LEGAL PEOPLE

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer recently apointed  William J. Runco to the Unemployment Insurance Appeals Commission.

Runco is currently a commissioner with the Unemployment Insurance Appeals Commission, having been appointed in 2019. He previously served as a commissioner with the Michigan Compensation Appellate Commission and as a judge with the 19th District Court. He earned his law degree from the University of Michigan Law School.

Runco is reappointed for a term commencing August 1, 2020 and expiring July 31, 2024.

The Unemployment Insurance Appeals Commission serves Michigan’s employees, employers, and insurers by addressing and impartially resolving appeals of decisions and orders involving workers’ compensation and unemployment insurance benefits. The Commission created in Executive Order No. 2019-13 has full authority to handle, process, and decide appeals filed under Michigan Employment Security Act Section 33(2).

This appointment is subject to the advice and consent of the Senate.

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Dickinson Wright PLLC is pleased to announce that Anna Maiuri (member, Environmental, Energy & Sustainability Practice Group co-chair) has been named a “Woman Worth Watching” by Profiles in Diversity Journal.

Maiuri is the third Dickinson Wright attorney to receive this recognition in the past several years.  The 2020 Women Worth Watching edition of Profiles in Diversity Journal will be available to the public in August.

Maiuri is co-chair of Dickinson Wright’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee.  When she joined the firm seven years ago, Maiuri was asked to revamp the firm’s Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) efforts. She was instrumental in making the committee much more active in firm policymaking, and establishing and advancing affinity groups in the firm to address the nuances and challenges faced by minorities and/or parents in the big law firm environment.  Another of her initiatives resulted in a gender-neutral parental leave policy with substantially enhanced benefits for both attorneys and staff.

Maiuri is also a nationally recognized leader in the field of Environmental Law.  Maiuri has received many awards through the years but most notably in 2015, she was honored with the National Law Journal’s 2015 Energy and Environmental Trailblazers Award.  She was named as a Lawyer of the Year for Environmental Law by Best Lawyers in America for 2012, 2016, 2018 and 2020.  She also has been recognized as a notable practitioner and leader in the law by Michigan Lawyers Weekly, Michigan Super Lawyers, and DBusiness Magazine.  Maiuri received her B.A. from Wayne State University and her law degree from Wayne State University Law School.

In addition, Dickinson Wright is pleased to announce that Cynthia Moore (member and division director, Regulatory - Administration, Troy) has been selected as a member of the Michigan Lawyers Weekly Class of 2020 Hall of Fame.

“I am truly honored to be selected by Michigan Lawyers Weekly as a member of their 2020 Hall of Fame Class. This list is filled with such talented and accomplished attorneys,” said Moore.

Moore is a national expert on fringe benefit plans and is counsel to numerous plan sponsors in the design and administration of welfare benefit plans and qualified retirement plans. She also counsels companies and compensation committees on the tax, ERISA, and securities law aspects of executive compensation programs, such as supplemental executive retirement plans, stock incentive plans, and non-qualified deferred compensation plans. She regularly speaks at seminars across the state regarding employee benefits and taxation issues and is the co-author of BNA Tax Management Portfolio No. 394, “Employee Fringe Benefits.” 

Moore is recognized for her expertise in employee benefits law in Chambers, Best Lawyers and Super Lawyers.  She received her law degree from The University of Texas at Austin.

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Secrest Wardle welcomes Partner Amber L. Cervantez to its Troy office.

Cervantez joins the firm with more than eight years of experience defending clients against no-fault, bodily injury, uninsured and underinsured motorist claims. Cervantez has successfully represented her clients at trial and has handled unique cases including a case against an insurance agent for harassment and identity theft, claims of negligence and fraud against insurance agents and insurance companies, and an auto theft claim denied for fraud. She has additional experience handling criminal and divorce cases. She is a member of the firm’s Motor Vehicle Litigation, Premises Liability, and Trucking/Commercial Vehicle Litigation Practice Groups.

Cervantez is passionate about counseling her peers, acting as a role model for young attorneys, and staying up-to-date on the latest rulings in her areas of expertise. She served as a guest speaker at Western Michigan University Cooley Law School presenting, “Amber Cervantez – Raising the Bar for Hispanic Attorneys,” and “The Art of Networking: Alumni Tips From the Trenches.” Cervantez was named to Super Lawyers Magazine’s list of Michigan Rising Stars in 2019 and to Michigan Lawyers Weekly’s “Up & Coming Lawyers” Class of 2016.

Cervantez also served as president of the Hispanic Bar Association of Michigan from 2017 through 2019. Additionally, in 2017, she was appointed to the Eastern District of Michigan’s Judicial Advisory Committee. In this role, she was responsible for vetting and recommending candidates for the White House’s consideration in filling the judiciary vacancy in the Eastern District of Michigan.

Cervantez earned her law degree from Western Michigan University Cooley Law School. She received her Bachelor of Applied Science in Criminal Justice from Mercyhurst University. She also earned an Associate of Applied Science in Criminal Justice from Oakland Community College.

Cervantez is admitted to practice law in the State of Michigan and the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. She is a member of the State Bar of Michigan’s Insurance and Indemnity Law and Young Lawyers Sections. Cervantez is also a member of the Detroit Bar Association, Hispanic Bar Association of Michigan, and Oakland County Bar Association.

Secrest Wardle also welcomes Partner Marvin A. Jennings Jr. to the Troy office.

Jennings joins the firm  with more than 10 years of experience handling a wide range of matters including first and third-party no-fault litigation, workers’ compensation law, and creditors’ rights. Jennings has defended numerous actions involving claims of medical and personal injury. He has also successfully represented numerous municipalities and businesses in the workers’ compensation arena and counsels his clients on how their objectives can best be met. Jennings has strongly supported clients in managing their customer and supplier relationships during creditors’ rights cases, decreasing their short and long-term risk. He has also advised his clients in all areas of creditors’ rights, including commercial law and collections, retail collections, insurance subrogation and commercial litigation.

Jennings has additional experience in estate planning, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) disputes, criminal law, labor and employment discrimination, business transactions, contract negotiations, social security and disability claims. He is a member of the firm’s Motor Vehicle Litigation and Premises Liability Practice Groups.

Jennings earned his law degree  from Western Michigan University Cooley Law School and received his Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Michigan School of Kinesiology.

Jennings is licensed to practice law in the State of Michigan and is a member of the State Bar of Michigan’s Insurance and Indemnity Law and Workers’ Compensation Law Sections. He is also a member of the Genesee County Bar Association. Additionally, Jennings is committed to community involvement. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for Goodwill Industries of Mid-Michigan and formerly served on the Board of Directors for the Academy for Business & Technology K-12 from 2014-2018.

In addition, Secrest Wardle is pleased to announce that Mark E. Morley, senior partner located in firm’s Troy office, has been named to Michigan Lawyers Weekly’s “Hall of Fame” Class of 2020.  A luncheon celebrating the “Hall of Fame” Class of 2020 will be held on October 9.

Morley is a senior partner and a past managing partner of Secrest Wardle. He has been with has been with the firm for more than 40 years. He spent more than 15 of those years as a managing partner. Morley joined the firm in 1978, became a partner in 1984, and a senior partner in 1990. He possesses over four decades of successful courtroom experience. Over the course of his remarkable career, he has tried in excess of 60 jury trials to verdict and is well-familiar with developing and sustaining winning defense strategies. In addition to his vast trial experience, Morley is a skilled negotiator, resolving many cases that were subject to final resolution via settlement or on appeal.

In addition to his current role as a senior partner at Secrest Wardle, Morley serves as a chair of the Insurance Coverage and Malpractice/Professional Liability Practice Groups. Morley is recognized by his colleagues within Secrest Wardle and among professionals in the legal community in Michigan and beyond, for his strong character.

Notably, Morley is well-respected for his high degree of personal and professional integrity. He is also well-known for his composed demeanor in all situations.

As a long-time leader at Secrest Wardle, Morley has been particularly effective in mentoring young associate attorneys, providing lasting guidance throughout their legal careers.  Many of the young attorneys he has mentored now hold executive attorney positions within the firm.

From 2016 to the present, Morley has been recognized in The Best Lawyers in America© and for 2020 has been listed in Troy, MI, in the Insurance Law, Legal Malpractice Law - Defendants, Litigation - Insurance, and Personal Injury Litigation - Defendants categories. He also received the Best Lawyers 2018 Litigation - Insurance - Troy, MI “Lawyer of the Year” award. Morley has maintained an AV Preeminent® Peer Review Rating by Martindale-Hubbell for over 20 years. He was selected by his peers to Super Lawyers Magazine’s list of Michigan Super Lawyers in 2006 and 2009 through the present. In 2019, he was listed in the area of Civil Litigation – Defense.

Additionally, he has been listed in the Super Lawyers Business Edition in the area of Civil Litigation - Defense. Morley has been included in DBusiness magazine’s list of “Top Lawyers in Metro Detroit” in 2010, 2016, 2017, 2019, and 2020. In 2020, he was listed in the Insurance Law category.

He is an active member of the Claims and Litigation Management Alliance, the Defense Research Institute, and the International Association of Defense Counsel. In 2015, Morley was honored for his outstanding legal career and inducted into Worldwide Registry.

Morley received a law degree from the University of Notre Dame Law School in 1972 and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Alma College in 1969. He was admitted to the State Bar of Michigan in 1972 and subsequently admitted to practice before the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan in 1973, the U. S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana in 1974, and the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals in 1985.  Morley served the country as a former member of the United States Army Military Police Corps.

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The Board of Directors of the Jewish Community Relations Council/AJC (JCRC/AJC) has named attorney Seth D. Gould as president. The announcement was made by Executive Director Rabbi Asher Lopatin.

Gould joined the organization in 2011, when it was AJC Detroit. He continued after the nonprofit partnered with the Jewish Community Relations Council to become JCRC/AJC. Since then he has chaired the Development and Israel Programming committees, and served as vice president and first vice president.

“I am passionate about advocating on behalf of the metropolitan Detroit Jewish community, Israel and threatened minorities, as well as fostering tolerance among interfaith and intergroup communities,” said Gould, who will serve a two-year term. “I am honored to have the opportunity to lead an incredible group of activists who comprise our Board of Directors.”

Gould, a member of the Shalom Hartman Institute’s Detroit Community Leadership Program cohort, is an alumnus of Legacy Heritage’s OnBoard development program for Detroit, which taught best practices for nonprofit board governance.

A partner at the Miller Law Firm, a litigation boutique in Rochester Hills, Gould received his bachelor’s degree in industrial and operations engineering from the University of Michigan and law degree from Wayne State University Law School. He previously served on the board of the Cranbrook-Kingswood Alumni Association.

For its 2020-21 programming year, JCRC/AJC has also welcomed four new board members: Rabbi Yonatan Dahlen, Jeri Fishman, Sheldon Freilich, and Sheri Shapiro.

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Ret. Brigadier General Michael C.H. McDaniel, associate dean and professor at Western Michigan University Cooley Law School, has been named to the Michigan Lawyers Weekly Hall of Fame Class of 2020. In addition to associate dean at the law school’s Lansing campus, McDaniel teaches Constitutional Law and developed the law school’s LL.M. Homeland and National Security Law program.

McDaniel and his 18 fellow hall of fame recipients will be honored during the Michigan Lawyers Weekly’s second annual Hall of Fame Luncheon and Awards Ceremony at the Detroit Marriott Troy on Oct. 9.

“I am quite honored to be selected as a recipient for Michigan Lawyers Weekly’s Hall of Fame Class of 2020, and to represent WMU-Cooley in such an admirable role,” McDaniel said. “It is a privilege to be named among this prestigious group of revered legal professionals in Michigan.”

A national security expert, McDaniel joined WMU-Cooley’s full-time faculty as a professor in the Constitutional Law Department in 2010. Previously, he served at the Pentagon as deputy assistant secretary for Homeland Defense Strategy, Prevention and Mission Assurance, where he supervised the Department of Defense Critical Infrastructure Protection Program and Global Anti-Terrorism/Force Protection Policy. He also served as former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm’s homeland security adviser for six years, while serving as the assistant adjutant general for Homeland Security, Michigan National Guard. A member of the Michigan National Guard for over 26 years, McDaniel was also a military judge and assistant attorney general for litigation in the executive division of the Michigan Department of Attorney General.

In addition, Western Michigan University Cooley Law School’s Board of Directors selected 54-A District Court Judge Louise Alderson to serve a four-year term as its chair. Alderson served as vice chair since 2012 and replaces Lawrence P. Nolan, president of Nolan, Thomsen & Villas, who did not seek reelection. Nolan served as the board’s leader since 2012. Scott A. Dienes, Of Counsel at Barnes & Thornburg LLP, was elected vice chair.

Alderson was elected to WMU-Cooley’s Board of Directors in 2005. Before being appointed to the bench in 2001, she was an assistant prosecuting attorney for Clinton County, served in the Michigan House of Representatives and Senate as legal counsel to the judiciary committee, and was legislative director for the executive office. In 2014, the Michigan Supreme Court appointed Alderson as chief judge for the 54-A District Court.

In addition to serving as chief judge, Alderson presides over the court’s specialized felony sobriety court. She is a member of multiple community boards in the mid-Michigan region, including EVE Inc., an organization dedicated to helping those affected by domestic and sexual violence; Girl Scouts of Michigan Capital Council; the Zonta Club of Lansing, a service organization advocating for women; the Michigan District Judges Association; and the Michigan Judicial Counsel.

“I am grateful for the confidence the board has placed in me to serve as chair of the WMU-Cooley Board of Directors at this defining and transformative time,” said Alderson. “WMU-Cooley’s mission and priorities remain steadfastly focused on preparing students of law to serve the evolving needs of society. I am committed to working with our board and our new president and dean to ensure the law school’s governance structure serves to propel the success of WMU-Cooley, our students, faculty and staff in this new chapter. I join my fellow board members in thanking Larry Nolan for his steady hand during his tenure as chair and most notable for leading our board during the recent presidential search that culminated in the selection of James McGrath as WMU-Cooley’s new president and dean.”

Dienes has been a member of WMU-Cooley’s board since 2009. At Barnes & Thornburg, he is counsel to municipalities, downtown development authorities, police and fire departments, and school districts. He serves both governmental units and private developers on complex development and litigation issues.

In addition to serving on WMU-Cooley’s Board, Dienes serves on the board of the Lake Michigan College Foundation and is a former member of the Siena Heights Board of Trustees.

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Shelby Township attorney Alan F. Polack of Alan F. Polack PC was recognized recently as one of Michigan’s leading Elder Law attorneys by Leading Lawyers Magazine.

Polack is a past president of the Macomb County Probate Bar Association (MCPBA) and a past president of the Financial and Estate Planning Council of Macomb.

He has authored numerous Medicaid planning articles for “Bar Briefs,” a monthly publication of the Macomb County Bar Association (MCBA), and “Quarterly Petition,” published by the MCPBA. He has written numerous columns for the Legal News as well.

Polack has lectured for the Institute of Continuing Legal Education (ICLE), the MCBA, the MCPBA, the State Bar of Michigan Elder Law and Advocacy (now known as the Elder Law and Disability Rights) Section and other community groups.

He has appeared on television for Clinton Township, Warren, and Shelby Township discussing various aspects of elder law.

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Potestivo & Associates PC is pleased to announce that Erica Julian has been promoted to the role of director of foreclosure. She will continue to serve our law firm in her new capacity out of the Rochester office where she will oversee the foreclosure operations on behalf of both Michigan and Illinois.

Julian brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the role of director of foreclosure.  She began her career at the firm in 2008 as a junior foreclosure coordinator, and quickly moved up the ranks. Throughout her time at the firm, she has been promoted to pre-foreclosure coordinator, assignment coordinator, foreclosure lead, foreclosure supervisor, and most recently foreclosure manager.  Her knowledge of the industry and dedication to the firm have made her an integral part of the firm’s foreclosure practices.