Daily Briefs

State sued over late absentee ballots to military for primary

DETROIT (AP) — The federal government is suing the state of Michigan over the failure of some local governments to get absentee ballots timely delivered to members of the armed forces.

The U.S. Justice Department asked a Grand Rapids federal judge Tuesday to order some local governments to count absentee ballots received after the Aug. 7 primary election.

The lawsuit says dozens of clerks have said they sent absentee ballots to military voters after the June 23 deadline. Dozens more still haven't responded to a survey by the Michigan secretary of state. The federal government says it's unclear just how widespread the problem might be.

Secretary of State Ruth Johnson said last week that a lawsuit was likely. She agrees that members of the military need to get their ballots.


Domestic Violence Committee offers free pro bono training

The State Bar of Michigan Domestic Violence Committee will host an introductory training on how to handle pro bono domestic violence family law cases from 1-5 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 26 at Thomas M. Cooley Law School’s Auburn Hills Campus. It will be simultaneously broadcast to Cooley’s three other campuses in Ann Arbor, Grand Rapids, and Lansing.

The training, provided by attorneys with many years of hands-on family law experience, will cover initial client interviews, substantive legal issues, pleadings, and pretrial and trial practices as they relate to family law cases with domestic violence components. It will offer a comprehensive introduction to family and domestic violence law for attorneys new to this area of practice, and will also serve as a great refresher for more experienced attorneys.

The training is free of charge for attorneys who commit to take on a pro bono family law case within six months.

To register visit www.michbar.org/generalinfo/domesticviolence.cfm. For additional information contact SBM Pro Bono Counsel Robert Mathis at 517-346-6412 or rmathis@mail.michbar.org.


SBM and UDM Law to present Professionalism in Action Aug. 13

UDM Law, in partnership with the State Bar of Michigan, is pleased to present Professionalism in Action, a program which pairs prominent lawyers and judges with incoming law students in small groups to discuss the importance of civility and work through a series of ethical and professionalism hypotheticals.
The program will be held Aug. 13 from 6 - 8 p.m. at University of Detroit Mercy School of Law, 651 E. Jefferson Avenue in Detroit with a reception immediately following.

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