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Austin G. Anderson is the founder and shareholder of Austin Anderson Consulting. He served as the director of the Institute on Law Firm Management and the Institute of Continuing Legal Education at the University of Michigan Law School in Ann Arbor. He practiced with a four-lawyer law firm and served as the administrative partner of a major Minneapolis law firm prior to joining the University of Michigan Law School. His consulting practice and teaching efforts include succession planning; strategic planning; financial, practice group, and general firm management; mergers and acquisitions; marketing; and lawyer development. He is admitted to practice in Michigan, Minnesota, and Illinois, and is past chair of the American Bar Association’s and the State Bar of Michigan’s Law Practice Management Sections. He is a member the ABA Senior Lawyer, General Practice, and Solo and Small Law Firm and Law Practice Management sections. In addition to sixty articles on law practice management, he has co-authored The Effective Associate Training and Development Program, Second Edition (2006), Associate Retention: Keeping Our Best and Brightest (June, 2002), Improving Firm Performance, Profitability and Partners: The Effective Associate Training Program, (1999), Marketing Your Practice: A Practical Guide to Client Development (1986), and A Plan for Lawyer Development (1986). He is recognized in Who’s Who in the Midwest, Who’s Who in American Education, Who’s Who in America, Who’s Who in American Law, and Who’s Who in the World. |
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Paul I. Bare of Paul Bare Attorney at Law, Traverse City, practices in the area of bankruptcy. In private practice since 1977, he focuses his practice in bankruptcy for individuals and small businesses and assists with debt settlement. Mr. Bare is a member of the State Bar of Michigan, Grand Traverse-Leelenau-Antrim Bar Association (GTLABA), and the American Bankruptcy Institute. He received the 2006 Pro Bono Services Award from GTLABA, Legal Services of Northern Michigan, Third Level Crisis Intervention Center, and The Women's Resource Center. Mr. Bare does regular presentations for the Introduction to Business class at Northwestern Michigan Community College. |
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Gary P. Bauer of Thomas M. Cooley Law School, Lansing, teaches wills, trusts and estates, and supervises students in the Sixty Plus Elderlaw Clinic and the Estate Planning Clinic at Cooley. He practiced law as a criminal defense attorney for several years before being hired as the Sixty Plus Elderlaw Clinic's litigation director, serving in that position from 1993 to 1996. Mr. Bauer is chair of the General Practice and Small Firm Concentration at Cooley and a member of the Curriculum Committee, the Student Support and Retention Committee, and various subcommittees at the law school. He is also a member of Scribes, the Law School Consortium, and the Clinical Legal Education Association. A member of the American Bar Association and the Ingham County Bar Association, Mr. Bauer is the chair of the Law Practice Management Section of the State Bar of Michigan. Mr. Bauer has authored a number of articles in professional and legal publications and has been a presenter at both the 1st and 2nd Annual Solo and Small Firm Institutes. |
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Jeremy D. Bisdorf is a business attorney at Jaffe Raitt Heuer and Weiss who assists clients in managing their
intellectual property and technology. He also serves as general counsel
to closely held businesses on general day-to-day legal matters. Mr. Bisdorf is a member of the American Bar Association-Business Law and Intellectual Property sections, State Bar of Michigan Business Law Section, and a current officer of the Information Technology Section of the State Bar of Michigan. He is admitted to practice in the State of Michigan, United States Federal District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, and United States Tax Court. |
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Don M. Blumenthal of DMB & Associates, Ann Arbor, is a professional consultant and attorney with over 20 years experience in technology, law, and policy. Mr. Blumenthal specializes in data security and privacy issues, as well as other technology-related matters such as electronic discovery, spam, malware, and Internet evidence development and governance. He also is a senior principal with Global Cyber Risk, LLC of Washington, DC. In addition, he is an adjunct professor in the University of Michigan School of Information and Michigan State University School of Criminal Justice, and serves as a member of the Board of Advisors and legal affairs subject matter expert for the Centre for Assurance Studies at the University of Detroit Mercy. |
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Kathy Ann Blunck of Smith Haughey Rice & Roegge, Traverse City, is a paralegal who has specialized in insurance defense litigation for the past ten years. She is a member of the Paralegal/Legal Assistant Section of the State Bar of Michigan, the National Association of Legal Assistants, and NALS, the Association for Legal Professionals. Ms. Blunck also does volunteer work at the Grand Traverse County Probate Court where she works with first time juvenile offenders. She was honored with the Legal Professional of the Year Award by the Grand Traverse Area Legal Professionals. |
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Zenell B. Brown of Wayne County Friend of the Court,
Detroit, practices in the area of family law. Focusing her practice in support enforcement and collection and domestic relations mediation, Ms. Brown has worked in the Third Judicial Circuit Court, Wayne County Friend of the Court (FOC) since 1997. She has worked in various departments, as an FOC attorney, as supervisor of mediation, and presently as director of the Support Enforcement Unit, which houses the FOC Felony Non-Support Unit. A graduate of Wayne State University Law School and working on a Masters in public administration, Ms. Brown is a member of the State Bar of Michigan and its Public Outreach Committee and serves on the Alternative Dispute Resolution Section Council. She is also a member of the Eastern Regional Interstate Child Support Enforcement Association and the Association for Conflict Resolution, Michigan Chapter (charter member). Ms. Brown has also served as an advisory board member for the Lawton School for Paralegal Studies and as a paralegal instructor for the University of Detroit-Mercy. She has written articles on administrative law, mediation, and child support collection for different bar publications. |
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Jennie Boldish Bryan of RizzoBryan PC,
Grand Rapids, practices exclusively in family law, is a certified mediator, and is an active member of the State and Grand Rapids Bar Associations. She is a former presenter at various programs of the Grand Rapids Bar Association, the Family Law Institute, the 2005 Family Court Forum, and the Divorce Issues Conference for the Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants. Ms. Bryan served as the 2004 chair of the Family Law Section of the Grand Rapids Bar Association, and has held a variety of chair and advisory positions for the Grand Rapids Family Law Section including organization of the Bench Bar conference and member of the judicial candidate evaluation committee. |
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Linda G. Burwell is co-owner of Nemeth Burwell PC,
Detroit, a labor and employment litigation firm that works exclusively with employers to prevent, resolve, and litigate employment and labor matters. In addition, she counsels management on day-to-day employment issues, conducts training seminars, and drafts and prepares employment policies and handbooks. Before graduating from Wayne State University Law School, Ms. Burwell was a legal intern to a U.S. District Judge and trained arbitrators throughout the United States for a national arbitration program. Chair of Operation ABLE of Michigan, she is a past president and former member of the executive committee and board of the Human Resources Association of Greater Detroit. Ms. Burwell is also a past member of the state council for the Society for Human Resource Management. A volunteer mediator for the Attorney Grievance Commission, she serves on the advisory panel of the American Arbitration Association's Employment Law Advisory Committee. Ms. Burwell has testified before a special governor's task force, made guest appearances on television and radio, and presented seminars to corporate counsel, CPAs, insurance agents, owners, and human resource directors. She is a frequent speaker and author on employment law and risk management issues and often serves as the legal expert on panels involving employment laws. Ms. Burwell has served as an adjunct faculty member at the University of Michigan and Eastern Michigan University. |
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Sean Carter of
Lawpsided Seminars,
Mesa, Arizona, is a lawyer, syndicated columnist, author, legal commentator, public speaker, and trainer. After earning his law degree from Harvard Law School in 1992, he practiced corporate law for a decade before becoming a full-time "humorist at law." Mr. Carter is the author of the first-ever comedic legal treatise, "If It Does Not Fit, Must You Acquit?: Your Humorous Guide to the Law." His syndicated legal humor column has appeared in general circulation newspapers in more than 30 states, including the Los Angeles Times. Mr. Carter also wrote a weekly humor column for lawyers that appeared in the American Bar Association's e-Report from 2003 to 2006. As a legal commentator, he has appeared on local television programs and is a frequent guest on talk radio shows across the country. In 2003, the Radio-TV Interview Report dubbed Mr. Carter as "America's Funniest Lawyer." He is a frequent presenter for state and local bar associations, law firms, in-house corporate legal departments, and law schools. A popular public speaker and trainer, Mr. Carter presents more than 100 humorous programs yearly on such topics as legal ethics, stress management, constitutional law, and legal marketing. |
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Randall Dean of Randall Dean Consulting & Training LLC, East Lansing. The top graduate from the MBA program of Michigan State University's Eli Broad College of Business in 1997, he has been training people how to be more effective time managers for 15 years. He has personally tested his time management (TM) system in major corporate, academic, and nonprofit settings, as well as in two small and fast-paced for-profit companies, proving that his TM and PDA systems work. Prior to becoming a speaker and trainer, his use of his TM system allowed him to succeed in several important professional positions, including director of full-time MBA admissions at MSU, market research supervisor for the prescription-to-over-the-counter switch of Proctor & Gamble's Prilosec, and subscriber services coordinator for ADVANCES: The Journal of Mind-Body Health at the Fetzer Institute. He left this successful career to become a leading expert in the field of TM and personal organization and to teach others how to be more organized, more effective with their time, and how to lead a life of productive purpose. An active member of the American Society for Training and Development, he recently conducted very popular PDA training sessions for the Ann Arbor chapter. He has delivered entertaining and informative speaking and training programs on TM for an impressive list of organizations and has recently authored Major Satisfiers = Major Success, a book which details his unique system for proactive, satisfaction-centered time and life management and personal goal attainment. |
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JoAnna DeCamp, Ann Arbor, received her MSW from the University of Michigan in 1987. She has spent most of her professional life in education as an administrator, speaker, and consultant. Ms. DeCamp was formerly the director of noncredit programs at Eastern Michigan University and the director of the Center for Organizational Learning at Washtenaw Community College. She was a consulting member of the Society for Organizational Learning and one of the cofounders of the Midwest Society for Organizational Learning. Ms. DeCamp is currently a community mediator with the Dispute Resolution Center and the Wayne Mediation Center. Her consulting practice focuses on organizational learning and coaching. |
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Caroline M. Dellenbusch of Caroline Dellenbusch PLC,
Grand Rapids, practices in the areas of elder law and disability planning and probate and estate planning. Ms. Dellenbusch is a member of the State Bar of Michigan's Elder Law and Disability Rights Section Council, the American Bar Association, the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, the Grand Rapids Bar Association (GRBA), and the TRIAD Council Against Senior Exploitation. She is also a member of the Pro Bono Steering Committee and a past member of the Legal Assistance Steering Committee of GRBA. A member of the Alzheimer's Association, Ms. Dellenbusch serves on its Michigan Legislative Council and previously served on the board of directors for its Northwest Michigan Chapter. She also serves on the board of directors for Citizens for Better Care, Women's Action Network, Inc., and the Flat River Conservation Club. |
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Stacey L. Dinser practices in the areas of family law, estate planning, juvenile law, and criminal law. Since fall of 2000, Ms. Dinser has been in private practice and also an adjunct professor at Thomas M. Cooley Law School, teaching scholarly writing. Also in connection with Cooley, she was awarded the alumni association's Distinguished Service Award for the 2000 John Jay Class. Ms. Dinser has been associate editor of the Thomas M. Cooley Law Review and has published an article in the Thomas M. Cooley Journal of Practical and Clinical Law. Ms. Dinser is president of the Women Lawyers Association of Michigan - Livingston County (2002-2005). In her involvement with the Sixty Plus, Inc., Elderlaw Clinic, she has held a clinical externship, was awarded the Metros Scholarship for clinical excellence for first-term interns, and has been a member of the board of directors since 2000. |
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Hon. Joyce Draganchuk was elected to the Ingham County Circuit bench in November 2004. Judge Draganchuk is in the General Trial Division and hears criminal, civil, and appellate cases. |
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| Diane Ebersole of the State Bar of Michigan, Lansing, is a practice management advisor for the State Bar's Practice Management Resource Center (PMRC). The purpose of the PMRC is to help bar members operate their law practices more efficiently and effectively by providing information, training, resources, and hands-on assistance through a broad-based clearinghouse, thereby enhancing their practice management skills. Ms. Ebersole provides training and educational opportunities specific to the bar members' work environment. Ms. Ebersole has over 20 years of information technology (IT) experience at educational institutions and most recently as the IT director for the regional office of a Fortune 500 company. |
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William K. Fahey, a member of Fahey Schultz Burzych Rhodes PLC, represents clients in Public Service Commission and State Boundary Commission proceedings and appeals. He wrote the chapter on Administrative Appeals for the Michigan Appellate Handbook (2nd Ed), ICLE (2006). |
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Roy S. Ginsburg of
Roy S. Ginsburg JD,
Minnetonka, Minnesota,
is an attorney coach and active solo practitioner as well as legal marketing ethics counsel to Minnesota Law & Politics and Super Lawyers magazines and FindLaw. He also represents individuals and companies in employment law matters. In his 25-year legal career, Mr. Ginsburg has worked in large and small law firms, and as in-house counsel in corporate legal departments. In addition to coaching and practicing law, he is a frequent continuing legal education lecturer on career management and the best practices and ethics of legal marketing and client service. Active in the Minnesota State Bar Association (MSBA), Mr. Ginsburg serves on its Rules of Professional Conduct Committee and chairs the Practice Management and Marketing Section. He has twice received the MSBA's President's Award for his task force contributions on the rules of professional conduct and on diversity. Mr. Ginsburg is also the former president of the Minnesota chapter of the Association of Corporate Counsel. After graduation from the University of Wisconsin Law School, where he was an editor on the Wisconsin Law Review, he clerked for Hon. Donald Steinmetz, a justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Mr. Ginsburg received his coaching training from the Coaches Training Institute. . |
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JoAnn L. Hathaway of the State Bar of Michigan, Lansing, is a practice management advisor for the State Bar's Practice Management Resource Center. She carries the designation of registered professional liability underwriter and is a certified independent consultant for LexisNexis Time Matters V8. Prior to joining the State Bar of Michigan, Ms. Hathaway worked in the field of professional liability insurance, focusing on risk management for law firms and the administration and resolution of legal malpractice claims. In this capacity, she investigated and negotiated the resolution of claims and lawsuits filed against lawyers in over 20 states over a 14-year period. Additionally, Ms. Hathaway has conducted law firm risk management consultations for national reinsurance carriers. Also an experienced legal administrator, she has been a speaker at Thomas M. Cooley Law School, the Columbus Bar Association, ICLE, and the Association of Legal Administrators, with content emphasis in the areas of law firm risk management and professional liability insurance for lawyers and law firms. |
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Barron K. Henley of Henley March & Unger Consulting Inc, Columbus, Ohio.
Concentrating in the area of law office automation, Mr. Henley is an attorney, a "legal technologist," with 14 years of experience and a founding member of Henley March & Unger Consulting, Inc., (HMU) a firm focuses on law office automation and technology. He received his BS/BA (marketing and economics) and JD from Ohio State University and is a member of the American, Ohio, and Columbus Bar Associations and the Worthington Estate Planning Council. Mr. Henley is a member of the Law Practice Management Section and the Technology Committee of the General Practice, Solo and Small Firm Section of the American Bar Association. Mr. Henley is also a member of the Visioneer Legal Advisory Board and the Columbus Bar Association Law 2010 Committee. He is the former chair of the Ohio State Bar Association Law Office Automation & Technology Committee, a certified consultant for Amicus Attorney practice management software and a certified consultant and Alliance Partner for HotDocs document assembly software. Mr. Henley teaches CLE classes covering practice management, document management, file management, server and personal computer issues, remote access, mobile lawyering, scanning and imaging, legal paper reduction strategies, electronic case filing, Word, Excel, Outlook, WordPerfect, HotDocs document assembly, Adobe Acrobat, building malpractice avoidance systems through the use of technology, and many other topics. Mr. Henley is a frequent continuing legal education speaker on legal-specific technology issues throughout the United States for state and local bar associations and CLE providers including the Ohio State Bar Association, Indiana Continuing Legal Education Forum, the Institute of Continuing Legal Education in Michigan, and many others. HMU's services include document assembly systems (HotDocs), legal time/billing and accounting (PCLaw), practice management (Amicus Attorney), paper reduction systems (scanners, OmniPage Pro, PaperPort), database report writing (Crystal Reports), trial presentation and litigation support (Sanction, Case Map, Time Map), WordPerfect to Word Conversions, legal-specific software training (Amicus Attorney, Corel WordPerfect, Dragon voice recognition systems, general computer training for lawyers, HotDocs, Internet and email, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Word, PCLaw Pro, and PaperPort and OmniPage Pro), plus hardware and network installation, integration, and ongoing support. |
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Hon. Gregory Holiday is an administrative law Judge Manager in Detroit for Michigan’s State Office of Administrative Hearings and Rules. He is a past chair of the Administrative Law Section, and a past president of the Michigan Association of Administrative Law Judges. He is a member of the Journal Board of Advisors of the National Association of Administrative Law Judges and has been a member of the faculty of the National Judicial College since 1990. |
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Lisa L. Howze, CPA of Speaking Life Principles Inc,
Eastpointe.
A 2004 graduate of Walsh College with a master of science in finance, Ms. Howze is president and chief executive officer of her firm, a motivation, training, and development company dedicated to growing people, businesses, and wealth. Her firm offers programs in financial empowerment, time management, leadership, personal development, student development, diversity training, and growth strategies for women business owners. Noted for her highly-energetic, thought-provoking, and engaging presentations, she leverages her professional background as a certified public accountant to assist her clients, which have included AXA Advisors, LLC; Deloitte & Touche, LLP; and National Association of Women Business Owners. |
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| Linda S. Jevahirian of Legal Search & Management Inc, Farmington. Founder and president of the firm, Ms. Jevahirian recruits temporary and permanent paralegals for firms and corporations interested in improving their practice through the use of legal assistants. The originating chair of the Paralegal Section of the Detroit Metropolitan Bar Association, she currently serves as the vice chair of the Legal Assistants Committee of the Oakland County Bar Association and chair of the Public Relations Committee of the State Bar of Michigan's Legal Assistants Section. Ms. Jevahirian has had articles published in the Michigan Bar Journal, Michigan Lawyers Weekly, the National Law Journal, Legal Assistant Today, and the Michigan Paralegal. She has spoken to numerous audiences about the paralegal profession. |
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Ronald D. Keefe of
Kendricks Bordeau Adamini Chilman & Greenlee PC, Marquette. Mr. Keefe serves as the 73rd president of the State Bar of Michigan. He started his career as an assistant prosecuting attorney in Marquette County over three decades ago. In 1976, Mr. Keefe joined Kendricks, Bordeau, Adamini, Chilman, and Greenlee, PC, where he focuses on civil litigation, mediation, and municipal law. He is also the Marquette city attorney. Since 1998, Mr. Keefe has been a member of the State Bar's Board of Commissioners and has chaired many committees, including those dealing with member services, professional standards, justice initiatives, and finance. He has also been a commissioner liaison to numerous sections and committees of the bar and was elected to serve on the bar's Representative Assembly from 1995 to 1998. Mr. Keefe recently served as the statewide chair of the State Bar's Access to Justice Campaign, which works to raise funds to improve access to justice for low-income people with civil legal needs in Michigan. He is a fellow of the American Bar Foundation and a fellow and ex-officio trustee of the Michigan State Bar Foundation, groups which provide leadership, research, and funding to improve the justice system. Mr. Keefe is also a member of the board of directors of the Michigan Supreme Court Historical Society and a hearing panelist for the Attorney Discipline Board. He has been a lecturer and adjunct assistant professor at Northern Michigan University and has served on the executive committee of the Northern Michigan Trial Skills Workshop since its inception in 1989. |
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Robert W. Kehres was appointed director of the Michigan Public Service Commission’s Regulatory Affairs Division in April 2003. In this position, he serves as the in-house legal advisor to the Commission and supervises the staff of attorneys responsible for drafting all orders in contested case proceedings pending before the Commission. From 1983 to 2003, Mr. Kehres worked as an administrative law specialist in the Commission’s Regulatory Affairs Division. Previously, Mr. Kehres served a four-year term as a member of the Michigan Workers’ Compensation Appeal Board. Mr. Kehres was a trial attorney and chief appellate attorney in the Monroe County Prosecutor’s Office. Mr. Kehres began his legal career as a law clerk at the Michigan Supreme Court.
Mr. Kehres earned his law degree from the University of Detroit School of Law, and holds an undergraduate degree in economics from Michigan State University. |
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Jeffrey E. Kirkey of the Institute of Continuing Legal Education,
Ann Arbor.
Mr. Kirkey is director for partnership and certificate programs with ICLE, coordinating, speaking at, and planning ICLE seminars. He is also involved in ICLE's website and other technology initiatives. Mr. Kirkey is a past chair of the Young Lawyers Section of the State Bar of Michigan and serves on the State Bar's Board of Commissioners. |
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Lee M. Kliebert of
PensionTrend Investment Advisers LLC,
Okemos.
Mr. Kliebert is the managing partner and chief investment officer for PensionTrend Investment Advisers, LLC, a company that provides investment advisory services in a fiduciary capacity for over 200 qualified retirement plans, with assets in excess of $500,000,000. He is also an officer of PensionTrend, Inc., a third-party administrator for more than 400 qualified retirement plans. Both firms are headquartered in Okemos, with offices in Troy and Phoeniz, AZ. In addition to his law degree, Mr. Kliebert also holds accredited investment fiduciary (AIF), certified pension consultant, and qualified plan administrator professional designations. He is an active member of and a frequent speaker for the American Society of Pension Professionals and Actuaries. Mr. Kliebert is also a member of the Taxation and Probate and Estate Planning Sections of the State Bar of Michigan; a member of the Taxation and Real Property, Trust, and Estate Law Sections of the American Bar Association; and an emeritus member of the Employee Plans Section of the Great Lakes TE/GE Council. He has been an adjunct professor of law at Thomas M. Cooley Law School, a national seminar presenter for the Philadelphia Paralegal Institute, and a frequent speaker at national pension and investment industry conferences. |
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David C. Koelsch of the
Immigration Law Clinic, University of Detroit Mercy School of Law,
Detroit. Mr. Koelsch is director of the clinic, which serves over 200 clients each year and represents political and religious asylum seekers, abused immigrant women, and abandoned immigrant children. Before joining the clinic in 2002, Prof. Koelsch was the legal director of Freedom House, a Detroit-based organization serving the legal, housing, medical, and psychological needs of asylum seekers. He has served as consultant to the Michigan Attorney Grievance Commission regarding claims brought against immigration attorneys for determination of industry standards for adequacy of representation. He is a member of the executive board of the Michigan chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association and a member of the Multicultural Leadership Team of the Immigration Task Group of New Detroit, Inc. Prof. Koelsch frequently lectures and writes about immigration law and policy for lawyers and the general public and recently testified before the Judiciary Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives regarding immigration reform proposals. |
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Amanda Kole is an attorney referee in the Macomb County Friend of the Court (FOC) office in Mount Clemens, a position that focuses on high conflict domestic issues such as child custody, child support, property issues, and spousal support. Specializing in family law for over eleven years, she has worked eight years in the FOC office. Ms. Kole is a member of the Family Law Section of the State Bar of Michigan and a member of the Referees' Association of Michigan. Additionally, she is a frequent presenter at the SMILE (Start Making it Livable for Everyone) Program and has spoken as an FOC authority at many seminars and for various groups seeking assistance with domestic relations issues. |
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Victoria V. Kremski is a visiting professor at the Grand Rapids campus of the Thomas M. Cooley Law School, where she teaches professional responsibility. Prior to joining Cooley Law School, Ms. Kremski was deputy division director of the Professional Standards Division of the State Bar of Michigan for nine years. Prior to joining the State Bar, Ms. Kremski practiced law privately, handling primarily family law and personal injury matters. She is a graduate of the University of Denver School of Law and Fort Lewis College and is the author of The Unauthorized Practice of Law and Landlord Tenant Cases, 78 Mich Bar Journal, p. 964, Sept. 1999; Multidisciplinary Practices and the Main Street Lawyer, 79 Mich Bar Journal, Sept. 2000 and Ethical Ramifications for Michigan Attorneys Involved With Will and Trust Kit Companies, 79 Mich Bar Journal, May 2000. Ms. Kremski is a member of the ABA Center For Professional Responsibility Strategic Development Committee and is a former member of the ABA Standing Committee on Client Protection. |
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Konnie G. Kustron, of Eastern Michigan University School of Technology Studies, Ypsilanti. A professor in the paralegal program in the School of Technology Studies, Ms. Kustron has been at Eastern Michigan University (EMU) for the past 14 years, where she has both taught and served as her college's associate dean. Currently she teaches a variety of technology classes in addition to legal administration and advanced legal research and writing. Prior to her employment at EMU, Professor Kustron worked as house counsel for TranServ Inc, based in Southfield, and with LEXIS as a branch manager, where she covered a five-state territory. A graduate of Michigan State University College of Law and a frequent presenter for ICLE, she is a member of the State Bar of Michigan's Law Practice Management Section Council. |
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Robert B. Labe of
Williams Williams Rattner & Plunkett PC,
Birmingham, practices in the areas of estate planning, trusts and estates, probate, business law, business succession and exit planning, and taxation. He is a frequent lecturer and writer for the State Bar of Michigan, ICLE, and the National Business Institute. Mr. Labe is a member of the Oakland County (past chair, Probate, Estate, and Trust Committee) and American Bar Associations, the State Bar of Michigan, the Metropolitan Detroit Financial and Estate Planning Council, and the Oakland County Bar Foundation (former member, board of directors). He serves on ICLE's Business Law Advisory Board. |
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Marla A. Linderman of Linderman Julien PC,
Ann Arbor, practices in the areas of employment discrimination and wrongful termination, commercial litigation, and personal injury law. She is the president of the Young Lawyers Section of Washtenaw County and immediate past president for Women Lawyers Association of Michigan, Washtenaw County. Ms. Linderman is also a member of the Labor and Employment Law and Young Lawyers Sections of the State Bar of Michigan. She is a member of the American Trial Lawyers Association, the Michigan Trial Lawyers Association, the Washtenaw Trial Lawyers Association, and the National Employment Lawyers Association. |
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| Betty L. Lowenthal of
Oakland County Friend of the Court,
Pontiac, practices in the area of family law. She is a member of the State Bar of Michigan Family Law Section and was a member of the State Bar of Michigan Representative Assembly, its Grievance Committee, and Character & Fitness Committee. Ms. Lowenthal is currently president of the Oakland County Bar Association, and also is a recipient of its Distinguished Service Award. She is a fellow in the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers and in the Oakland County Bar Foundation. A frequent speaker at ICLE courses, Ms. Lowenthal is a member of the Attorney Discipline Board Hearing Panel and has served on the Oakland-Livingston Legal Aid board of trustees. |
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John D. Mabley of Smith & Mabley PC, Farmington Hills, practices in the areas of probate and estate planning and will and trust litigation. He is a former chair of the Probate and Estate Planning Section of the State Bar of Michigan. Mr. Mabley is also a fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel. A frequent lecturer for ICLE, he has written several articles for the Michigan Probate and Estate Planning Journal and is a contributor to ICLE's Trust Administration in Michigan and Michigan Probate Litigation: A Guide to Contested Matters (2d ed). |
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Kristina A. Mattis of
Wilson & Kester PLC,
Traverse City.
Although her work as a paralegal with the firm is primarily focused in the area of family law, Ms. Mattis has a broad range of experience in personal injury, civil, criminal, and probate law, as well. She has worked as a paralegal since 2004 in the states of Florida and now Michigan. |
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Randy Arden Musbach of Musbach & Ritter, Chelsea, practices in the areas of no-fault insurance law and neurolaw. He represents individuals who have suffered traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, and other catastrophic injuries. Mr. Musbach is the chair of the Washtenaw County Trial Court Case Evaluation Committee and a past chair of the State Bar of Michigan District G Character and Fitness Committee. In 2003, he received the Outstanding Attorney Award from the Washtenaw County Trial Lawyers Association. Mr. Musbach has served as president of the Washtenaw County Bar Association and co-chair of the Washtenaw County Trial Court Judiciary Committee. He is a member of the Washtenaw County Trial Lawyers Association, the Michigan Trial Lawyers Association (past member, executive committee), and the American Association for Justice. Mr. Musbach has lectured extensively on the Michigan No-Fault Insurance Act, the use of computers in the practice of law, and representation of individuals with traumatic brain injuries. |
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Cheryl J. Nodarse of Hubbard Fox Thomas White & Bengtson PC, Lansing. A certified legal assistant (CLA) since 1990, Cheryl J. Nodarse has over 20 years of paralegal and legal assistant experience in Michigan and Florida, specializing in environmental, municipal, and drain law, in addition to general litigation. She is a member of the Ingham County Bar Association and an associate member of the State Bar of Michigan, where she serves as chair of its Paralegal/Legal Assistant Section for 2007-2008. Ms. Nodarse has been a guest speaker at paralegal functions in Michigan and Florida. |
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Tammy Oswald of Chalgian & Tripp Law Offices PLLC, East Lansing. After earning her Associate of Science in Paralegal Studies in 1981 from Davenport College, Tamara L. Oswald has worked in various law offices, developing her skills in litigation and transactional law. For the past two years, she has been working at the Chalgian and Tripp Law Offices, where she serves in a supervisory role and as the lead legal assistant of the firm's litigation team. |
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Edward H. Pappas of
Dickinson Wright PLLC,
Bloomfield Hills.
Practicing in the areas of commercial and business litigation, Mr. Pappas is a partner and the client service director of Dickinson Wright, PLLC. He has significant litigation, trial, and appellate experience in all types of commercial litigation, including real estate, insurance, contract, corporate, partnership, and shareholder dispute litigation. Mr. Pappas is widely known for his expertise in business tort litigation, including tortious interference, covenants not to compete, misappropriation of trade secrets, unfair competition, fraud, business defamation, breach of fiduciary duty, and civil conspiracy claims. A certified and trained mediator and a fellow of the American College of Civil Trial Mediators, he has also arbitrated and mediated all types of civil law suits. Mr. Pappas is also on the roster of neutral commercial litigation arbitrators for the American Arbitration Association. He is currently president-elect of the State Bar of Michigan and is a past president of the Oakland County Bar Association. Mr. Pappas coauthored Michigan Business Torts (ICLE 2d ed) and frequently speaks and writes on litigation, mediation, and arbitration issues. |
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Michael W. Ramsey of Houston, Texas—State Bar of Michigan keynote speaker. The criminal defense attorney for Kenneth Lay, Mr. Ramsey has been listed in the Best Lawyers of America since the inception of publication. He was named Criminal Defense Lawyer of the Year by the Criminal Justice Section of the State Bar of Texas in 1999, and honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Harris County Criminal Lawyers Association in 2007. |
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Vincent A. Romano is an attorney with Attorney Services Marketing, Grosse Pointe Park. Mr. Romano is the president of the firm, a full-service legal marketing company. He is a 1975 graduate of the Detroit College of Law, where he served as editor in chief of the Law Review. His legal practice has included solo practice, as well as mid-sized and small firm experience. Mr. Romano launched Attorney Services Marketing in 1991. His clients include solos and firms of all sizes. A member of the State Bar of Michigan's Representative Assembly, Mr. Romano is also the current chair of the Law Practice Management Section. |
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Ken Ross, Office of Financial and Insurance Regulation Commissioner, is responsible for the regulation of Blue Cross Blue Shield and the state’s banks, insurance companies, credit unions, investment advisers, consumer finance lenders, insurance agents, and securities agents. |
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Kathryn H. Ruemmler of
Latham & Watkins LLP,
Washington DC—State Bar of Michigan keynote speaker. Kathryn Ruemmler is the former Deputy Director of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Enron Task Force, and one of the three lead prosecutors in the trial against Enron’s founder, Kenneth Lay, and former Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Skilling. She received the Attorney General’s Award for Exceptional Service (the highest Justice Department honor) for her work on the Enron case.
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| Freddy E. Sackllah is an attorney with Sackllah & Associates PLLC, West Bloomfield. Freddy Sackllah practices throughout the state of Michigan in the areas of real estate, construction, insurance, business, bankruptcy, and criminal law. He has been a board member for the General Practice Section of the State Bar of Michigan since 2003 and is currently the section's chair. Mr. Sackllah previously worked as an associate attorney at Roy Shecter & Vocht PC, where he litigated primarily in the areas of employment and class action litigation. A 2002 graduate of the Syracuse University College of Law, he formerly worked at the United Nations in New York, where he used his undergraduate degree in international studies to serve as the affiliate to the president of the General Assembly. In addition to his legal work, Mr. Sackllah is in the business of developing and constructing retail shopping centers. |
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Hon. Joseph G. Scoville of
United States District Court, Western District of Michigan,
Grand Rapids.
Judge Scoville was appointed as a U.S. Magistrate Judge for the Western District of Michigan in January of 1988. Before taking the bench, he was a partner in the firm of Warner, Norcross & Judd in Grand Rapids. Prior to coming to Grand Rapids, Judge Scoville practiced law for two years in Chicago with McDermott, Will & Emery. He is a past president of the Federal Bar Association, Western Michigan Chapter, and immediate past chair of the State Bar Committee on United States Courts. Judge Scoville has served as a faculty member for the Hillman Advocacy Workshop, ICLE seminars, and other continuing legal education programs in West Michigan. He is a graduate of Michigan State University (1971, with high honors) and the University of Michigan Law School (1974, magna cum laude). |
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Elizabeth A. Silverman of Elizabeth A Silverman PC, Farmington Hills, practices in the areas of business litigation, contracts, collections, and domestic relations. A member of the State Bar of Michigan, Ms. Silverman has twice been chair of the General Practice Section and is currently serving on the Section Council. She is also a member of the Women's Bar Association, which is the Oakland County Region of the Women Lawyers Association of Michigan, and is a past chair of its Women's Issues Committee. Ms. Silverman is a graduate of Wayne State University Law School. |
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Rebecca Simkins is a member of Barris Sott Denn & Driker PLLC, Detroit. Ms. Simkins focuses her practice on labor and employment law. Ms. Simkins will be the chair of the Law Practice Management Section of the State Bar of Michigan for 2008-2009. She currently sits on the board of directors for the Northville Chamber of Commerce. Ms. Simkins taught law practice management at Michigan State College of Law and Cooley Law School for 12 years as an adjunct faculty member. She frequently speaks on topics related to employment and labor law. In 2006, Community Legal Resources named her Volunteer Attorney of the Year. |
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Libby Smith of US District Court, Eastern District of Michigan, Detroit. Libby Smith serves as the deputy court administrator for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, a position she has held since April 2006. From 1994 through April 2006, she was employed by the Oakland County Circuit Court, where she served as the civil/criminal division administrator, program evaluation analyst, jury supervisor, and administrative assistant to Hon. Steven N. Andrews. A 2005 graduate of Walsh College, with a masters of science in business information technology, Ms. Smith has participated on a number of technology committees including the State Bar of Michigan's e-Filing Task Force and has been involved with electronic filing and other state and federal court technology initiatives. A frequent speaker on court-related technology, she was a 2004 recipient of the Oakland County Bar Association's Allene and Martin Doctoroff Liberty Bell Award. |
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Robert B. Stevenson of Stevenson Keppelman Associates, Ann Arbor, practices in the areas of pensions and employee benefits. Mr. Stevenson is a charter fellow of the American College of Employee Benefits Counsel and is listed in the Best Lawyers in America for expertise in employee benefits law. He has served as chair of the State Bar of Michigan's Taxation Section's Employee Benefits Committee and is active in the same committee of the American Bar Association. |
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Anthony Targan is senior attorney at ProQuest, an information services company in Ann Arbor. Mr. Targan is former chair of the Information Technology Law Section and an expert witness in software litigation. |
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Charlene M. Tope of
Probate Support Specialists LLC,
Saint Clair Shores.
Holding an associate's degree in paralegal studies from Macomb Community College, Ms. Tope is a paralegal with fourteen years' experience in the area of probate law. With extensive forensic and investigative experience in probate matters, her company assists probate and elder law attorneys with case overflow, specializing in difficult and complex matters. A member of the Oakland and Macomb County Bar Associations, numerous paralegal associations, and the Michigan Guardianship Association, Ms. Tope is an active SCAO guardianship mediator and an advisory board member for various schools with paralegal studies. |
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Charles R. Toy of Thomas M. Cooley Law School, Lansing, practices in the areas of church law, environmental and natural resources law, criminal and commercial litigation, and estate planning. A partner in the firm Farhat & Story PC, he has also served as a contract administrative law judge for the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality since 1986. Mr. Toy serves on the State Bar of Michigan's Representative Assembly and Board of Commissioners and is the commissioner liaison to the Environmental Law Section and the Libraries, Legal Research, and Legal Publications Committee. He is a past chair of the Environmental Law Section Council, now serving on the council ex officio. Mr. Toy was elected to a three-year term on the board of directors of the Ingham County Bar Association. A summa cum laude graduate of the Thomas M. Cooley Law School in 1981, he has served the law school as adjunct faculty since 1989. |
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Cynthia L. Umphrey of Kemp Klein, Troy, practices in the areas of business planning and transactions and estate planning and postdeath administration. A shareholder and director of the firm, she established an exit planning practice group for the firm. Ms. Umphrey assists owners of closely held businesses in transferring their companies to their employees, family members, or outsiders. The Detroit Legal News, the Oakland Legal Press, and Bottom Line Business Publications have published many of her articles, which are written on topics within her areas of expertise. A member of the State Bar of Michigan District I Character and Fitness Committee, Ms. Umphrey is also a frequent lecturer for ICLE, Lorman Education Services, the National Business Institute, and other organizations. |
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| Laurie A. Velzen,
Warner Norcross & Judd LLP,
Grand Rapids.
A paralegal with the firms of James W. Zerrenner PLLC and Richard A. Roane PLLC, Laurie Velzen has been employed in the legal profession since 1980. Her duties include client conferences, preparation of correspondence and pleadings, discovery proceedings, preparation of files for trial, legal research, calendar maintenance and scheduling, and case file management. |
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Joan P. Vestrand is an attorney with Thomas M. Cooley Law School, Rochester. She was named assistant dean of the Oakland University Campus effective August 2004. She is the chair of the Department of Professional Responsibility and teaches professional responsibility and civil procedure. She revamped the course on professional responsibility and was integral to the implementation of the Law School's 2002 Professionalism Plan. Ms. Vestrand is the director of the Office of Law School Advocate and a member of the Honor Council, the Department Council, the Curriculum Committee, the Professional Development Coordination Council, the Honor Code Re-write Committee, and the Skills Committee. She is a member of the Oakland County Bar Association Professionalism Committee, a fellow of the Oakland County Bar Foundation, a member of the State Bar of Michigan, a past chair of its Law Practice Management Section, a fellow of the Michigan Bar Foundation, and a member of the American Bar Association. She is also a member of the Center for Professional Responsibility, the Professional Responsibility Counselors, the Oakland County Inns of Court, and Scribes, the American Society of Writers on Legal Subjects. She has written many articles and presented for various professional associations on ethics and other topics. |
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Vicki Voisin of Running Wise & Ford PLC, Charlevoix. With more than twenty-five years of experience in the career field, Ms. Voisin has earned her certified legal assistant and advanced paralegal specialist/real estate designations from the National Association of Legal Assistants (NALA). She is a nationally recognized author and speaker on issues related to ethics and to the legal assistant/paralegal profession. Ms. Voisin is the creator and presenter of EthicsBasics, a unique program dedicated to raising awareness of ethical concerns by legal professionals and corporate employees. A member of the State Bar of Michigan's Legal Assistants Section since the section was established in 1990, she is a past chair, a contributor to the section's journal, and the year 2000 recipient of the section's Mentor's Award. Ms. Voisin has been an active member of NALA since 1984 and has served the association as a past president, vice-president, treasurer, and in various other leadership positions on a variety of committees and was the 2004 recipient of the President's Award. A member of the Legal Assistants Association of Michigan (LAAM) since 1980 and a former secretary, NALA liaison, and region director, she was the 1997 recipient of the Affiliates Award and in the year 2000 the first recipient of the Legal Assistant of the Year Award, an annual award which, in her honor, has been renamed the Vicki Voisin Legal Assistant of the Year Award. She currently serves on the NALA webcast faculty teaching Ethics and on the Lake Superior State University's advisory board for the Legal Studies Program. |
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Janet K. Welch is executive director of the State Bar of Michigan, Lansing. She has had an extensive career in state government, beginning in the Michigan Legislature where she served as a legislative analyst in the House and as the first director of the Senate's nonpartisan legislative analysis office. After graduating from the University of Michigan Law School, Ms. Welch was a law clerk for Michigan Supreme Court Justice Robert P. Griffin. She stayed at the Court for over a decade in a variety of positions, culminating in a position as Supreme Court Counsel. In 1998, the Council of State Governments named her a Toll Fellow for outstanding achievement and service to state government. Ms. Welch is a graduate of the Kennedy School of Government's Senior Executive Program at Harvard University and was a Fulbright Scholar in comparative literature in the former Yugoslavia. |
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| Gerald A. Whalen is an assistant attorney general assigned to the Alcohol & Gambling Enforcement Division that represents the Liquor Control Commission, the Bureau of State Lottery, the Office of the Racing Commissioner, and the Gaming Control Board. Previously, he was assigned to the Revenue & Collections Division where he represented the Department of Treasury, the State Tax Commission, and the State Assessors Board. |
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Michael G. Woodworth, an attorney with Hubbard Fox Thomas White & Bengtson PC, Lansing, practices in municipal and land use law, as well as commercial, environmental, and products liability litigation. He has been admitted to appear before all Michigan courts, both state and federal, as well as the U.S. Supreme Court. A graduate of Wayne State University Law School, he formerly served as a pre-hearing attorney of the Michigan Court of Appeals and as chief appellate counsel for the Ingham County Prosecuting Attorney. Mr. Woodworth is a member of the Federal Bar Association - Western District of Michigan, the State Bar of Michigan, and the Ingham County Bar Association. He is also a member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum. |
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