Representative Assembly officers Kimberly M. Cahill, Bruce A. Courtade and Julie I. Fershtman were installed during the State Bar's 64th Annual Meeting in Grand Rapids.

Kimberly M. Cahill of Center Line, former vice chairperson of the Assembly was elected chairperson; former clerk Bruce A. Courtade of Grand Rapids was elected vice chairperson and Julie I. Fershtman of Bingham Farms was elected to the position of Assembly clerk.

The Bar's Representative Assembly is their final policy-making body. The chairperson of the Assembly presides during Assembly sessions, sends notices requesting submissions for the calendar, and summarizes Assembly policy actions. The chairperson also appoints members of Assembly committees which include: Rules and Calendar, Hearings, Drafting, Assembly review, Nominating, and Special Issue. The Assembly officers also hold seats on the Bar's Board of Commissioners.

Cahill, a 1985 graduate of University of Michigan Law school, has practiced law with Schoenherr & Cahill, P.C., in Center Line since 1985 where she focuses on real estate, probate and state planning and family law.

Cahill is a member of the State Bar's Board of Commissioners, serving on its Fiscal, Executive, Long-Range Planning, and Legislation Committees. Cahill is also secretary of the Macomb County Bar Association, where she previously served as treasurer. She also served as president of both the Macomb Region of the Women Lawyers of Michigan (WLAM) in 1989 and the state WLAM in 1996.

Courtade's practice emphasizes construction law and state and federal laws governing fair competition. He has provided many of the firm's clients with written guidelines and training for compliance with the state and federal antitrust laws.

After receiving his bachelor's degree in history from the University of Michigan, Courtade was president of the 1988 University of Michigan Law School graduating class. He is a member of the State Bar of Michigan's Board of Commissioners and also serves on the Bar's Antitrust, Franchising and Trade Regulation, Negligence Law, Labor and Employment Law, and Workers' Compensation Law Sections.

Fershtman specializes in insurance defense, business litigation, employment and equine law. After becoming a member of the State Bar in 1986, she went on to serve as chairperson of the Young Lawyers Section from 1995-96, and as a State Bar Commissioner from 1994-97. She is also a fellow of the Michigan State Bar Foundation and immediate past chairperson of the Oakland County Bar Association Professionalism Committee.

Fershtman is a 1983 graduate of Emory College and a 1986 graduate of Emory Law School. In 1996, she wrote a book dedicated to industry-oriented legal issues and her second law book is scheduled for publication in late 1999.