7/25/07

Board of Commissioners | Representative Assembly | Judicial Tenure Commission | Young Lawyers Section Executive Council

SBM Board of Commissioners

Attorney Julie A. Sullivan of Kalamazoo emerged as the winner of the race to represent District F in the lone contested race in this year’s State Bar of Michigan Board of Commissioners elections.

Julie A. Sullivan

Sullivan, who has practiced with Miller, Johnson, Snell & Cummiskey PLC since 1995, will serve Allegan, Berrien, Calhoun, Cass, Kalamazoo, St. Joseph, and Van Buren counties. Her three-year term expires in September 2010. A member of a number SBM sections and committees since joining the Bar in 1992, she is in her second term on the Character and Fitness District F Committee. Sullivan is a past president of the Kalamazoo County Bar Association and a charter member of the Kalamazoo County Friend of the Court Committee, and has held multiple offices within the Family Law Section and Kalamazoo County Bar Association.

Six attorneys won uncontested races for the 32-member Board of Commissioners. They are:

• James N. Erhart of Petoskey in District A, which covers the entire Upper Peninsula and 24 counties in the northern Lower Peninsula. Erhart is a shareholder in the firm of Stroup, Erhart and Lyons, P.C. in Petoskey.
• Bruce A. Courtade and Hon. William B. Murphy, both of Grand Rapids, in District C, which includes Clare, Gladwin, Isabella, Kent, Mecosta, Muskegon, Newaygo, Oceana, Osceola, and Ottawa counties. Courtade is a shareholder with Rhoades McKee in Grand Rapids, and practices primarily litigation and construction law. Judge Murphy has been a Michigan Court of Appeals judge since 1988, serving the court as Pro Tem from 1992-1996.
• Gregory L. Ulrich of Livonia in District H, which represents Lenawee, Monroe, and Wayne Counties. Ulrich is a partner with Livonia-based Cummings, McClorey, Davis and Acho PLC where he focuses on litigation, business, real estate, technology and governmental matters.
• Brian D. Einhorn of Southfield and Kurt E. Schnelz of Birmingham in District I, which covers Oakland County. Einhorn is a partner in Collins, Einhorn, Farrell and Ulanoff, PC where he focuses on liability and insurance issues. Schnelz is president and principal shareholder of Schnelz Wells, P.C. in Birmingham and he practices family law.

SBM Representative Assembly

Attorney Kathleen M. Oemke of Howell was recently elected to a contested seat on the State Bar of Michigan Representative Assembly serving Livingston County.

Oemke is the first legal aid lawyer in Livingston County. She currently works for the Livingston County Friend of the Court.

The 150-member Representative Assembly is the final policy-making body of the State Bar of Michigan.

Fifty other attorneys won unopposed races for Representative Assembly seats. They are:

SBM Judicial Tenure Commission

Thomas J. Ryan

Former State Bar President (2000-2001) Thomas J. Ryan was recently elected to a second term as a member of the Judicial Tenure Commission. He is currently the commission's secretary. Ryan's three-year term commences January 1, 2008 and expires December 31, 2010.

The Judicial Tenure Commission is a constitutionally created body created to promote the integrity of the judicial process and preserve public confidence in the courts.

A private practitioner for 30 years, Ryan also serves as the attorney for the Village of Beverly Hills, City of Keego Harbor, City of the Village of Clarkston, and City of Orchard Lake Village, and is special counsel for the Village of Oxford and City of Birmingham. He was a member of the State Bar Board of Commissioners and its Executive Committee, former director and vice president of Oakland Livingston Legal Aid, and past president of the Oakland County Bar Association.

SBM Young Lawyers Section Executive Committee

Attorneys Jennifer M. Harvey of Northville, Felicia O. Johnson of Detroit, and Brandy Y. Robinson of Detroit have won contested seats in Wayne and Macomb Counties in recent State Bar of Michigan elections for the Young Lawyers Executive Council.

Jennifer M. Harvey of the Harvey Legal Group, PLLC, was re-elected to the Young Lawyers Section Executive Council. She focuses her practice on estate planning, real estate, and contracts, and has additional experience in corporate litigation, collections, family law, and criminal law.

Felicia O. Johnson is an assistant commission counsel with the Wayne County Commission, where she represents 15 elected officials. Prior to assuming her current duties, she was an assistant corporation counsel for the County of Wayne, Department of Corporation Counsel. She has extensive experience in environmental law, real estate, and transactional matters.

Brandy Y. Robinson, who has served on the Young Lawyers Section Executive Council since 2005, is an assistant defender with the State Appellate Defender Office and represents indigent criminal defendants at all stages of appeal. Before joining SADO, she was an associate at Miller, Canfield, Paddock & Stone.

Four attorneys won uncontested races in two other districts. They are Jessica R. Simmons of Troy, Hope Shovein of Southfield, Danielle Mason Anderson of Kalamazoo, David R. Miller of Grand Rapids, and Timothy T. Gardner, Jr. of Lansing.

The Executive Council governs the members of the Young Lawyers Section. It is comprised of a maximum of 23 members, of which 10 are elected each year for two-year terms. The Young Lawyers Section is the largest and oldest section within the State Bar of Michigan. It provides education, information, and analysis about issues of concern through meetings, seminars, public service programs, and publication of a newsletter, and has won numerous national awards for its public service and educational programs.

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