been a foster and adoptive parent since 1985. It is pretty amazing that she has extended a circle of love to children for all these years.
"Veda drafted a Foster Caregivers Bill of Rights and stirred up the right kind of trouble in order to help children and families get what they need and deserve," she said. "Veda sets an inspiring example for all of us."
Also during the ceremony, which was hosted by Justice Stephen Markman, Justice Elizabeth Clement and Justice Megan Cavanagh, the Daniel J. Wright Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Cass County Chief Judge Susan Dobrich for her exceptional service to Michigan's children.
Corrigan concentrates her practice in litigation and appeals. She served as a law clerk to Michigan Court of Appeals Judge John Gillis. She then became a Wayne County assistant prosecuting attorney in 1974, and chief of appeals in the U.S. Attorney's Office in Detroit in 1979. In 1986, she was promoted to chief assistant U.S. attorney, the first woman to hold that position. She became a partner at Plunkett and Cooney in 1989.
In 1992, former Governor John Engler appointed her to the Michigan Court of Appeals. In 1997, the Supreme Court named her chief judge of the appeals court. She was elected to the Michigan Supreme Court in 1998 and reelected in 2006. Corrigan is the only person ever to serve as chief judge of both the Court of Appeals and Supreme Court. She served two terms as chief justice.
Corrigan left the court on January 14, 2011 to become the director of the Michigan Department of Human Services under Governor Rick Snyder. From 2015 to 2016, Corrigan was a visiting fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, a think tank in Washington, D.C. where she worked on poverty and child welfare issues. In that role, she testified in Congress, authored papers and book chapters, and served as liaison to state secretaries of human services.
Corrigan has participated in numerous community and professional activities. She currently serves on five nonprofit boards. She is a past president of the Incorporated Society of Irish American Lawyers and the Eastern District of Michigan Chapter of the Federal Bar Association.
She served as a public member of the Michigan Law Revision Commission from 1991-1998, as an executive board member of the Michigan Judges Association, and as a member of the Judicial Advisory Board of the Center for Law and Organizational Economics at the University of Kansas Law School. She was vice-president of the Conference of Chief Justices from 2003 to 2004. She is a published author in the legal and child welfare fields. She holds seven honorary doctorates from Michigan colleges and universities, among numerous honors and awards. Corrigan was named to WJR-AM 760's 2018 Class of "Women Who Lead."
Corrigan earned her law degree from the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law and her B.A. degree from Marygrove College.
In addition, Jennifer Dukarski, Butzel Longattorney, shareholder, and leader of the firm's Connected Car and Autonomous Vehicle Specialty team, will be a featured panelist during SAE International's Connect2Car@CES Digital Summit on January 14. The Connect2Car@CES is part of the continued partnership between SAE and the Consumer Technology Association and is the longest continually running automotive session at CES.
Dukarski will participate in a virtual roundtable discussion titled, "Smart Cars Deliver the Future of Mobility." Other featured panelists include representatives from IHS Markit, Connected Travel, Amazon Web Services, Ford Motor Co. and Panasonic Automotive.
The panel will explore electric vehicles, autonomous, smart city, and industry, but more importantly, brings the connected human into the connected car arena with a conversation on how to lead to accelerated adoption.
Dukarski focuses her practice at the intersection of technology and communications with an emphasis on emerging and disruptive issues: digital media and content, cybersecurity and privacy, infotainment and shared mobility, and connected and autonomous cars.
In her practice, she has assisted clients with defamation, invasion of privacy, copyright, and other content-based claims. She focuses on compliance with various industry regulations and has become a national leader in legal issues facing emerging automotive technology and is the leader of Butzel Long's connected car working group.
A self-titled "recovering engineer," Dukarski was named one of the 30 Women Defining the Future of Technology in January 2020 by Warner Communications for her innovative thoughts and contributions to the tech industry.
Dukarski is a graduate of the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law (2010). She's also a graduate of the University of Detroit Mercy College of Engineering and Science, (B.S., Mechanical Engineering, 1996).
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Callana Ollie is the new chief legal officer for Oakland Community Health Network (OCHN). In this position, Ollie oversees OCHN's legal activities and operations, functioning as an objective associate that manages all legal matters within the organization.
Ollie's background and experience reflects her ability to negotiate complex agreements, implement important legal strategies and approaches, as well as manage insurance portfolios and risk management endeavors. She began this position November 30.
Prior to joining OCHN, Ollie served as the deputy chief counsel at Detroit Wayne Integrated Health Network. Her experience also includes serving as corporate counsel for Strategic Staffing Solutions, technology counsel for Ford Motor Company, and as an associate attorney for the Auto Club Group.
Ollie received her B.A. from Michigan State University and her law degree from Western Michigan University Cooley Law School. She is active in the community, serving as a mentor to high school and college students and through her work with the Wolverine Bar Association and Just the Beginning Foundation programs.
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The global law firm Jones Day has announced that 50 lawyers will be admitted to the Firm's partnership effective January 1, 2021, including the following two lawyers in Detroit:
• Stephen Cowen, Business & Tort Litigation
• Amanda K. Rice, Issues & Appeals
