State Bar names new director

The State Bar of Michigan has hired Peter Cunningham as its new director of governmental relations. He will replace Elizabeth K. Lyon, who is relocating to Alexandria Va., where she has accepted a position as program director with the Council of State Governments Justice Center. Cunningham will begin in early July and will head a program that includes a large state and public policy agenda. He will be responsible for developing solutions and implementing the policy objectives and positions adopted by the State Bar's Board of Commissioners and Representative Assembly. Cunningham was the executive director of the Campaign for Justice, a nonpartisan, nonprofit coalition working for public defense reform in Michigan. Prior to that, he served as legislative director and chief of staff to former Speaker of the House Andy Dillon, following seven years of service as House policy director and research analyst. He has bachelor's degree in political science from Juniata College in Huntingdon, Penn., and a master's degree in anthropology from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Published: Thu, Jun 14, 2012