Office of Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer recently announced the appointment of Charity Dean to the Michigan Women’s Commission.
Dean is the president and chief executive officer of the Michigan Black Business Alliance and the owner of Detroit Rosa. Dean was previously an adjunct professor at the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in political science from Oakland University and a law degree from the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law.
Dean will be designated as chair for a term commencing October 14, 2026, and expiring at the pleasure of the governor. Chairperson and vice chairperson designations are not subject to the advice and consent of the Senate.
The Michigan Women’s Commission was created by statute in 1968. The Commission’s duties include reviewing the status of women in Michigan, directing attention to critical problems confronting women, and recognizing women’s accomplishments and contributions to Michigan.
—————
Williams, Williams, Rattner, & Plunkett PC
Williams, Williams, Rattner, & Plunkett (WWRP) is pleased to announce that President and Managing Partner John W. Crowe has again been included in DBusiness Magazine’s annual Detroit 500.
Crowe has been president and managing partner of WWRP since 2021, first joining the firm as a partner in 2006. In addition to day-to-day management responsibilities and guiding the strategic vision of the firm, Crowe’s legal practice includes corporate law, mergers & acquisitions, private equity, start-ups, franchise law, shareholder disputes and litigation, real estate, family business succession, and serving as general counsel to his clients.
Crowe earned a law degree from the University of Buffalo School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Notre Dame. He is active in professional associations and community endeavors, including volunteer work for Grace Centers of Hope and Leader Dogs for the Blind.
—————
Nemeth Bonnette Brouwer PC
Nemeth Bonnette Brouwer PC is pleased to announce that firm co-owners Terry Bonnette and Deborah Brouwer have been named to the debut Michigan Legal 250 list.
Bonnette is a management-side labor and employment counselor to clients seeking productivity and harmony in the workplace – an environment at the center of social, cultural and political change and one that presents labor and employment issues not yet addressed by case law or legislation.
Brouwer, who serves as the firm’s managing partner, is among the leading voices in management-side labor and employment law. Brouwer is a past president of the Michigan Defense Trial Counsel; member, State Bar of Michigan, ABA, DRI, and Michigan Supreme Court Historical Society. She is secretary (and former chair) of the Board of Directors of Assured Family Services and former chair of the Board of Trustees of the Luella Hannan Memorial Foundation. She is also active in the National Association of Woman-Owned Law Firms.
J.J. Conway Law
Employee benefits litigator and Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) attorney J.J. Conway, founder of Michigan-based J.J. Conway Law, has been named to the debut Michigan Legal 250 list.
Conway has navigated the complexities of ERISA law and disability, employee health and 401(k)/pension benefits since 1999. Among his focus areas, Conway is an advocate for children’s healthcare benefits.
Conway writes for the Legal News and is the author of “Hitting You When You Least Expect It: ABasic Guide to ERISA for Non-ERISA Lawyers.” He also co-authored the “Michigan Basic Practice Handbook” published by the Institute for Continuing Legal Education.
In addition to his inclusion on the Michigan Legal 250, Conway has been named a Best Lawyer® in Employee Benefits (ERISA) law and ERISA Litigation. Other acknowledgements include the Thomas P. Moore Leadership in Philanthropy Award from the Society of St. Vincent de Paul and the State Bar of Michigan Champion of Justice Award.
—————
Warner, Norcross, + Judd LLP
Warner Norcross + Judd LLP has welcomed Brenden K. Catt as an associate in its Detroit office.
Catt has represented state and local governments and understands how regulators approach complex environmental issues. In addition to joining the firm’s Resources, Energy, and Environmental group, Catt will participate in the aerospace and defense, agribusiness, automotive, mining, and regulatory and compliance groups.
Catt most recently worked in the environmental section of the Utah Attorney General’s Office, where he represented the Utah Department of Environmental Quality in permitting, compliance and cleanup matters under state and federal law. He also represented the Utah Department of Environmental Quality before administrative and judicial tribunals, litigating permit appeals and enforcing the state’s waste management, waste tires, used oil, petroleum storage tank, and corrective action statutes and regulations.
Before representing the Utah Department of Environmental Quality, he worked for the City of Bend, Oregon, supporting its acquisition and disposition of real estate by conducting title and environmental due diligence and negotiating leases, utility easements and purchase and sale agreements. He also prosecuted civil infractions in the Bend Municipal Court and defended city land use decisions before administrative bodies and the Oregon Court of Appeals.
Catt earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Oregon and a law degree from the University of Oregon School of Law. He is a member of the State Bar of Michigan, Oregon State Bar, and Utah State Bar.
In addition, Warner attorneys have been awarded multiple honors by the 2026 Michigan Super Lawyers Magazine.
Local Warner attorneys named Super Lawyers and where noted, Rising Stars, by office are:
—Bloomfield Hills
Nazli G. Sater
—Detroit
Michael G. Brady
Kurt M. Brauer
Sean H. Cook
Homayune A. Ghaussi
Mary Jo Larson, also named a Super Lawyer for 21 consecutive years
Thomas J. Manganello
Lawrence J. Murphy, also Top 100
Linda Paullin-Hebden
Alan T. Rogalski
Jennifer A. Watkins
Laura N. You
Lisa B. Zimmer
Ashley E. Racette, Rising Star
Adam T. Ratliff, Rising Star
Zainab H. Sabbagh, Rising Star
—Macomb County
Matthew K. Casey
Frank E. Henke
Brian D. Wassom
Nina Lucido, Rising Star
—————
Miller Johnson
Miller Johnson is pleased to welcome Paul Palinski to the Intellectual Property Practice Group. Palinski joins the firm as a member and focuses his practice on patent prosecution, patent portfolio development, and intellectual property counseling.
Palinski counsels clients on patent strategies that align with their business and competitive objectives. Since beginning his patent practice in 2013, he has prepared, prosecuted, and managed hundreds of U.S. and international patent matters. His clients range from multinational corporations with substantial patent portfolios to emerging companies and individual inventors seeking to establish and protect their intellectual property.
Palinski has secured U.S. and foreign patent protection for innovations across a broad range of technologies and industries, including automotive and consumer comfort technologies, thermal-management technologies, medical devices, manufacturing and industrial equipment, consumer and household products, food-service manufacturing equipment and processes, beverage-preparation devices, packaging systems, sporting equipment, and various other mechanical and electromechanical systems.
In addition to patent procurement, Palinski works directly with inventors and engineering teams to identify patentable innovations, develop invention disclosures, and build portfolios around technologies and products important to clients’ businesses. He advises on patentability, freedom to operate, competitive patent landscapes, design-around strategies, continuation and claim strategies, and other patent portfolio considerations.
Palinski earned a law degree from Michigan State University College of Law. He received his Master of Science in Manufacturing Operations and Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Kettering University. Palinski is admitted to practice in the State of Michigan and is registered to practice before the United State Patent and Trademark Office.
—————
Plunkett Cooney
Charles W. Browning, Mark S. Kopson, and Mary Massaron from Plunkett Cooney were recently selected for the inaugural edition of Michigan’s Legal 250 by Michigan Lawyers Weekly.
Browning (Bloomfield Hills) was named to the Legal 250 list for his experience in insurance coverage law. Browning is a partner and co-leader of Plunkett Cooney’s Insurance Coverage Practice Group, overseeing the firm’s nationwide practice as coverage counsel for several major insurance companies. A frequent speaker and author on insurance law, Browning has represented insurers in several commercial coverage disputes occurring over the last three decades.
Kopson (Bloomfield Hills) was selected for his expertise in the area of health care law. Throughout his legal career, Kopson has represented health facilities, health plans, medical and behavioral health providers, nonprofits, integrated delivery systems, and managed care organizations across the United States. His expertise spans commercial and governmental managed care contracting, regulation, compliance and alternative dispute resolution.
Kopson has experience in corporate governance and is the immediate past president of the American Health Law Association.
Massaron (Bloomfield Hills) is included for her experience in the area of appellate law, in which she has concentrated her practice for over 30 years. Massaron has handled more than 400 appeals resulting in approximately 150 published opinions, including over 100 appeals in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. A 1990 graduate of Wayne State University Law School, she has won numerous victories before the Michigan Supreme Court for public and private sector clients, overturning multi-million dollar judgments, and establishing new legal principles.
—————
Cummings, McClorey, Davis & Acho PLC
Cummings, McClorey, Davis, & Acho PLC is pleased to announce that Gary D. Klein has been named a partner of the firm.
Based in CMDA’s Livonia office, Klein’ practice focuses on business law, commercial litigation, real estate law, employment disputes, community association law, and general civil litigation. He represents corporations, limited liability companies, partnerships, developers, condominium and homeowner associations, trusts, business owners, and individuals in complex disputes before state and federal courts and in arbitration proceedings.
Klein handles matters involving breach of contract, fraud, construction litigation, easements, employment disputes, defamation, real estate ownership, landlord-tenant issues, and the enforcement of condominium and homeowner association governing documents.
—————
Taft
Taft is pleased to welcome new associates to the firm. The following new associates (admissions pending) will join the Detroit offices and practice groups:
Claudia Abbey-Mensah, Litigation, Employment and Labor Relations
Natalie Esshaki, Business
Sean Swistara, Private Client
—————
Maddin, Hauser, Roth, & Heller PC
Maddin Hauser is pleased to announce that Jordan Austermann has joined the firm in its Financial Services and Real Property Litigation group. She brings fifteen years litigation expertise to the firm.
As a member of Maddin Hauser’s Subpoena Management Assessment Response Team (SMART), Austermann plays a role in protecting the interests of businesses and individuals that face the multidimensional issues that come with being on the receiving end of a third-party subpoena. She will assist in distinguishing routine civil discovery from high-stakes regulatory and criminal investigations, potential probing for first-party litigation, and consumer privacy landmines.
