Michigan Lawyers Weekly articles from March 2007

Michigan Lawyers Weekly archives from March 2007

Commentary: Michigan justice is threatened by underfunding.
March 5, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff When it comes to allocating resources for indigent criminal defense, Michigan ranks near the bottom nationally. This hurts not only practitioners and their clients, but the criminal justice system...

Commentary: Michigan Lawyers Weekly offers judicial evaluation.
March 5, 2007... Byline: Lynn Patrick Ingram, Esq. Have you ever wished you could confidentially evaluate the judge who just presided over your case? Was the judge well prepared? Did he or she maintain control of the proceedings? Lawyers Weekly's...

House Bill attempts to repair Michigan Supreme Court decision in Kreiner v. Fischer.
March 5, 2007... Byline: Todd C. Berg, Esq. 'Serious impairment' report Within eight days of its being introduced in the House, the latest "Kreiner-fix" bill has already accomplished something that none of its predecessors in either the House or Senate...

Gov. Granholm's proposed tax restructuring includes service tax.(Jennifer Granholm)
March 5, 2007... Byline: Molly F. Dilbeck, Esq. Business of law State, federal, and sales taxes are all well known to citizens. But, if Gov. Jennifer Granholm's new tax restructuring proposal makes its way into legislation, "services tax" may soon...

Michigan Court of Appeals says good faith holder of forged deed can't acquire interest in property.(Special Property VI, LLC v. Woodruff, et al.)
March 5, 2007... Byline: Melissa P. Stewart, Esq. Michigan Court of Appeals Two wrongs don't make a right. At least that's what the Michigan Court of Appeals seemed to say when it recently held that a good faith holder of a forged deed could not...

Michigan Lawyers in the News: March 5, 2007.
March 5, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Appointments Fred Goldberg has been appointed as a trustee on the Cascade Township board of trustees. Goldberg, a member with Mika Meyers Beckett & Jones, PLC, in Grand Rapids, concentrates...

Attorney Discipline Board Case Summaries: March 5, 2007.
March 5, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Notice Of Automatic Reinstatement (Pending Appeal) Case No. 06-60-GA; 06-73-FA Notice Issued: February 16, 2007 Richard C. Holst, P 26110, Wyoming, Michigan. Effective February...

Michigan Court of Appeals Case Summaries: March 5, 2007.(L and L Wine and Liquor Corp. v. Michigan Liquor Control Comm'n, et al)(Tingley v. Wardrop )
March 5, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Administrative Law Liquor Control Commission - Administrative Remedies The circuit court correctly concluded that it lacked jurisdiction to issue a declaratory judgment on the legality of a...

Michigan Court of Appeals Unpublished Civil Case Summaries: March 5, 2007.
March 5, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Arbitration Notice - Sufficient Where plaintiff-Michigan corporation seeks confirmation of an arbitration award granted against defendant-New York corporation in the state of New York, we...

Michigan Court of Appeals Unpublished Criminal Case Summaries: March 5, 2007.
March 5, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Affirmed Convictions Armed Robbery. No Prosecutorial Misconduct. "Defendant claims that the prosecutor argued facts not in evidence and gave personal testimony during his rebuttal argument. We...

U.S. Court of Appeals 6th Circuit Case Summaries: March 5, 2007.
March 5, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Antitrust Cigarettes - Price- Fixing Where plaintiff-tobacco product distributors sued defendant-Reynolds Tobacco Company (RJR) for illegal price discrimination in violation of the Clayton...

Commentary: Identifying and avoiding systematic decision errors.(Column)
March 5, 2007... Byline: Meagan Hardcastle Turnaround professionals and their clients often find themselves making difficult decisions under extremely stressful conditions. The ability to make good decisions during a crisis when the stakes are high is a...

Verdicts & Settlements March 5, 2007: Summary disposition granted in contract case.
March 5, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff In March 2006, nine families filed suit against Pulte Homes, Inc., C.R. Miller Homes, Inc., and the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department seeking damages for injuries that allegedly resulted from...

Verdicts & Settlements March 5, 2007: Medical-malpractice matter voluntarily dismissed.
March 5, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff The decedent was born on April 21, 2002. On March 9, 2003, his mother took him to the Bronson Hospital emergency Department because he had a decreased oral intake, few wet diapers, "white dots" on his...

Verdicts & Settlements March 5, 2007: $635K arbitration award for auto negligence case.
March 5, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff A City of Detroit bus driver closed the bus doors on the plaintiff's arm as she exited and started to drive away. The plaintiff's neck and low back were jarred as she tried to alert the driver. ...

Michigan Court of Appeals Unpublished Criminal Case Summaries: March 12, 2007.(People v. Middleton)
March 12, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Affirmed Convictions Accosting A Child For Immoral Purposes; Habitual Offender, Second Offense. Effective Assistance. "Although defendant objects that counsel did not place defendant's waiver of...

Michigan Supreme Court Orders: March 12, 2007.(People v. Duke)(People v. LaPlante)(Brinkley v. Brinkley)
March 12, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Reversals And Remands People v. Duke. SC: 132641; COA: 262325; Livingston CC: 04-014741-FH. On order of the Court, the application for leave to appeal the September 28, 2006 judgment of the Court...

U.S. Court of Appeals 6th Circuit Case Summaries: March 12, 2007.(United States v. Rice)
March 12, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Criminal Law Wiretap - Suppression And Omnibus Crime Act The federal district court properly suppressed evidence obtained from a wiretap of defendant's telephone because the affidavit...

Commentary: Review of "Business and Commercial Litigation in Federal Courts, Second Edition".(Book review)
March 12, 2007... Byline: P. Kessler and K. Adamczyk In 1998, the American Bar Association compiled and published a comprehensive treatise entitled "Business and Commercial Litigation in Federal Courts," which provided the federal court litigator with...

Verdicts & Settlements March 12, 2007: Plaintiff's MCPA claim nets $8K plus fees.(Michigan Consumer Protection Act)(Brooks v. Downs Distributing, Inc.)
March 12, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Plaintiff Edmund Brooks purchased a 1937 Ford Truck replica body and a "conversion kit" from the defendant at an auto show in November 2003. The plaintiff alleged that in his discussion at the show...

Verdicts & Settlements March 12, 2007: Steel company nets 'no cause' in product liability case.(Townsend, et al. v. Kasle Steel Corp.)
March 12, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff The plaintiff claimed his injuries were the result of a defective steel slitter that was leased to the plaintiff's employer by Kasle Steel Corporation. The plaintiff alleged that Kasle Steel...

Verdicts & Settlements March 12, 2007: $450K settlement for amputated finger.(Minor v. Kulpinski)(Brief article)
March 12, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff In this personal injury matter, a minor's finger was amputated when a farm tractor tire fell on the minor's hand while she was playing in her grandparent's barn. The matter settled for $450,000....

Verdicts & Settlements March 12, 2007: Medical malpractice case settles for $800K.(Doe v. XYZ Medical Centers)(Brief article)
March 12, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff The plaintiff had been a patient of defendant XYZ Medical Centers since 1994, and had treated with her internist, an employee of XYZ Medical Centers since 2000. The plaintiff's medical records were...

Commentary: The abolition of capital punishment in Michigan.(Column)
March 12, 2007... Byline: Patrick D. Filbin March 1 is a significant date in Michigan's legal history, one almost completely lost to the ages. On March 1, 1846 -- 161 years ago -- the State of Michigan became the first governmental body in the...

Michigan Court of Appeals rules in case where two adjacent landowners claim rights to road.(Minerva Partners Ltd. v. First Passage, LLC, et al.)
March 12, 2007... Byline: Melissa P. Stewart, Esq. A battle to quiet title was anything but quiet in a recent Michigan Court of Appeals case wherein two adjacent landowners claimed rights to an abandoned Garfield Township road. In Minerva Partners Ltd....

Michigan Court of Appeals rules in above-threshold assurance case.(Fidelity Insurance and Guaranty Comp. v. Michigan Catastrophic Claims Ass'n)
March 12, 2007... Byline: Molly F. Dilbeck, Esq. Pursuant to the No-Fault Act, the Michigan Catastrophic Claims Association (MCCA) is required to indemnify insurance carriers for any amount in excess of specific statutory standards. For example, under...

Preventing a breakdown in communication that may ultimately lead to a grievance complaint.(Grievance Administrator v. Jones)
March 12, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Managing Your Practice Attorney Robert E. Jones was retained by Agnes Proctor in 1996 to handle the estate of Ethel Shepard, Proctor's sister. Though Jones began proceedings in March 1997, the...

Michigan Lawyers in the News: March 12, 2007.(International Bar Association appoints Bruce Thelen)(Varnum, Riddering, Schmidt and Howlett appoints William E. Rohn)(Phifer and White appoints Jeffrey G. Collins)
March 12, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Appointments Bruce Thelen has been appointed senior vice chair of the International Bar Association's International Sales Committee. Thelen, of Dickinson Wright PLLC in Detroit, concentrates...

Michigan Court of Appeals Case Summaries: March 12, 2007.(Dep't of Community Health v. Risch)(Dimmitt and Owens Financial Inc. v. Deloitte and Touche)(Fleet Business Credit, L.L.C. v. Krapohl Ford Lincoln Mercury Co.)
March 12, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Administrative Law Public Health Code - License Revocation Respondent's registration and licensing to practice as a certified social worker (CSW) and limited license psychologist (LLP) were...

Michigan Court of Appeals Unpublished Civil Case Summaries: March 12, 2007.(Barrett v. Lasco Ford)(Wallace v. Farmers Ins. Exchange)(O'Neil v. Chemtool, Inc.)
March 12, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Administrative Law Rule Promulgation - Valid In the Michigan Education Association's (MEA's) petition for review of respondent-Michigan Public School Employees Retirement Board's promulgation...

Michigan Lawyers in the News: March 19, 2007.
March 19, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Appointments Bruce A. Courtade, a shareholder with Rhoades McKee in Grand Rapids, has been appointed to the West Michigan Center for Arts & Technology board of directors. Courtade concentrates...

Retired Detroit attorney Milton J. (Jack) Miller dies at 94.(Obituary)(Brief article)
March 19, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Milton J. (Jack) Miller, a founding partner in 1948 of Detroit-based law firm Honigman Miller Schwartz and Cohn LLP, has died. He was 94. During his career with the firm, Miller served as a...

Michigan Court of Appeals Case Summaries: March 19, 2007.(People v. Ostantowski)
March 19, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Criminal Law Anti- Terrorism Act - Constitutionality Defendant's conviction of making a false report or threat of terrorism, MCL 750.543m, is affirmed because the statute is neither...

Michigan Court of Appeals Unpublished Civil Case Summaries: March 19, 2007.(Univ. of Detroit Mercy, et al. v. Dep't of State Police Michigan Commission on Law Enforcement Standards)(Gillespie v. Russell Filtration, Inc.)
March 19, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Administrative Law Law Enforcement Standards - Safety Officers The trial court's conclusion that plaintiff-Detroit Mercy Hospital (UDM's) safety officers were "police or law enforcement...

Michigan Court of Appeals Unpublished Criminal Case Summaries: March 19, 2007.
March 19, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Affirmed Convictions Armed Robbery. No 'Claim Of Right' Defense. "[A] 'defendant's claim of right must be legally recognizable and made in good faith.' People v Hobbs, 68 Mich App 239, 241; 242...

Michigan Supreme Court Orders Case Summaries: March 19, 2007.
March 19, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Court Rule Amendments ADM File No. 2006-26 Amendment of Rule 3.921 of the Michigan Court Rules On order of the Court, notice of the proposed changes and an opportunity for comment in...

U.S. Court of Appeals 6th Circuit Case Summaries: March 19, 2007.(United States v. Bridgewater)
March 19, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Criminal Law Sentencing - Reasonableness Defendant's 10-year sentence followed by lifetime supervised release for his possession of child pornography was reasonable, and was the result of the...

Verdicts & Settlements March 19, 2007: Med-mal case nets $900K settlement.
March 19, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff This medical malpractice case involved injury to the spinal cord during an attempt to provide spinal anesthesia resulting in the plaintiff's, a 61-year-old woman, permanent left leg paresis/paralysis....

Verdicts & Settlements March 19, 2007: $150K settlement for first-party PIP claim.(personal injury protection)(Booker v. Travelers Insurance Company)(Brief article)
March 19, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff As the 12-year-old plaintiff walked along a sidewalk, a dog began to chase her. She ran away from the dog, ran into the street and was hit by an SUV that fled the scene and was never found. The...

Verdicts & Settlements March 19, 2007: Jones Act matter settles for $390K.(Doe v. XYZ Shipping Company)(Brief article)
March 19, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff This was a maritime personal injury claim, alleging negligence against the ship owner as the plaintiff's employer, and alleging that the ship owner breached its duty to provide a seaworthy vessel and a...

Commentary: Tax on legal services would fall on those who can least afford it.(Jennifer Granholm's tax policy)
March 19, 2007... Byline: Kimberly M. Cahill Governor Jennifer Granholm's proposed 2 percent tax on legal services in Michigan will hit low- and moderate-income taxpayers the hardest, especially those already experiencing a loss and financial problems. ...

Staying the course: Medical-malpractice report in Michigan.
March 19, 2007... Byline: Todd C. Berg, Esq. Medical-malpractice report Since 2003, the Michigan Court of Appeals has held steadfast to the notion that a medical-malpractice complaint accompanied by a defective affidavit of merit is insufficient to...

'Matching' up: Woodard v. Custer report.(medical malpractice case)
March 19, 2007... Byline: Todd C. Berg, Esq. 'Woodard' report If the Michigan Supreme Court hadn't decided Woodard v. Custer, et al., the chances of Catherine Ruth Reeves getting her day in court likely would have been quite slim. Her case started...

End of immunity? Michigan Legislature amends statute governing product liability actions.
March 19, 2007... Byline: Melissa P. Stewart, Esq. Legislative Report For the stated purpose of fostering growth within the state's life sciences industry, the Michigan Legislature, on March 28, 1996, amended the statute governing product liability...

HB 4301 restores balance, fairness to no-fault system.(Brief article)
March 26, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff To The Editor: Deny, defend and delay. That is the motto of the insurance industry as CNN reported on Feb. 18, 2007. The Insurance Institute of Michigan claims that if the Kreiner ruling is...

Verdicts & Settlements Plus: Defendants complied with all relevant standards of care.
March 26, 2007... Byline: Melissa P. Stewart, Esq. When Linton Smith's wife suffered a brain hemorrhage while in Mexico and died shortly after returning to Michigan, he filed a wrongful death claim against Oakwood Healthcare and its physicians Dr. Alexandria...

Michigan Court of Appeals rules pre-emption cannot be waived in collective-bargaining case.
March 26, 2007... Byline: Molly F. Dilbeck, Esq. After being fired for allegedly aiding another employee in stealing wood from Wisne Automation Engineering Company, machine builder John Flanagan unsuccessfully attempted to file a grievance to protest his...

Michigan Court of Appeals rules tenant can be held liable for damages to apartment bldg.(Laurel Woods Apartments v. Roumayah)
March 26, 2007... Byline: Melissa P. Stewart, Esq. When Rebecca Roumayah inadvertently left her stove on after cooking dinner in her apartment, she made what may prove to be a very costly mistake. Believing she had turned off the burner, Rebecca exited...

Michigan Lawyers in the News: March 26, 2007.(Miller, Canfield, Paddock and Stone PLC appoints Matthew B. Van Dyk)(Varnum, Riddering, Schmidt and Howlett appoints April Hart Sawhill)(Warner Norcross & Judd L.L.P. appoints James J. Steffel)
March 26, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Appointments James J. Steffel has been named executive partner of the Muskegon office of Warner Norcross & Judd LLP. Steffel concentrates his practice on trusts, estates and closely held...

Michigan Attorney Discipline Board Case Summaries: March 26, 2007.
March 26, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Amended Notice Of Suspension (By Consent) Case No. 06-19-GA Notice Issued: March 7, 2007 Stephanie A. Carson, P 57096, Detroit, Michigan, by the Attorney Discipline Board Tri-County...

Michigan Court of Appeals Case Summaries: March 26, 2007.(Dawson v. Secretary of State)(Estate of Buckner v. City of Lansing)(Allison v. AEW Capital Management L.L.P.)
March 26, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Constitutional Law Driver Responsibility Fees - No Double Jeopardy Violation The assessment of fees under subsections (2)(a) and (b) of the driver responsibility law, MCL 257.732a, against...

Michigan Court of Appeals Unpublished Civil Case Summaries: March 26, 2007.(Sun/Forest, L.L.C. v. TJ Holdings L.L.C.)(Lundin v. City of Benton Harbor.)(Your Home Town USA Inc. v. Creative Graphics Inc.)
March 26, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Arbitration All Claims - Arbitrable The trial court erred by concluding that defendant's claims arising from the operating agreement were not arbitrable, while the claims arising from a...

Michigan Court of Appeals Unpublished Criminal Case Summaries: March 26, 2007.(People v. Powell)(People v. Edwards)(People v. Markey)
March 26, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Affirmed Convictions Assault With Intent To Rob While Armed. Identification Evidence. "Jackson first saw defendant face-to-face in a lighted area when defendant stood next to her and asked her if...

U.S. Court of Appeals 6th Circuit Case Summaries: March 26, 2007.(United States v. Hardin)(Boykin v. Van Buren Township)
March 26, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Appeals Certificate Of Appealability - Required Because a certificate of appealability is a prerequisite for a habeas petitioner's appeal of the denial of a Rule 60(b) motion, petitioner must...

Commentary: Market the firm or the attorneys? Finding a common thread.
March 26, 2007... Byline: Les Altenberg Any law firm with at least a handful of attorneys and more than one area of emphasis inevitably is faced with a critical business development question: Do we market the firm in general or do we promote the successes...

Verdicts & Settlements March 26, 2007:Med-mal matter nets 'no cause' verdict.(Smith v. Oakwood Healthcare)
March 26, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff The decedent, a 44-year-old married mother of one, went to Cancun for a long weekend with her friends and coworkers. She passed out in customs upon entering Mexico and was rushed to a local hospital...

Verdicts & Settlements March 26, 2007: Wrongful death matter settles for $200K.(Amaya v. Goss)(Brief article)
March 26, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff The minor sisters, 12-year-old Alyssa and 13-year-old Felicia, were riding in a van driven by their aunt, defendant Mary Ann Renshaw. The girls' mother was also a passenger in the vehicle. ...

Verdicts & Settlements March 26, 2007:$100K settlement reached in Jones Act claim.(Doe v. XYZ Company)(Brief article)
March 26, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff This case involved two separate and distinct incidents of injury sustained by the plaintiff, a 32-year career sailor with the defendant. The plaintiff served as a watchman aboard the defendant's Great...

'Heidi's Law' raises new drunk driving questions.(Brief article)
March 26, 2007... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff To The Editor: I have received many phone calls from attorneys and former clients regarding "Heidi's Law." "Heidi's Law" (P.A. 564 of 2006, effective Jan. 3, 2007) now reads that the State of...