PHOTO COURTESY OF DAVE TRUMPIE PHOTOGRAPHY
FROM LEFT: Representative Doug Wozniak, Representative Tonya Myers Phillips, Representative Joey Andrews, Representative Jason Hoskins, and Representative Kara Hope
Michigan’s 103rd Legislature offers two different extremes when it comes to attorneys serving as lawmakers.
On one end, a Michigan attorney, Rep. Matt Hall, was elected by his Republican colleagues to be Speaker of the House, holding the most prominent and influential position in the legislature’s lower chamber.
On the other end, 2025 marks a different kind of milestone, with only 10 lawyer-lawmakers serving, the lowest number in the state bar’s history.
In his new position, Hall, R-Richland Township, will be the first attorney to serve as Speaker of the House since 2018. That was the same year that Hall was first elected to the House. Now, with six years of legislative experience behind him, two of which he served as Republican leader, Hall is stepping into the role of speaker after being elected by party colleagues.
Hall represents the 42nd District, which includes parts of Kalamazoo and Allegan counties. As speaker, he will preside over the House of Representatives’ procedures, bringing experience as a constitutional law attorney who previously served as the West Michigan liaison for the Michigan Department of Attorney General.
In his time in office, Hall has served in several leadership capacities. In addition to his role as the Republican leader, he has served as Tax Policy Committee chair from 2021-2022, Joint Select Committee on the COVID-19 Pandemic chair in 2020, and Oversight Committee chair from 2019-2020.
The number of attorneys serving in Michigan’s legislative chambers is down from 13, which was that of the previous Legislature. Michigan lost three attorney House members from the previous legislative session who did not seek reelection in 2024 and another who lost reelection. One new attorney lawmaker, Rep. Tonya Myers Phillips, D-Detroit, was elected this year. Sen. Sue Shink, D-Northfield Township, continues to serve as the only lawyer from the previous chamber.
The attorneys serving in the 103rd Legislature bring an array of backgrounds, ideas, and experiences to their positions and include small business owners, community activists, and a former county commissioner. Their careers as lawyers range from five years (Rep. Jason Hoskins, D-Southfield) to 40 years (Rep. Thomas Kuhn, R-Troy). In sum, the current slate of Michigan’s lawyer lawmakers brings more than 200 years of legal experience to the Capitol.
The greatest concentration of lawyer-legislators (four) is from Metro Detroit, with the rest spanning across the lower half of the state in mid-, west and southeast Michigan.
The legislature will be looking at two high-profile and bills supported by the State Bar that fell just short of reaching the governor’s desk in 2024: the Judicial Protection Act and a juvenile justice bill that would ensure that young people are provided with their constitutionally guaranteed right to an attorney even if they cannot afford one. Both bills had minor amendments requiring concurrence votes that failed to take place by the end of the previous legislative session.
You can learn more about each of Michigan’s lawyer lawmakers in the following profiles.
SPEAKER MATT HALL
R-42 | RICHLAND TOWNSHIP FOURTH TERM
Capitol Building 164
Phone: 517.373.1784
Email: matthall@house.mi.gov
Website: gophouse.org/member/repmatthall
Bar Admit Date: Nov. 3, 2017
Law School: Thomas M. Cooley Law School
Standing Committees: House Fiscal Governing; Legislative Council (Chair)
Speaker Matt Hall is serving his fourth term as state representative from Southwest Michigan. He lives in Richland Township and represents the 42nd House District, which includes portions of Kalamazoo and Allegan counties.
Hall is focused on strengthening public safety, providing value for taxpayer dollars, and restoring trust in government through strong accountability and transparency.
In his first term, he chaired the House Oversight Committee, where he worked to ensure that state government was transparent and accountable to the people. He also served as chair of the Joint Select Committee on the COVID-19 Pandemic. In this role, he measured whether the Whitmer administration’s response to the pandemic actually worked, and he exposed billions of dollars of unemployment fraud.
In his second term, his colleagues elected him Republican caucus chair. He also presided over the House Tax Policy Committee, advancing numerous bipartisan efforts to provide tax relief to Michigan workers, families, and seniors. He successfully negotiated bipartisan tax cut plans that are saving small businesses and working families hundreds of millions of dollars each year.
In his third term, Hall was elected by his peers to serve as the House Minority Leader. He then became the Speaker of the House in January 2025.
After graduating with honors from Western Michigan University’s Haworth College of Business, where he studied business management and public administration, he earned his Juris Doctor with a focus in Advanced Constitutional Advocacy from WMU-Cooley Law School.
Speaker Hall has been recognized with the Award for Conservative Excellence from the American Conservative Union, the Champion of Free Enterprise Award from the Michigan Chamber of Commerce, and the Legislative Economic Development Champion Award from the Michigan Economic Developers Association He has also been recognized as Legislator of the Year by the Property Management Association of Michigan, the Legislator of the Year by the Michigan Manufacturers Association, and as the State Legislator of the Month by the American Legislative Exchange Council.
In 2022, the National Federation of Independent Business recognized him as a Guardian of Small Business – an award that he won again in 2024 – and the Michigan Manufacturers Association named him Legislator of the Year. In 2024, he was named Political Figure of the Year by MIRS, and Newsmaker of the Year by Gongwer News Service after he led the House Republicans to a victory that flipped control of the Michigan House of Representatives.
Speaker Hall is a constitutional law attorney and has served previously as the West Michigan liaison for the Michigan Department of Attorney General and in business development for a combat vehicle propulsion manufacturer.
Outside his official duties, Speaker Hall is the state chair of the American Legislative Exchange Council and a lifetime member of the National Rifle Association. He has previously held roles as a Republican National Convention delegate and rules committee member, a member of the Michigan Republican Party State Committee, a commissioner on the National Uniform Law Commission, and the Youth Vice Chair of the Michigan Republican Party.
Speaker Hall on the floor of the Michigan Legislature (left). Photo courtesy of Michigan House Republicans.
Representative Hall (right) raises the gavel for the first time after being named Speaker. Photo courtesy of Mike Quillinan/Michigan House Republicans.
REPRESENTATIVE JOEY ANDREWS
D-38 | ST. JOSEPH | SECOND TERM
House Office Building 887
Phone: 517.373.0827
Email: joeyandrews@house.mi.gov
Website: housedems.com/joey-andrews/
Bar Admit Date: Dec. 10, 2014
Law School: Wayne State University Law School
Standing Committees: Communications and Technology; Energy; Transportation and Infrastructure
Rep. Joey Andrews is serving his second term representing the 38th House District, which covers parts of Allegan, Berrien, and Van Buren counties.
Andrews was born in St. Joseph in 1988 and graduated from Lake Michigan Catholic High School in 2006. He attended Carson-Newman University in Tennessee, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in history and music. He then attended law school at Wayne State University, graduating in 2013 and passing the Michigan bar the following year. After law school, Andrews returned to St. Joseph to help his parents’ business survive the Great Recession. He also started his own business, a small solar panel installation company.
His political activism began as a community organizer in 2018. After the 2016 election, he worked to mobilize his community by amplifying a united voice against systemic problems. He then ran the southwest Michigan region for the Michigan One Campaign, helping President Joe Biden and U.S. Sen. Gary Peters win their races. Andrews also dedicated time to assisting local campaigns, bringing more young and diverse voices into politics. Following the 2020 election cycle, Andrews joined the Michigan AFL-CIO, first as its west Michigan regional field director and then as a policy analyst, applying his legal education to his passion for labor and public policy.
His roots in southwest Michigan go back more than 150 years. His great-grandfather was a Teamster and UAW member for Studebaker. Andrews’ grandfather was a union carpenter who immigrated to America from Germany after World War II and built a life for his family in Decatur. Andrews is the fourth generation of his family to be a small business owner and the first in his immediate family to finish college.
REPRESENTATIVE KELLY BREEN
D-21 | NOVI | THIRD TERM
House Office Building 785
Phone: 517.373.2575
Email: kellybreen@house.mi.gov
Website: housedems.com/kelly-breen
Bar Admit Date: May 13, 2003
Law School: Wayne State University Law School
Standing Committees: Finance; Judiciary
Rep. Kelly Breen is serving her third term representing the 21st House District, which encompasses parts of Farmington, Farmington Hills, Northville, Novi, and South Lyon.
A lifelong Michigander born in Northville, Breen has a love for Michigan that was built on a deep sense of admiration and pride in her neighbors and her community. She has served many roles including attorney, activist, former Novi City Council Member, proud mother of two. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Michigan State University’s James Madison College and graduated from Wayne State University Law School.
Breen’s advocacy was fostered when she joined neighbors to push back against an irresponsible local development project. That first taste of neighborhood activism led her to focus her time on supporting her community. Her advocacy and determination led her to her first elected office — a seat on the Novi City Council in 2017.
Her priorities as a legislator include standing up for public schools and teachers, fighting sexual abuse, and helping Michigan families access affordable, high-quality child care. She is part of a bipartisan task force addressing the issue of access to affordable child care in Michigan. As a member of anti-violence groups including the Sandy Hook Promise and Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, she has brought programs to local schools and held a gun violence prevention town hall.
She is committed to collaboration and serving the true intent of public service — working to make everyone’s lives better.
REPRESENTATIVE KARA HOPE
D-74 | HOLT | FOURTH TERM
House Office Building 1093
Phone: 517.373.8900
Email: karahope@house.mi.gov
Website: housedems.com/kara-hope/
Bar Admit Date: June 6, 2003
Law School: Thomas M. Cooley Law School
Standing Committees: Judiciary; Transporation and Infrastructure
Rep. Kara Hope is serving her third term representing Michigan’s 74th House District, which includes all of south Lansing and Delhi Township.
The daughter of two corrections officers, Hope learned early on about the value of public service. After receiving her bachelor’s degree from Michigan State University, she returned to her hometown of Ionia, where she found work as a writer for the city’s daily newspaper. Wanting to better serve her community, she enrolled at Thomas M. Cooley Law School, where she was chosen as managing editor of the Cooley Law Review and interned with the Innocence Project.
After law school, Hope worked as a pre-hearing attorney in the Michigan Court of Appeals and later as a defense attorney before teaching at Cooley Law School. She started her solo practice in 2015, specializing in family law.
Hope ran for the Ingham County Board of Commissioners in 2012, where she served until her election to the House of Representatives. She is the founding president of the all-volunteer nonprofit Holt Community Arts Council, and she has donated legal services to Elder Law of Michigan, the Sam Corey Senior Center Club, and the Mid-Michigan Environmental Action Council.
Hope plans to fight for increased funding and training at every level of education, ensuring the improvement and proper maintenance of Michigan’s roads and infrastructure, increasing health care access for all, and fprotecting the right of seniors to retire comfortably.
Hope and her husband raised their niece, who is now a college student, and their nephew, who is in high school.
REPRESENTATIVE JASON HOSKINS
D-18 | SOUTHFIELD | SECOND TERM
House Office Building 697
Phone: 517.373.1180
Email: jasonhoskins@house.mi.gov
Website: housedems.com/jason-hoskins/
Bar Admit Date: Dec. 17, 2020
Law School: University of Detroit Mercy School of Law
Standing Committee: Health Policy
Rep. Jason Hoskins is serving his second term in the 18th House District, which comprises Southfield, Lathrup Village, and parts of Farmington, Farmington Hills and Oak Park. He graduated from Eastern Michigan University with his bachelor’s degree in political science and his master’s degree in public administration with a concentration in local government management. He later received his law degree from the University of Detroit Mercy.
Hoskins helped create and later served as president of the UDM Law chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union and then as board member and as vice president of ACLU of Michigan Metro Detroit Branch.
Prior to his time in office, Hoskins served on the Southfield City Council and chaired its legislative committee, where he worked on developing a community benefits ordinance to ensure that the city receives a benefit when developers get a tax abatement. He also served on the economic development committee, working to create a downtown space to attract and retain city residents, and on the neighborhood services committee, where he worked on policy to make streets safer.
Hoskins was a key staff member for former state Rep. Rudy Hobbs and current state Sen. Jeremy Moss. He was also an adjunct professor at Lawrence Technical University in Southfield.
During his first term in Lansing, Hoskins chaired the Committee on Economic Development and led many legislative initiatives to bolster Michigan’s economy. His other legislative priorities include supporting education, fighting for justice and equality, investing in communities, ending gun violence, safeguarding elections, protecting the environment, and improving access to and affordability of health care.
REPRESENTATIVE THOMAS KUHN
R-57 | TROY | SECOND TERM
House Office Building 991
Phone: 517.373.1706
Email: thomaskuhn@house.mi.gov
Website: gophouse.org/member/reptomkuhn
Bar Admit Date: Nov. 13, 1985
Law School: Michigan State University Detroit College of Law
Standing Committees: Medicaid and Behavioral Health; Public Health (vice chair); Higher Education and Community Colleges; General Government (chair)
Rep. Kuhn was first elected to the House of Representatives in 2022. He represents the 57th House District, which is located in Macomb and Oakland counties and contains portions of Sterling Heights, Madison Heights, and Troy. He serves on the Appropriations Committee and is Republican vice chair on the Higher Education and Community Colleges subcommittee. He is also a member of the Health and Human Services and General Government Appropriations subcommittees.
Kuhn graduated from the University of Michigan with a bachelor’s degree in political science and later graduated from the University of Toronto with master’s and doctorate degrees in political science. He studied law at the Detroit College of Law (now the Michigan State University College of Law). Kuhn, who has practiced law for more than 35 years, served for 12 years on the Royal Oak City Commission and 12 years on the Oakland Community College Board of Trustees, including two years as chair. He also served as an Oakland County commissioner.
In addition to his service in local government, Kuhn has actively volunteered in his community. For many years, he coached youth sports and served on the board of the local youth baseball organization. He was Lakes chair of the Emerald Lakes Village Homeowners Association and served on the association board for 10 years.
Kuhn lives in Troy with his wife, Sherry. They have been married 28 years and have three children and four grandchildren.
REPRESENTATIVE TONYA MYERS PHILLIPS
D--7 | DETROIT | FIRST TERM
House Office Building 686
Phone: 517.373.2276
Email: tonyamyersphillips@house.mi.gov
Website: housedems.com/tonya-myers-phillips/
Bar Admit Date: June 1, 2004
Law School: University of Michigan Law School
Standing Committees: Energy; Natural Resources and Tourism
State Rep. Tonya Myers Phillips is serving her first term representing the 7th House District, which includes central Detroit, northeast Detroit, and the cities of Hamtramck and Highland Park.
Phillips has dedicated her life to eliminating the systemic barriers that disproportionately impact the poor and working class. Born and raised in Detroit, Phillips returned to her community after receiving her bachelor’s and law degrees from the University of Michigan. She has worked with community members and organizations advocating for government accountability; protecting constitutional rights, civil liberties, and workers’ rights; expanding economic rights and the social safety net for poor and working-class people.
Phillips is committed to fostering relationships between grassroots leaders and the legislature and prioritizes policies that strengthen the social safety net, foster equitable economic development, create and protect affordable housing, advance environmental justice, and increase access to justice.
Before joining the state legislature, Phillips worked with the Sugar Law Center for Economic and Social Justice, where she tackled environmental injustices and municipal and constitutional issues, strengthened the investigatory and enforcement provisions of the Detroit Living Wage Ordinance, and advocated for community benefits agreements.
In her private practice, Phillips also represented indigent criminal defendants. She advocates for widespread criminal justice reform and changing laws that disproportionately criminalize the poor.
She has also worked as a housing attorney for Michigan Legal Services and is a co-founder of the Detroit Right to Counsel Coalition.
Phillips joined Wayne State University Law School as an Adjunct Professor in 2022 and served on Detroit’s Charter Revision Commission from 2010-2012.
REPRESENTATIVE PENELOPE TSERNOGLOU
D-75 | EAST LANSING | SECOND TERM
House Office Building 1094
Phone: 517.373.2668
Email: penelopetsernoglou@house.mi.gov
Website: housedems.com/penelope-tsernoglou/
Bar Admit Date: Nov. 22, 2004
Law School: Michigan State University College of Law
Standing Committees: Public Health and Food Security; State and Local Public Assistance Programs
Rep. Penelope Tsernoglou is serving her second term representing the 75th House District, which sits at the intersection of Clinton, Ingham, and Shiawassee counties. Her legislative priorities include expanding fair access to the ballot so that the voices of all Michiganders may be heard; advocating for labor unions, workers, and working families; increasing access to health care; reforming the criminal justice system; defending Michigan’s water and air; protecting children from gun violence; and supporting public education.
Tsernoglou grew up in Southfield and graduated from the University of Michigan with degrees in psychology and sociology. After graduating from Michigan State University College of Law, she worked as a victims advocate for End Violent Encounters (EVE), Lansing’s first shelter devoted to survivors of domestic violence, stalking, and sexual assault. Through EVE, she also worked at the Ingham County Sheriff’s Office personal protection order office and the domestic violence support unit. She later worked as a defense attorney representing indigent defendants and juveniles in Ingham and Eaton counties.
Devoting much of her career to public service, Tsernoglou served three terms on the Ingham County Commission, spearheading the development and passage of two transformative millages that raised more than $20 million for improvements to the countywide trail system and $7 million to build a state-of-the-art animal shelter.
She has served on numerous boards and commissions including the Community Development Block Grant subcommittee of the East Lansing Human Relations Commission, the Capital Area Michigan Works! Board, the Ingham Drain Board of Determination, and the Tri-County Aging Consortium.
REPRESENTATIVE DOUG WOZNIAK
R-59 | SHELBY TOWNSHIP | FOURTH TERM
House Office Building 993
Phone: 517.373.0832
Email: douglaswozniak@house.mi.gov
Website: gophouse.org/member/repdougwozniak
Bar Admit Date: May 21, 1998
Law School: Detroit College of Law at Michigan State University
Standing Committees: Families and Veterans; Judiciary; Regulatory Reform; Joint Committee on Administrative Rules (Chair)
Rep. Douglas C. Wozniak was first elected to serve in the Michigan House in 2018. He represents the 59th House District encompassing portions of Macomb and Shelby townships in Macomb County. Wozniak chairs the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, is vice chair of Committee on Families and Veterans, and is a member of the Judiciary and Regulatory Reform committees.
A graduate of Harper Woods High School, Wozniak earned a bach-elor’s degree in mathematics from the University of Michigan and received his law degree from Detroit College of Law at Michigan State University. His career experience includes founding and owning the Law Offices of Douglas C. Wozniak and working as a realtor, broker, and life and health insurance agent.
Prior to winning a special election to the state senate in 2021, he served two terms in the state house and was a member of the Shelby Township Board of Trustees. He returned to the House of Representatives in January.
Wozniak has been active in numerous community groups including the Kiwanis Club Shelby Golden K, St. Kieran’s Knights of Columbus, and the Shelby Lions. He has also served on numerous local commit-tees and boards including the Macomb Board of Canvassers and the Northern Macomb Republican PAC.
Wozniak and his wife, Pamela, have one adult daughter.
SENATOR SUE SHINK
D-14 | NORTHFIELD TOWNSHIP
FIRST TERM
Binsfeld Office Building Suite 4200
Phone: 517.373.2426
Email: sensshink@senate.michigan.gov
Website: senatedems.com/shink/
Bar Admit Date: Nov. 21, 1994
Law School: University of Michigan Law School
Standing Committees: Appropriations; Civil Rights, Judiciary, and Public Safety (Vice Chair); Energy and Environment; Housing and Human Services; Local Government; Natural Resources and Agriculture (Chair) Appropriations Subcommittees: Agriculture and Natural Resources (Vice Chair); Corrections & Judiciary (Chair); EGLE
Serving in her first term in the Michigan Senate, Shink is a community advocate, public servant, and mother who has dedicated her adult life to building healthier, more resilient communities. She believes that the government’s role is to serve people with skill, honesty, and integrity.
Shink grew up in southeastern Michigan and earned her bachelor’s, master’s, and law degrees from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Prior to her election to the senate, Shink was chair of the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners and a Northfield Township trustee. She also chaired the Agricultural Land Preservation Advisory Committee and was a member of the Huron River Watershed Council and the Washtenaw County Food Policy Council.
Hailing from a proud union family, Shink learned the importance of community, service above self, and treating others with respect at an early age. Her father was a civil engineer who grew up in poverty, and her mother was a longtime teacher, They balanced the demands of raising four kids and worked hard to build a middle-class life for the family. Shink started babysitting and lifeguarding in high school, working hard both in and outside of the classroom to contribute in any way she could at home.
Shink lives in Northfield Township on a small farm with her husband, Tom, where they raised their three daughters.