judge economy to attorneys: promote … 2014 tax planning: consider termination of late spouse’s...
TRANSCRIPT
APRIL 2014
Tax planning:Consider terminationof late spouse’s trust
JUDGE ECONOMYTO ATTORNEYS:
PROMOTEESTATE
PLANNINGpage 12
page 22
iPick Technology: Protect your online
informationpage 26
RETURN TO CONTENTS PAGEICBA BRIEFS2 3
INSIDEBRIEFS
Judge Economy tells Probate Section to promote estate planning.
Points to Practice: Lessons learned from Sugar Man.
Featured Young Lawyer: Tara Bachner from Willingham & Cote, P.C.
20 31
4 ....... President’s Message
8 ....... Ingham County Bar Foundation
9 ....... On the Docket
10 ...... Raising the Bar
11 ...... Local Legal Events
13 ......Asked & Answered: Judge Economy
15 ...... Supreme court comm. director
16 ...... Judicial branch budget request
12
18 ...... Review your loan documents
22 ...... Tax planning: Termination of trust
24 ......Networking & other matters: Twitter
26 ...... iPick Technology: Security online
28 ...... Law School News
30 ...... Young Lawyers Section
32 ......Classified advertising
P.O. Box 66Grand Ledge, MI 48837http://www.inghambar.org
ICBA Board of DirectorsPresident: Josh [email protected]
President-Elect: Liisa [email protected]
Vice President: Jason [email protected]
Secretary: Mary [email protected]
Treasurer: Mark [email protected]
Past PresidentStacia [email protected]
Hon. Clinton Canady [email protected]
James [email protected]
Jessica [email protected]
Mark [email protected]
Charles [email protected]
Bryan [email protected]
Section ChairsBankruptcy LawPatricia [email protected]
Criminal LawMary [email protected]
Click image or title to proceed directly to that story.
INGHAM COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION
John [email protected]
Family LawNatalie [email protected]
Cynthia [email protected]
Probate & TrustRosemary H. [email protected]
Marlaine [email protected]
Real EstateTracey L. [email protected]
Young Lawyer Section (YLS)Pres. Christopher [email protected]
Vice President Lindsay [email protected]
Committee AppointmentsAwards: James Dalton, Deb Adams
Barristers: Jessica Fox, ChrisWickman
Annual Meeting: Liisa Speaker
Shrimp Dinner: Robert Refior, Elias Kafantaris
Annual Dinner: Liisa Speaker
Membership: Mark Hoover, Hon. Clinton Canady
Sponsorship: Mark Kellogg, Bryan Waldman, Charles Lawler
Nominating Committee: Stacia Buchanan
Meet The Judges: Mary Chartier, Jen Martinez
BRIEFS: Jessica Fox
Technology (website): Jason Hansleman, Chris Wickman
List Serve: Josh ArdPast Presidents: Stacia Buchanan
Mentoring: Mary Chartier
Ask A Lawyer: Charles Lawler
Case Evaluation: Sally Babbitt
CONTENTS PAGE ABOUT ICBA/BRIEFS
ICBA BRIEFSPublished by the Ingham County Bar Association nine times a year, September through June, with a combined Dec./Jan. issue.
Publications Committee ChairJessica [email protected]
EditorRoberta M. Gubbins, [email protected]
Author GuidelinesSend ideas for articles or completed articles to the editor via e-mail. Include your byline, your e-mail address, and a 2-to 3-sentence biography. Also send a color photo of yourself in .jpg or .png format. Submissions are due the 15th of the month for the following issue.
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BRIEFS CommitteeBRIEFS publication meetings are usually held the 2nd Monday of the month at noon at Speaker Law Firm, 230 Sycamore in Lansing.
Committee membersChair: Jessica [email protected]
Josh [email protected]
Christine [email protected]
Mary [email protected]
Brett [email protected]
Derrick [email protected]
Jessica [email protected]
Roberta [email protected]
Jason T. [email protected]
Carrie [email protected]
Richard [email protected]
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Theodore [email protected]
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Otto Stockmeyer517-371-5140 [email protected]
ICBA Executive DirectorMadelyne Lawry517-627-3938,[email protected]
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PRESIDENT’S MESSAGEby Josh Ard
My remarks this month are a combination of travelogue and legal remarks. During the break in early March MSU euphemistically calls a spring break, my wife and I visited the United Kingdom. My wife had some business in London, where the most interesting thing we did was see The Book of Mormon. It was written by the folks that produce South Park and the content is much what aficionados of that cartoon would expect. A version is coming to the Wharton Center in June. Those of you who like presentations that are funny and racially and religiously offensive are in for a treat. Amazingly enough, it did have an uplifting message.
While in England, we took a day trip to Stratford, Shakespeare’s birthplace, and Oxford. Shakespeare, the author of the phrase “The first thing we do, let’s kill all the lawyers” was actually paying lawyers a compliment. The speaker was a scoundrel who wanted to overturn law and order but realized lawyers stood in his way.
Shakespeare had good reason to maintain friendly relations with lawyers. His father had gotten into major trouble for illegal business deals and actors and playwrights were frequently in trouble, also. Shakespeare’s contemporary,
Christopher Marlowe, died in a bar fight. Shakespeare performed some of his plays at the Inns of the Court and even used the Temple Gardens of the Middle Temple for one of the scenes in Henry VI Part One.
We saw some of the results of the floods that bedeviled southern England this winter. Little trickles had become massive lakes. Global weirding gave us cold and snow and then floods. Two of my sons have Harvard degrees, but no American university can even approximate Oxford in arrogance. One of the Oxford colleges even claims its own time zone, which differs from London time by ten minutes.
The most interesting and unexpected part of the trip was a visit for a few days to Belfast. We flew in over Ards Peninsula, but I wasn’t given any name discount. My wife was worried that I might be taken for Gerry Adams, the IRA leader, at least until I spoke. I doubt I’d have any trouble passing if I had his picture on my passport.
Many Americans, the so-called Scots Irish, can trace their ancestry to Northern Ireland. They are descendents of Scotsmen who were sent to Northern Ireland first (because their landlords found sheep to be less disagreeable) and then chose to move to America. A large part of the Revolutionary Army and founding fathers were Scots Irish. For example, we drove past the birthplace of the father of Andrew Jackson. Many of those who stayed form the backbone of the Protestant community. Apparently, over a hundred thousand Northern Irish speak a variety
of Scots now.A few years ago, the only “tourists” in Belfast
were terrorists, British army officers, and journalists. One downtown hotel, the Europa, holds the distinction of being the most bombed hotel in Europe over the last three decades. Until recently, barricades surrounded the downtown area.
Belfast was a battleground between the Catholic community, which largely supported union with the rest of Ireland, and the Protestant community, which wanted to remain British. There was definite discrimination against the
tended to picture leaders from a victorious fight over four hundred years ago. The Catholic heroes were rather predictably left-wing. One mural, for example, honored some alleged political prisoners of Cuban extraction in Miami, but there was no indication of any political prisoners in Cuba itself.
We took a Black Taxi tour, tours conducted by taxi drivers who lived through the Time of Troubles and drive to various famous sites providing commentary. Our driver said he had been hijacked numerous times and had guns pointed into his face on more than one occasion.
Catholics. For example, the police force was entirely Protestant. That has changed with a power-sharing arrangement. Neighborhoods are still largely segregated. There is a large fence dividing West Belfast even now. Everybody wants it down, but maybe not quite yet. On a bus tour out of town, we drove through towns that were almost completely Protestant with street names such as Duke of X, and Prince Y, and through towns that were almost completely Catholic with no such names, but streets with names in both English and Gaelic.
In Belfast itself, murals were quite common. Both neighborhoods had murals dedicated to leaders of their militia, who glorified in killing random people of the opposite religious confession. Otherwise, the Catholic neighborhoods had murals dedicated to other revolutionaries, while the Protestant murals
One of his brothers was killed in the struggles. Violence in the sixties was inspired by a Protestant preacher who objected to an Irish flag that Mr. Adams had in his campaign office. He led a protest march into Catholic neighborhoods that were resisted. Nowadays, the free speech is quite striking.
Irish flags are everywhere. We went to various pubs with live Irish music. Some were unabashedly Republican, with various signs on the wall calling for unification and glorifying Irish revolutionaries and other minority groups, such as the Basques. There was a no smoking sign that I thought was in Basque.
Not surprisingly, the courts were a place of protest and violence. The old courthouse was almost as well-protected as American embassies in unfriendly countries.
> continued on page 6
SHAKESPEARE, THE AUTHOR OF THE PHRASE ‘THE FIRST THING WE DO, LET’S
KILL ALL THE LAWYERS,’ WAS ACTUALLY PAYING LAWYERS A COMPLIMENT.
THE SPEAKER WAS A SCOUNDREL WHO WANTED TO OVERTURN LAW AND
ORDER BUT REALIZED LAWYERS STOOD IN HIS WAY.
Gerry Adams, leader of the Irish Republican Army. Not Josh Ard.
RETURN TO CONTENTS PAGEICBA BRIEFS6 7
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGEcontinued
People were quite shocked when a new courthouse was built about a decade ago without barriers and with wide glass windows. Nowadays, it seems that there is little stomach in either community for continuing confrontations. Even former militia leaders on opposite sides pal around in the new government. When Sen. George Mitchell helped to hammer out the Good Friday accords in the nineties, he had the complete support of both the British and Irish governments, who saw eye to eye on what had to be done. The threat was that Northern Ireland would be jointly administered from London and Dublin if the people couldn’t get their act together.
Belfast is certainly trying to present a friendly image to tourists. There are now many hotels in the downtown area. We stayed in a Hilton that wasn’t there a few years ago. The tourist information center in the center of town is amazing and full of information. We arrived on Shrove Tuesday and were given a freshly made crepe. I do think the English-speaking world drew the short straw. New Orleans gets Mardi Gras, Rio Carnival, and even Poland pączi. Pancakes don’t quite compare as a pre-Lenten treat.
The biggest tourist draw is the new Titanic Museum. The Titanic was built in Belfast, hence the tee-shirt we saw “Built by Irishmen and sunk by an Englishman.” We spent almost three hours in the museum. It contains lots of information about the Belfast area at the time of construction. Belfast was both the largest shipbuilder in the world and the major linen production center. Over 30,000 persons were employed in the
shipyard where the Titanic was built. There were interactive games directed toward
children about various aspects of ships and ship construction. In addition, there was an amusement park-type ride simulating a visit through the actual construction site. We saw facsimiles of various suites and other areas of the ship. It was designed to be both the fastest and most luxurious cruise ship in the world. There were various interactive displays where one could track the activities of different types of passengers, ranging from the very rich to the poor and including various persons who worked on board.
There was considerable information about the disaster itself and the aftermath. There were stories of survivors and stories of victims. Information about the Titanic in entertainment was included as well. One fascinating bit was that the Nazis produced a film about the Titanic that they hoped would incite anti-British feelings, but withdrew it from distribution after the audience proved too sympathetic to the victims.
About the only things missing that I noticed was discussion of the Titanic in American blues music and a theory about a limitation of thinking.
For the former, many lyrics emphasized that wealth alone isn’t everything. John Jacob Astor was among the victims. “Jacob Astor was a millionaire with plenty of money to spare. When the Titanic starting sinking, he could not pay the fare.”
Others were based on the false rumor that the black heavyweight champion, Jack Johnson, the basis for the play and film The Great White Hope, was denied a ticket. “Jack Johnson tried to get on board, but the captain said, ‘Sorry ain’t hauling no coal.’ Take heed, Titanic, fare thee well. When
Jack Johnson heard about that shock, you should have seen him do the Eagle Rock.”
Some commentators cited by Nassim Taleb in one of his books have suggested that the authorities only looked at the iceberg as a problem, but never considered it as a possible part of a solution. There was apparently a broad shelf near the water line that people could have been transported to.
Unlike people in the water, people waiting on the surface of an iceberg would have clearly survived until the rescue ship arrived hours later. The final display we saw was extremely interesting. The wreck itself has been found on the floor of the ocean, over two and one half miles below the surface.
Unmanned robots have ventured down there and taken pictures. The hull split in two and the parts lie about a half a mile apart. We walked over a glass floor that had images of the wreck
below us, just as if we were actually looking down at it. The museum is a part of what is called the Titanic Quarter, which contains other tourist sites. It was raining too much for us to appreciate the rest.
There are other draws in Northern Ireland. Our bus tour took us to some of them. The primary goal was the Giant’s Causeway. It is a volcanic structure that does look the beginnings of causeway between Ireland and Scotland.
We also visited a rope bridge connecting the mainland to an island, which we bravely walked across. We drove past various places where the Game of Thrones was filmed. These are a bit harder to appreciate, because much of what we see on HBO is the result of computer graphics that are superimposed on the existing landscape.
All in all, our visit to Northern Ireland was both interesting and informative. It shows that conflicts can be overcome. r
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGEPRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
The Giant’s Causeway, a natural volcanic rock forma-tion on the Northern Ireland shoreline.
A closeup of the makeup of the Giant’s Causeway, called basalt columns.
RETURN TO CONTENTS PAGEICBA BRIEFS8 9
MARK YOUR CALENDAR
For all ICBA events and registration links, CLICK HERE. For events with registration fees, avoid higher on-site costs by registering with advance payment.
ON THE DOCKET
When
Tuesday,May 20Noon-1 p.m.
Description/Location
ICBA Probate and Trust Section MeetingBrown bag lunch formatNOTE NEW LOCATION:Cooley Law School, Room 911
RSVP
Marlaine Teahan ([email protected]) or Rosemary Buhl ([email protected]).
Cost
Free
Tuesday,May 20Noon-1 p.m.
ICBA Family Law Section MeetingBrown bag lunch formatSpeaker/topic: Kevin Schumacher on divorceand violation of automatic stay/post discharge injunction.State Bar of Michigan, 306 Townsend, Lansing
Natalie Alane (natalie@ alanechartier.com) or CynthiaHarmon ([email protected])
Free
Friday,May 23Noon-1 p.m.
ICBA Real Estate Section MeetingBrown bag lunch formatCooley Law School
Tracy L. Lackman ([email protected])
Free
Friday,May 239:15-10:30 a.m.
ICBA Criminal Law Section MeetingSpeaker/topic: Ron Bretz on Latest Case LawDevelopments in Criminal LawState Bar of Michigan, 306 Townsend, Lansing
[email protected] 517-482-2000
Free
Thursday,May 22Noon-1 p.m.
Business Court Education (lunch provided)Cooley Law School, Room 911Topic: ADR in Business Court: Alternativemethods beyond faciliative mediation
Free
Wednesday,May 215-9 p.m.
ICBA Annual Shrimp DinnerLansing Liederkranz, Inc., 5828 S. PennsylvaniaVolunteers needed, email ICBA
[email protected] or517-627-3938
Members: $30Non-members: $40Students: $15After May 15: $45
Monday,June 23
The 10th annual ICBA Memorial Golf Classic at Hawk Hollow Golf Course in Bath Township. 10 a.m. registration and lunch 11 a.m. shotgun start 4 p.m. program and awards reception
[email protected] or517-627-3938
INGHAM COUNTY BAR FOUNDATION
BY TOM [email protected]
As you know, the Ingham County Bar Founda-tion is a IRC 501(c)(3) tax exempt organization founded in 2002 as a vehicle for lawyers and oth-ers interested in improving the administration of justice throughout Michigan but especially in the Mid-Michigan area.
The Foundation raises funds through contribu-tions, memberships, an annual golf outing, and the occasional Judge’s Retirement Gala.
Where does the money raised by the Founda-tion go, you ask?
It has gone to more than 30 different nonprofit organizations with a common thread: each has as one of its goals the promotion of access to justice.
A grant to Legal Services of South Central Michigan was used to provide members of the public with relevant, current information to as-sist in making the right choices on legal issues impacting them.
St. Vincent Catholic Charities used its grant to mobilize the immigration law community to pro-mote comprehensive legal services to its clients throughout Michigan.
The Veterans Court used its support to work toward minimizing the rate of recidivism among
Where does the money go?veterans who become defendants in criminal matters.
The Foundation has given assistance to the Greater Lansing Land Bank, City of Lansing Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Elder Law of Michi-gan, Highfields, Inc., Advent House and many others. It also has sup-ported several projects of the Ingham County Bar Association.
Extending Your Influ-ence is the Foundation’s Endowment campaign that is an ongoing chal-lenge to lawyers and like-minded members of the community at large to build up the Foundation’s Endowment to per-manently assure the Foundation’s commitments: educate the public about its legal rights and obligations and to ensure that legal services are made available to the public in nondiscriminating ways.
The Foundation encourages lawyers to con-sider making gifts to the endowment fund and to encourage their clients to do the same as part of gifting strategies. In this way we can each Extend Our Influence. r
(MONEY RAISED) HAS GONE TO MORE THAN 30 DIFFERENT NONPROFIT
ORGANIZATIONS WITH A COMMON THREAD: EACH HAS AS ONE OF ITS
GOALS THE PROMOTION OF ACCESS TO JUSTICE.
RETURN TO CONTENTS PAGEICBA BRIEFS10 11
RAISING THE BAR RAISING THE BAR
Alane & Chartier, P.L.C., is pleased to an-nounce that attorney Phoenix Hummel has joined the law firm.
Hummel began work as a research attorney with the Michigan Court of Appeals and later worked as a research attorney for the Michigan Judicial Institute, the training arm of the Michigan Supreme Court.
Eventually, Hummel became the Publications Manager at the Michigan Judicial Institute. During her tenure there, she authored and updated sev-eral publications and benchbooks, including the Residential Landlord-Tenant Law Benchbook and the Felony Sentencing Monograph.
Phoenix Hummel
RAISING THE BARCelebrating the achievements of ICBA members
John Yeager: Leader in LawMichigan Lawyers Weekly has recognized
John Yeager as one of its 2014 Leaders in the Law.
The criteria for selec-tion includes success in the legal profession, a passion for the law, client and community service, and a record of achieve-ment demonstrating the strength of character.
Leaders were chosen from numerous nomina-tions from around the state and all areas of law, and included small and large law firm lawyers, politicians, judges and those in public service.
Yeager has been recognized in honor of his reputable work and success in the legal com-munity spanning over three decades. He was acknowledged at a reception on Thursday, March 20, in Troy.
John Yeager
Takura Nyamfukudzato receive Rising Star Award
Alane & Chartier, P.L.C. attorney Takura Nyamfukudza has been selected to receive the Rising Star Award from the Davis-Dunnings Bar Association. He will be honored in May 2014 at the Otis M. Smith Scholarship Banquet.
The Rising Star award recognizes an outstand-ing young lawyer in greater Lansing who demon-strates leadership, exemplary character, integrity, judgment, legal scholar-ship and service to the profession and community through organizations that strive to improve the lives of the people in the Lan-sing area.
Nyamfukudza is a criminal defense litigator, successfully representing citizens throughout Michi-gan. He is a member of the Davis-Dunnings Bar As-sociation, Criminal Defense Attorneys of Michi-gan, Michigan Association of OWI Attorneys and Ingham County Bar Association.
The Cooley Law School graduate and US Army veteran volunteers time at the Lansing Refugee Development Center and the Lansing Boys & Girls Club and his commitment to community
extends to pro bono work, volunteering legal ser-vices with Service to Soldiers.
The Davis-Dunnings Bar Association strives to provide an array of programs and services to members and the underrepresented and under-privileged members of the Greater Lansing com-munity.
Takura Nyamfukudza
The benchbooks that Hummel wrote are criti-cal materials used by judges every day through-out the state.
She has also served as a faculty member for Michigan Judicial Institute seminars.
Hummel is licensed to practice in Michigan and in New York, and she has handled appeals, as well as criminal defense and family law matters.
She is a member of the Ingham County Bar Association and committed to serving the com-munity through pro bono work and community education.
Hummel’s commitment and passion to her clients is evident through the high-quality work that she provides to every client in every case.
Alane & Chartier, P.L.C., was founded in 2007 by attorneys Natalie Alane and Mary Chartier. The firm specializes in litigation and appellate work, as well as family law and criminal defense. r
Attorney Phoenix Hummel joins Alane & Chartier, P.L.C.
LOCAL LEGAL EVENTSTri-County FamilyLaw Association meetingWhen: 5:45-7 p.m. on Wednesday, April 16.
Where: Fireside Grille, Dimondale.
Topics: 1) The overuse of PPOs during parenting/custody disputes and its impact on children and co-parenting. 2) Recommendations/orders to help hostile parents co-par-ent. 3) CPS petitions in hostile custody cases.
Future meeting dates: Thursday, June 9; Thursday, Aug. 21; Thursday, Oct. 16; Thursday, Dec. 18. Times always 5:45 to 7 p.m. Location varies.
MDTC Annual ConferenceWhat: Michigan Defense Trial Counsel annual conference, “Business Law: Learning from the Past, Navigating the Future.”
When: Thursday, May 15 and Friday, May 16.
Where: The Antheneum Suite Hotel, Detroit.
Information: 517-627-3745 or www.mdtc.org.
RETURN TO CONTENTS PAGEICBA BRIEFS12 13
The Hon. R. George Economy of the Ing-ham County Probate Court held a question and answer session and stressed the importance of estate planning with local attorneys and law students at ICBA’s Probate Section meeting on March 18.
Judge Economy to attorneys:Promote estate planning
The Hon. R. George Economy speaks at the ICBA’s Probate Section meeting on March 18.
“The animosity estate lawyers face now is incredible,” Economy stated. An example is “The divisiveness of brothers and sisters going after each other and saying, ‘Mom liked you best.’”
The number of contested probate estate cases is increasing, he said, and, with the Baby Boom-ers aging while also caring for aging parents, people should be realizing that they need to not
only prepare wills and trusts but powers of attor-ney as well.
“All of the sudden, they’re learning about guardianships. It’s not fair if you don’t set up ar-rangements so your kids are not going to have to deal with a fiasco,” he said.
Economy put the responsibility on estate planning attorneys to get the word out that this preparation is needed through advertising and presentations. “We need to spread the word. We need to say ‘Deal with it. Don’t ignore it.’”
As for Judge Economy’s pet peeves, he cited, “It’s amazing how many lawyers are not pre-pared. They haven’t done their homework before they come to court. And number two, when a matter comes before me, I ask ‘Have you talked to each other?’ and the answer is ‘no.’ You’ve got to converse with each other before you walk into my courtroom. It saves the client money, and it saves headaches. Don’t tell me ‘no’ because there’s going to be hell to pay.”
Judge Economy mentioned that mediation is playing a bigger role in estate disputes, and when he asked Doug Chalgian of Chalgian & Tripp Law Offices, PLLC, what he estimated his firm’s mediation success rate to be, Chalgian stated, “Ninety-eight percent.”
Judge Economy said there are always the cli-ents who refuse to settle, “but they’re not going to blame the lawyer when the [client] won’t settle in mediation.”
As for the biggest change Judge Economy has seen since he was appointed in 1985, he said it is the rise in pro per cases.
“They’re going to do these things themselves. They don’t want to see a lawyer, but they don’t understand the complexity of it, and they botch it up badly. > continued on page 14
PROBATE SECTION PROBATE SECTION
Getting to know Hon. R. George Economy of the Ingham County Probate Court:
If you were stranded on a desert island what is the one item you couldn’t live without?University of Michigan sports.
What is your most vivid memory from law school?
How much I disliked Tax Law.
What is the weirdest thing you’ve ever eaten?
A cheeseburger from McDonald’s.
If you could sit down to dinner with on person (dead or alive), who would it be and why?
Socrates. We could exchange Greek recipes.
> continued on page 14
ASKEDANSWERED&
BY CHRISTINE CASWELL
RETURN TO CONTENTS PAGEICBA BRIEFS14 15
JUDGE ECONOMYcontinued
Eventually it may be repaired but at a great cost,” he said.
Judge Economy noted from his own personal experience that in Florida’s probate court you are not only required to have an attorney to open a probate case but you have to have an attorney from the local bar association.
Doug Mielock of Foster Swift Collins & Smith, P.C. asked the judge what he would like to change structurally about the probate court.
“I wish we had lawyers in the office to sit down with people and tell them, ‘All you need to do is tweak this,’” Economy said. “We tell the staff at the counter that they can’t give legal advice. It would be nice to have staff to tell people do this
PROBATE SECTION
If you knew you were going to be stranded on a desert island what is the one book you would bring with you?
How to Escape from a Desert Island in 3 Easy Steps by Robinson Crusoe.
If you could tell a young lawyer one thing about practicing law, what would that be in 20 words or less.
Relax. You aren’t going to win all your cases.
What is the furthest or most exotic place you have traveled?
Athens, Greece.
Who is the one person you’ve learned the most from in your life and what is one lesson you’d like to pass on to members of the bench and/or bar?
Thomas Sinas: As you grow older, be a willow not an oak. Oaks get rigid and snap. Willows bend.
ASKED & ANSWEREDcontinued
and this and this, and it will save you a lot of money.”
Economy also commented that the new time guidelines from the Michigan Supreme Court are negatively impacting cases.
“Lawyers might say, ‘Give us a couple more weeks to get this settled,’ and judges are saying, ‘No’ (because) if they’re not meeting the time guidelines, they’re afraid their opponent is going to use that against them in the next election,” he said.
As for his favorite part of the job, Economy said it was finalizing adoptions. “[Doing the adoptions] was the greatest thing that ever hap-pened in my court.” r
The Michigan Supreme Court named John Nevin as its new communications director in February.
“Justice is better served when the public is engaged and informed about how courts make decisions and why those decisions are important to our families and business-es,” Chief Justice Robert P. Young, Jr. announced in a prepared statement.
“As an experienced communicator and writer, John is ideally suited to help us communicate our efforts to become a more user-friendly court sys-tem.”
“Our judiciary is leading the nation in measur-ing performance and my job is to report those metrics to the public and to share information about innovative programs such as veterans’ court and sobriety court,” said Nevin.
“My goal at the Michigan Supreme Court is to raise awareness regarding successful efforts to increase efficiency of the judicial system, em-brace technology, and improve service to the public.”
Previously, Nevin worked for government
Nevin named Supreme CourtCommunications DirectorBY CHRISTINE CASWELL agencies in Lansing, Detroit, and Washington,
D.C. and served as chief speechwriter for former Gov. John Engler from 1991-2002. From 1986-1990, Nevin was an associate consultant at a Chicago firm where his duties included serving as campaign press secretary for the Sheriff of Cook County.
Recently, Nevin worked for the Great Lakes re-gion of the International Joint Commission (IJC) created by the Boundary Waters Treaty of 1909. The commission advises the U.S. and Canada regarding trans-boundary water and air issues.
At the IJC, Nevin was appointed as the chair’s senior advisor in 2002 and later served as the public affairs advisor for the organization.
In these roles, Nevin led the IJC’s advocacy efforts for the U.S. and Canada to renegotiate the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement for the first time in more than 20 years and the organi-zation’s public engagement strategy of a five-year project to improve regulation of Great Lakes’ water levels.
Nevin earned an AB in economics from Har-vard College, where he founded the Harvard International Review, and he has an MBA from the University of Chicago School of Business. In 2010, Nevin received the prestigious Pin-nacle Award from the Public Relations Society of America.
The former Ingham County commissioner re-sides in Holt with his wife and three children. r
John Nevin
RETURN TO CONTENTS PAGEICBA BRIEFS16 17
Michigan Supreme Court Chief Justice Robert Young Jr. presented the judicial branch’s FY 2015 budget request to the Michigan Legislature on March 13.
The presentation highlighted recent accom-plishments in downsizing the judiciary, implement-ing technology and mea-suring performance.
Looking forward, Young targeted needed steps to implement further im-provements, especially to facilitate the transition from a mainframe-based case management system to a web-based model.
“We have cut our spend-ing, increased efficiency, reduced our size, focused on outcomes, and improved service to the pub-lic,” Young said. “Michigan’s courts are working smarter for a better Michigan.”
Young said Michigan is implementing the most dramatic downsizing in the nation with 11 trial court judgeships already eliminated–saving $1.7 million each year–and taxpayers will save $6.4 million annually when cuts are complete.
Over the past five years, the judiciary has more than doubled the number of courts that have consolidated operations. Now, 64 counties either have consolidation plans or are developing them so that circuit, probate and district courts could
share workloads, cuts costs and eliminate redun-dant administration.
“Saving money is good, but what’s even more important is that service to the public is im-proved as courts streamline and focus on more efficient operations,” said Young.
With respect to technology, Young noted fund-ing was needed to roll out a web-based case management system to 251 courts, representing 80 percent of the state’s caseload. This initiative supplements the expansion of applications that improve public service, such as mobile apps, on-line payment of traffic tickets and e-filing.
He also hailed the implementation of video-conferencing that allows courts to hold hearings without the cost, loss of time and security risk in-volved in transporting defendants. For example, four years ago, two percent of prisoner hearings involving the Michigan Department of Correc-tions were handled by videoconference. Now, 27 percent are handled using the technology, saving about $2 million annually.
Young emphasized the use of performance measures, including case clearance rates, child support collections and recidivism for problem-solving courts.
The goal is for performance metrics to encour-age greater innovation by the courts to improve outcomes and better serve the public.
Finally, increases in funding are recommended for mental health courts because analysis reveals that participants were 300 percent less likely to re-offend. r
Judicial budget targets efficiency, technology and performance
Michigan Supreme Court Chief JusticeRobert Young Jr.
RETURN TO CONTENTS PAGEICBA BRIEFS18 19
The commercial loan approval and closing procedure is at times a long, drawn out, seemingly insurmountable production. For the process to take a month or two is not unusual. By this time, the client is anxious to finally close.
The time for the closing arrives. All are seated around a table, with one person directing the flow of documents. The title of each document is called out, the clients take the paper, scan down to the line above their name and simply sign it without reading the mass of words on the page. The client actively depends on the commercial lender’s faux fiduciary relationship. This potentially holds a vast amount of liability for the client.
“But I didn’t read the loan documents.”The situation appears to be simple and clear. The client has a personal
responsibility to read what is being signed and assumes the risks when the documents are not read. It is only much later that the client fully understands what has been contractually committed to when the loan is in default and the bank is calling.
There are no shortages of issues revolving around this that have found their way to court. The commonality of these has proven to be the client alleging they did not read the loan documents and should not be held to the contracted terms.
The court acknowledges the loan structure and terms may at times put a financial strain on the client. It is not however up to the court to remove the bank’s client from their poorly made decisions arising from them not reading or understanding the specific contract terms. Wells Fargo Bank, NA v. Cherryland Mall L.P.; 300 Mich. App. 361; 835 NW2d 593; 2013 Mich. App. LESIX 651; 2013 WL 1442053 (Mich. App. 2013). The client has a responsibility to complete their due diligence prior to signing the loan documents and accepting the responsibility for their decision.
Ignorance of what was committed to is not a strong or robust defense, notwithstanding fraud, mistake, accident, or surprise. In the latter circumstances the court may reform the contract. Johnson Family Ltd.
Review your loan documents
Charles Parker is a special assets officer at a community bank. He has completed the MBA, MSA, JD, LLM, and is pursuing a JSD.
ABOUT THEAUTHOR
Charles Parker [email protected]
Partnership v. White Pine Wireless, LLC; 281 Mich. App. 364, 371-372; 761 NW2d 353 (2008), citing Scott v. Grow; 301 Mich 226, 238-239; 3 NW2d 254 (1942).
The typical case is relatively simple, as represented mostly by the Pattee case. Empire Nat’l Bank of Traverse City v. Pattee; 1999 Mich. App. LEXIS 2381; 1999 WL 33435726 (Mich. App. 1999). The defendants borrowed the funds to start a business and guarantied the loan. The loan documents stated each borrower is jointly and severally liable. One of the defendants stated he knew what he was signing and that he opted not to read the promissory note. It is commonly understood if a party executes an agreement, the party is expected to have read and understood this. Here there was no evidence that the defendants were not fully able to read the loan documents prior to the closing and their defense was not valid. Their actions show they accepted the risk of not reading their loan documents prior to signing them.
A much more interesting case involves a husband and wife who financed a commercial property with a bank. The collateral was the noted commercial property and their home. Curiously enough, the interesting and notable aspect was they did not understand English very well and could not read English. They also did not have anyone review the loan documents. Oceguera v. Seaway Cmty. Bank; 2011 Mich. App. LEXIS 1395; 2011 WL 3115786 (Mich. App. 2011).
The couple acknowledged they executed the documents. The court held the couple understood the general provisions of the loan, including the use of their home as collateral. They also had the opportunity to ask for assistance with interpreting the loan documents, but did not seek this. The clients in this case had the opportunity to have the documents read by a knowledgeable person that could have communicated to them exactly what they were agreeing to, which did not happen either. They could not later claim the note was not valid due to this. As they signed the agreement, their actions established they acknowledged and comprehended the note and its terms.
SummaryAt the loan closing, the signers look at the title of the individual
document, possibly one or two items on the form if at all, and sign within the signature block. Rarely do the clients read the documents or understand and appreciate what they are signing. An anomaly occurs
> continued on page 20
IT IS COMMONLY UNDERSTOOD IF A
PARTY EXECUTES AN AGREEMENT,
THE PARTY IS EXPECTED TO
HAVE READ AND UNDERSTOOD
(THE LOAN DOCUMENTS).
RETURN TO CONTENTS PAGEICBA BRIEFS20 21
when the client has their attorney interpret the loan documents.
Frankly, the clients should have an attorney competent in the law of banking and contracts review the loan closing package. There are by far too many potential issues and liability the client is haphazardly agreeing to without even knowing about them.
The clients may feel once the bank’s agent states the forms are boilerplate, nothing may be changed and agree to terms they would rather not. If the client is a low or moderate credit risk, the bank may be flexible and may work with them.
The client may also ask for a limited guaranty or a guaranty that is time sensitive and ends with the maturity date of the term note. There is no excuse for putting your client through a painful experience when this is not necessary. The forms may be changed prior to the clients signing the loan documents.
The client cannot claim later they did not read the documents or not understand them, as a legitimate defense. There are certain instances where this is court ordered, when this is the exception and not the norm.
To avoid needless client liability, have them bring the loan documents to the office for review.
The bank will wait a day while you review these and so your client may make an informed decision regarding the proposed structure, both the obvious and not so obvious. r
LOAN DOCUMENTScontinued
Have you seen the 2012 documentary Searching for Sugar Man? It chronicles the efforts of two individuals from Cape Town, South Africa in the late 1990s to find out whether the rumored death of early 1970s era American musician Sixto Rodriguez was true.
Rodriguez, as he is referred to, was extremely popular in South Africa – think Elvis and the Beatles – but not known here in the United States. As it turns out, Rodriguez is found to be alive and well and, in fact, living in Detroit.
You are probably wondering how this documentary relates at all to careers.
To answer that question, I have to explain what Rodriguez had been doing before and, apparently even for some period of time, after he was “found.”
Rodriguez worked manual labor in Detroit; he did demolition work, he did construction work, he did, as his daughter described in the movie, very dirty work. His passion was music but the music world eluded him at that time.
What is obvious in the film is that Rodriguez was not bitter about the work he did; he did not
The ‘Points to Practice’ column is provided by the Michigan State Uni-versity College of Law Career Services depart-ment.
This contribution comes from Associate Director of Career Services Naomi Gaynor Neilsen.
ABOUT THEAUTHOR
POINTS TO PRACTICE
Lessons fromSugar Man
blame anyone or anything for his position or the fact that he wasn’t a professional musician.
To the contrary, he took pride in the job that he had and worked very hard at what he did. He continued to do that work but also continued to pursue his passion which was music. Perhaps you are starting to see where I am headed?
The legal labor market has not bounced back the way some other professions have. Opportunities at other firms and agencies are not abundant. Perhaps you are not professionally where you want to be or can’t see the possibility of a change on the horizon. If this sounds like you, how are you handling the situation?
Are you approaching it in the way Rodriguez did – continue to work hard, learn as much as you can, establish a good reputation? Or is your work product starting to deteriorate?
If it is the latter, take a lesson from Rodriguez. Work hard, produce quality work and interact positively with those around you.
Your current position may not be your dream job; it may just be one stop along the way, but it is your current stop.
Take pride in the work you are performing today; you will be happier, and the effort will be visible to others as you search for that next stop.
Who knows what tomorrow will bring? r
... TAKE A LESSON FROM RODRIGUEZ. WORK HARD, PRODUCE QUALITY
WORK AND INTERACT POSITIVELY WITH THOSE AROUND YOU.
RETURN TO CONTENTS PAGEICBA BRIEFS22 23
Melisa M.W. Mysliwiec is an attorney in the Fraser Trebilcock Davis & Dunlap, P.C. Trusts and Estates Department.
ABOUT THEAUTHOR
Melisa M.W. [email protected]
Tax Planning: Consider termination of late spouse’s trust
How many of you have a client who is the current beneficiary of their deceased spouse’s trust? Have you reviewed the terms of the trust or its current assets recently? Taking the time to do so may present an opportunity to save your client a significant amount of money.
As you review the document, ask yourself, “How much could be saved in income taxes and capital gains taxes by distributing income and/or assets or dissolving the trust now?”
In 2014, trusts will be subject to the maximum tax rates on any income over $12,150. It doesn’t take much to meet that threshold. As a result of new tax laws passed in 2013, the highest income tax rate is now 39.6 percent, the maximum tax rate for long-term capital gains and dividends is 20 percent, and a 3.8 percent “Medicare” tax is imposed on investment income (including capital gains).
Most of us have clients who established typical A-B trusts when it made perfect sense to do so. A number of those clients now face a much different set of circumstances that do not include a risk of owing federal estate taxes upon the death of the survivor. As a result, surviving spouses who are the lifetime beneficiaries of their deceased spouse’s trusts may have no reason to be; and, in fact, it may be more beneficial for them to terminate those trusts (if at all possible).
Picture this: Your client died 4 years ago. In life, he established an A-B Trust naming his spouse as the lifetime beneficiary. He died with approximately $500,000 in trust assets (held in a brokerage account), all of which were funded to the B Trust (Family/Bypass Trust); nothing is held in the A Trust (Marital Trust). The B Trust gives trustee the discretion to distribute income and/or principal to his spouse for health, education, support and maintenance during her lifetime. Upon her death, the balance of the B Trust will be distributed out to their four children in equal shares. Currently, the brokerage account has grown in value to over $600,000.
Hopefully the trustee is exercising its discretion to distribute the net income out to the spouse each year so that the income tax owed is based on her tax bracket as opposed to the trust’s tax bracket. This alone would save thousands of dollars long-term.
But another issue a trustee needs to consider is capital gains taxes. The assets in the B Trust do not gain a step up in basis on the surviving spouse’s death. When they are eventually sold, there will be capital gains taxes owed on the growth in value since your client’s death, which amounts to more than $100,000. But what if the trust’s terms allowed the trustee to terminate the trust or distribute all principal to the surviving spouse, even to the extent of exhausting the trust?
This would allow her to transfer the brokerage account to herself or her trust; however, to avoid capital gains, the transfer would be an in kind distribution and not a sale. At her death, the assets would gain a step up in basis and the siblings would escape the capital gains tax that would have been paid if it had remained in their father’s trust. This could amount to a significant amount of savings in many circumstances.
Remember, also, that MCL 700.7416 allows the court to modify the terms of a trust to achieve the settlor’s tax objectives in a manner that is not contrary to the settlor’s probable intention. Further, MCL 700.7412 allows the court to modify the administrative terms of a trust if continuation of the trust on its existing terms would be impracticable or wasteful or impair the trust’s administration.
The potential capital gains tax savings could be so great in an appropriate situation, that it may be worth petitioning the probate court to modify the terms of a trust where the terms of the trust do not allow termination or exhaustion of the trust’s principal under the current set of circumstances your client faces. It is also worth exploring whether a particular trust can be terminated under MCL 700.7414, which allows the trust termination if the total value of trust property is less than $72,000 (in 2014) and trustee concludes that the value of trust property is insufficient to justify the cost of administration. r
For more information, contact Melisa Mysliwiec at Fraser Trebilcock, 40 Pearl Street NW, Suite 910, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49503, 616-301-0800 or e-mail [email protected]. You may also reach Melisa, or any other member of Fraser Trebilcock’s Trusts and Estates Department, at its Lansing office, located at 124 West Allegan Street, Suite 1000, Lan-sing, Michigan 48933, 517-482-5800.
IN 2014, TRUSTS WILL BE SUBJECT
TO THE MAXIMUM TAX RATES ON ANY INCOME
OVER $12,150. IT DOESN’T TAKE
MUCH TO MEET THAT THRESHOLD.
RETURN TO CONTENTS PAGEICBA BRIEFS24 25
networking ... and other matters
You know or have heard the words Twitter and tweet. A tweet is a 140-character message that you post on your Twitter account. Experts tell us that Twitter, part of the social network of Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, etc. is a good way to connect with people and maintain relationships. Posting your tweets will:n Network with peers who share your professional and personal
interests leading to referrals,n Let others know of your recent blog, web update, e-newsletter or
published article.Reading others’ tweets helps you keep up with trends in your area of
practice.
Twitter languageLike the law, Twitter has its own language. A tweet is a post, which is 140 characters including the URL (address) of the article you are mention-ing. Twitter will auto shorten the URL since they are often long. Tweets are public to everyone. A handle is your Twitter username. For example, mine is @RobertaGubbins. Retweet is a tweet by one Twitter user that is forwarded by another user. For example, if you read a tweet that you think would be of interest to your followers or readers, you can simply click on the retweet button and it will go on its way.
Other terms are hashtags or the # symbol that is used to mark keywords of topics (#lawyer, #law marketing, #bankruptcy) in a tweet so related tweets can be grouped together; Favorite–you can “favorite” a tweet by
Using Twitter: The shortest of the #networking tools
starring it; Modified Tweet (MT) if you modify a tweet when you send it on by adding a hashtag or a comment–add MT at the beginning of the tweet. And, lastly, @reply is added when you are tweeting a response to a tweet.
Best practices for composing tweets1. Network. It’s not enough to simply send out tweets extolling
your talents, you need to give your readers information they can use. Information that they will pass on to others while mentioning your name.
2. Be consistent. No matter your pattern–once a day, once an hour, once a week–be sure to do it every day, hour or week.
3. Share other people’s tweets. They will usually re-tweet yours thereby adding to your reader base.
4. Write longer tweets. Use all 140 of those characters–some data shows that longer tweets get more clicks.
5. Tweet in the afternoon or early evening and closer to the weekend. Studies show those times get more clicks.
No time to tweet?Ever wonder how some lawyers seem to be on Twitter all the time–day
or night? The simple answer is that they are not. They use HootSuite or TweetDeck to schedule tweets for the day or week at a time. It is possible to write several tweets at one sitting, schedule their posting by the time and date and it’s done.
With both HootSuite and TweetDeck, it is possible to add a Twitter account for business with other attorneys, one for clients and a personal account, if you wish. Each will be a separate account with separate readers. Next decide on content--news for lawyers practicing in your area, video on news items of interest to clients, re-tweets of others’ posts, feature articles that you find interesting. Lastly, set up a schedule for your tweets, post them and you’re done. The whole procedure should take about 30 minutes. I know it’s hard to find 30 minutes some weeks, but it can be worthwhile and if you make it a habit, it will get done.
Pick a day of the week to do the posting. During the week, check your site to reply and favorite others’ tweets, retweet something that interests you, converse with your followers and you’re done. It shouldn’t take more than 10 minutes.
Now you have Twitter under control. Be patient, it will build over time. Add the Twitter widget to your website, to the articles you write for Briefs, and soon you will be a Twitter Expert. r
Roberta M. Gubbins is a lawyer who writes, ghost-writes and edits market-ing materials for lawyers and law firms. She is also the Editor of Briefs. Her blog is www.draftthree.blogspot.com.
ABOUT THEAUTHOR
Roberta M. Gubbinswww.robertamgubbins.com
EVER WONDER HOW SOME
LAWYERS SEEM TO BE ON TWITTER ALL THE TIME–DAY
AND NIGHT? THE SIMPLE ANSWER
IS THAT THEY ARE NOT. THEY USE HOOTSUITE OR
TWEETDECK TO SCHEDULE TWEETS
FOR THE DAY OR WEEK AT A TIME.
RETURN TO CONTENTS PAGEICBA BRIEFS26 27
This month iPick … well, I guess, I iPick security – cyber security. So, this article is a reminder about cyber security, and it is packed with all kinds of insight and advice based on what happened to an individual when some of his online accounts were compromised.
Recently, someone I follow on Twitter shared a link to a story on Medium entitled “How I Lost My $50,000 Twitter Username.” Call me intrigued. I clicked on the link and read a very, very interesting story about how PayPal and GoDaddy allowed an attacker to get access to the writer’s accounts. (The writer of the article is Naoki Hiroshima, and I will simply call him “writer” through out this article.)
Once accessing the accounts, the attacker was able to change passwords, get access to other accounts and to credit card information. After obtaining all of the writer’s personal information, the attacker was able to get access to other accounts, including Facebook and Twitter, eventually locking out writer’s access to his accounts.
So, how was the attacker able to do all of this? First, by accessing the writer’s PayPal account and then the writer’s GoDaddy account. (See below for how the attacker was able to do this.) Once the attacker gained access to the writer’s GoDaddy account, the attacker was able to gain control of the writer’s email. As you may know, email is one of the most used methods of verification when signing up for accounts or when making changes to your accounts. You must protect access to your email accounts. Change your password frequently.
Second, the writer ignored some of the notices that he received via email and via text message. Notices that account settings were being changed. Don’t ignore notices such as these when you receive them. But, you should not necessarily click on the links provided or call the telephone number provided. This may be some type of scam to get access to your accounts.
H. Derrick Etheridge, J.D., LL.M., of the Law Of-fices of Derrick Etheridge, PLLC, is a solo practitioner whose law practice fo-cuses on criminal defense. Visit my blog, the Michi-gan Criminal Law Blog, at micrimlawblog.com.
ABOUT THEAUTHOR
H. Derrick [email protected]
iPICK TECHNOLOGY iPICK TECHNOLOGY
Take an active role in protecting your online information
Rather, you should log into your account immediately and review it to see if changes were made to your account, and you should immediately change your current password. You should also place the account provider on notice of the unauthorized access to your account by email or by calling them at an appropriate telephone number provided on their website.
Third, the account providers, such as GoDaddy and PayPal, must look at their policies and procedures to help avoid an account being compromised and must have better policies and procedures for legitimate account holders to regain their compromised accounts. The attacker sent the writer an email explaining to him how he was able to access his accounts.
Here, the attacker was able to convince PayPal to give him the last four digits of the writer’s credit card over the telephone. The attacker was then able to convince GoDaddy to allow access to the GoDaddy account based on the last four digits of the credit card number that was provided by PayPal.
So, PayPal provided the attacker the four digits of a credit card number over the telephone and GoDaddy allowed access to the account based on the information provided by PayPal. Oh, and by letting the attacker continually guess the first two digits of the credit card number until the attacker got it right - the attacker claimed to have lost the credit card.
Finally, you should review your login email addresses. Why? Most online providers require an email address to log in to your account. Most of us, especially, for work use custom domain email addresses. For instance, my work email address is [email protected]. It is plastered on my website and all of the correspondence. Or you use your name and the domain of the email provider. For instance, [email protected].
If you use that type of email address as a login email address, it takes away half of the work an attacker has to do to get access to your online account. So, you should use a different email address as a username when setting up your online accounts. Some account providers do not allow this. Those account providers must rethink their policies and procedures regarding this issue.
Security of your online personal information cannot be stressed enough. You must take an active role in protecting it. Please read the article that I cited and discussed; it provides insight into what happened to the writer and how it happened.
SECURITY OF YOUR ONLINE
PERSONAL INFORMATION
CANNOT BE STRESSED
ENOUGH. YOU MUST TAKE AN
ACTIVE ROLE IN PROTECTING IT.
> continued on page 28
RETURN TO CONTENTS PAGEICBA BRIEFS28 29
The article includes more detail than I have provided, including: copies of email correspondence between the writer and the online providers and email correspondence between the writer and the attacker.
It also discusses aspects of the extortion. The writer could not gain access to his compromised accounts until he turned over complete access to his Twitter account (@N) – a unique username account – for which writer claims he had once been offered $50,000. r
For sources for
this article and more information, click on the links in the article. The websites were last visited on March 24, 2014.
iPICK TECHNOLOGYcontinued
Stephen J. Markman, Justice of the Michigan Supreme Court and former U.S. Justice Department official, and James C. Morton, noted Canadian lawyer, bar leader and scholar, have been elected to four-year terms on the board of directors of Thomas M. Cooley Law School.
Markman was appointed to the Michigan Supreme Court by Governor and Cooley graduate John Engler in 1999 and was elected to that bench by Michigan’s voters in 2000, 2004, and 2012.
Before that, Markman was judge of the Michigan Court of Appeals and practiced law with the firm of Miller, Canfield, Paddock and Stone in Detroit.
Before joining the firm, he was U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan and previously was the U.S. Assistant Attorney General, where he headed the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Legal Policy, which develops departmental policy and coordinates the federal judicial selection process.
Before serving in that role, he was Chief Counsel to the U.S. Senate
Subcommittee on the Constitution and Deputy Chief Counsel to the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary.
Morton is head of the litigation group of the Canadian law firm Steinberg, Morton, Hope and Israel LLP and a long-standing adjunct professor at Cooley. He is past president of the Ontario Bar Association. His practice focuses on commercial, criminal and constitutional litigation in all levels of court, from tribunals to the Supreme Court of Canada.
He is a certified specialist of the Law Society of Upper Canada in the area of civil litigation. Before joining his current firm, he practiced with the law firms of Solman Rothbart Goodman and Tory, Tory, DesLauriers & Binnington. He also was clerk to the Honourable Mr. Justice Howland, Chief Justice of Ontario.
“I could not be more proud to welcome Justice Markman and Professor Morton to the Cooley board,” said Cooley Law School President and Dean Don LeDuc. “These distinguished gentlemen
bring intellect, character, academic excellence, professional expertise, and decades of public service to Cooley. They understand how providing high quality, practical legal education is important to both the legal profession and to society as a whole. They will set a fine example for Cooley’s students, who will benefit greatly from the perspectives they will bring to our school.”
Markman is a B.A. graduate of Duke University and earned his J.D. degree at the University of Cincinnati College of Law. He has published articles in the University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform, the Stanford Law Review, and the Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy, to name just a few.
He has also been a contributing editor of National Review magazine and has authored chapters in a number of books. For two decades, Markman has taught constitutional law at Hillsdale College.
He is a Fellow of the Michigan Bar Foundation, is a Master of the Bench of the Inns of Court, and twice has been sent to Ukraine by the U.S. Department of State to assist in developing that country’s post-Soviet constitution.
Markman is the seventh member of the Michigan Supreme Court to serve on Cooley’s board of directors, following Justices Thomas E. Brennan, John W. Fitzgerald, James
L. Ryan, James H. Brickley, Michael F. Cavanagh, and Dorothy Comstock Riley.
Morton, who brings an international perspective to Cooley, holds a B.Sc. degree from the University of Western Ontario, an LL.B. from Osgoode Hall School of Law and an LL.M. degree from the University of Leicester.
He is past president of the Ontario Bar Association, is a member of the Law Societies of Upper Canada and Nunavut, and has served the organized bar in many other capacities.
He has written dozens of books, chapters and scholarly articles in areas as far ranging as constitutional law and civil rights, evidence, civil and criminal law and procedure, commercial law, litigation skills, and ethics.
He has taught evidence at Osgoode Hall School of Law, and, since 2001, he has been lecturer in constitutional law and evidence and co-director of Cooley’s study abroad program in Toronto and more recently a teacher in Canadian law subjects at Cooley’s Auburn Hills, Michigan campus.
Morton received Cooley’s Frederick J. Griffith III Adjunct Faculty Award as the outstanding adjunct professor of the year in 2012. r
Michigan Supreme Court Justice, Ontario Bar Leader Elected to Cooley Board of Directors
LAW SCHOOL NEWS
Stephen J. Marksman
James C. Morton
RETURN TO CONTENTS PAGEICBA BRIEFS30 31
YOUNG LAWYERS SECTION YOUNG LAWYERS SECTION
Ingham CountyBar Association
Young Lawyers SectionBoard of Directors
PRESIDENTChristopher [email protected]
PRESIDENT-ELECTLindsay [email protected]
SECRETARYTara [email protected]
TREASURERMichael [email protected]
DIRECTORSLeah [email protected]
William [email protected]
Steve [email protected]
Warren [email protected]
Catherine [email protected]
PAST PRESIDENTShenique [email protected]
The first annual Paper Chase 5K, sponsored by the Ingham County Bar Association Young Lawyers Section, will be held at 5 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 2, in East Lansing.
Firms are encouraged to sign up for the event as teams. Individuals and teams can register here.
The cost is $20 per person before July 28. After July 28, the cost increases to $25. Creative Wellness will offer massages before and after the race.
Proceeds from the race will be used to help support the Ingham County Bar Association Young Lawyers Section provide free or low-cost educational and networking opportunities to young lawyers and law students. A portion of the proceeds will also be donated to Legal Services of South Central Michigan.
We hope to see you all there!
Resources availableICBA-YLS has numerous resources for young attorneys. All of
the information can be found here. We are continually working to add more resources for new and young attorneys.
Questions? Suggestions?If you have ideas or suggestions for new resources, or
corrections to existing resources, contact ICBA-YLS president Chris Wickman at [email protected]. If you would like to join the ICBA-YLS Educational Committee and help build or give feedback on online resources or programming, it would be extremely appreciated!
First Paper Chase 5K scheduled for August 2
Tara Bachner joined Willingham & Coté, P.C. in the summer of 2011 after completing her law degree at Thomas M. Cooley Law School, where she served as Senior Associate Editor of the Thomas M. Cooley Law Review.
Bachner was awarded the Certificate of Merit for her performance in Modern Real Estate Transactions and received a Certificate of Completion in the areas of probate and estate planning issued by the Institute of Continuing Education and the Probate and Estate Planning Section of the State Bar of Michigan.
Currently a member of the firm’s estate planning group, Bachner’s practice focuses on estate planning, including federal estate tax planning, probate and trust administration and the firm’s new program, Simply Wills.
Bachner also currently serves as the Secretary for the Ingham County Bar Association/Young Lawyers Section and was elected to the Board of Directors for the Greater Lansing Estate Planning Council (GLEPC) for the 2013-14 term.
Let’s get to know her a little better:
Q. If you were stranded on a desert island what is the one item you couldn’t live without?
A. My dog Samantha.
Q. What is your most vivid memory from law school?
A. Learning how to draw real property descriptions.
Featured Young Lawyer
Q. What is theweirdest thing you’veever eaten?
A. Alligator jerky.
Q. If you could sit down to dinner with one person (dead or alive), who would it be and why?
A. Marie Antoniette, because I would like to know if she was really the person everyone made her out to be.
Q. If you knew you were going to be stranded on a desert island what is the 1 book you would bring with you?
A. Gone With the Wind.
Q. If you could tell a young lawyer one thing about practicing law, what would that be in 20 words or less.
A. Just because you advise your client to do something, does not mean he or she will actually do it.
Q. What is the most exotic place or place furthest from Michigan that you have traveled?
A. Grand Cayman (on a cruise).
Q. Who have you learned the most from in your life and what is one lesson you’d like to pass on to members of the bench and/or bar?
My Grandma Lake. Keeping a positive attitude and helping others can be more rewarding than any amount of money.
Tara Bachner
ICBA BRIEFS32
CLASSIFIED ADVERTISEMENTSHELP WANTED
Cummins Woods Law
Position: Part-time Legal Secretary
Job Summary: A business attorney in downtown Lansing is seeking a Legal Secretary 20 hours per week. Hours are flexible. This person will be responsible for scheduling, calendaring, typing from dictation, and some bookkeeping. MS Office, Quick Books Pro and Timeslips are required, but we will train.
Salary is negotiable. Email your resume, salary expectations and cover letter to [email protected]. No calls please.
Cummins Woods is an equal opportunity employer.
Contact Madelyne [email protected], 517-627-3938
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