LEGAL PEOPLE

Julie I. Fershtman, shareholder with Foster, Swift, Collins, & Smith PC in its Farmington Hills office, will be the speaker on November 4, 2013 for the A.M. Best National Podcast on Insurance Law Issues. Fershtman will discuss the case she litigated in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Hauser v. Great American Assurance Company, where the court issued an important ruling on September 30, 2013, in favor of the insurer. The case involved important issues of insurance coverage and the policyholder's compliance with policy conditions. Fershtman will also discuss animal and livestock mortality insurance as well as unique coverage issues applicable to these policies. Fershtman's law practice focuses on commercial litigation, insurance coverage, general insurance defense, and equine law. She is a past president of the State Bar of Michigan and is only the 5th woman in the bar's 79-year history to be president. She is listed in The Best Lawyers in America for Insurance Law and Commercial Litigation. She has tried cases before juries in four states. Fershtman is also the author of three books and has lectured in 28 states. The Insurance Law Podcast is published by Best's Directory of Recommended Insurance Attorneys and is a service of the A.M. Best Company Inc. To listen or subscribe to the Insurance Law Podcast, visit http://feeds2.feedburner.com/InsuranceLaw. * * * Jesse Viau has joined Southfield-based Jaffe, Raitt, Heuer, & Weiss PC as an associate in the firm's Litigation Practice Group. Jaffe CEO Bill Sider made the announcement. Prior to joining Jaffe, Viau served as a law clerk for Idaho Supreme Court Justice Warren E. Jones and, most recently, U.S. District Court Judge Sean F. Cox, Eastern District of Michigan. He also worked in Washington, D.C. for the United States Department of Justice, Labor Law Division. In this role, he analyzed labor law issues and assisted with the legal discovery process. Viau is a graduate of Northern Michigan University, where he received both his Bachelor of Science degree and Master of Public Administration. He earned his law degree from Michigan State University College of Law. He is a member of the State Bar of Michigan and the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians. * * * Honigman, Miller, Schwartz, and Cohn LLP is pleased to announce that Anessa Kramer, a partner in the firm's Trademark and Copyright and the Intellectual Property Litigation Practice Groups, has been recognized by Managing Intellectual Property in its publication IP Stars 2013 "Top 250 Women in IP" and is one of only three attorneys in Michigan to receive this recognition. Kramer represents a number of owners of well-known brands, counseling them on issues such as global clearance and filing strategies, IP management, trademark enforcement and litigation, and trademark licensing. She also has experience with cutting-edge areas of trademark law, including trade dress protection, dilution and anti-cybersquatting. Kramer has handled more than 100 U.S. trademark oppositions and is a frequent speaker and author on IP issues. She is a member of the International Trademark Association and serves on its Famous and Well-Known Marks Committee. She is also one of the founding members of the first Michigan Intellectual Property Inn of Court and serves as its Membership Committee chair. Kramer has been recognized as one of 25 "Leaders in the Law" by Michigan Lawyers Weekly in 2010, and was a Crain's Detroit Business "40 Under 40" award recipient in 2007. She also has been recognized by Michigan Super Lawyers since 2010 and as a DBusiness "Top Lawyer" for 2012 and 2013. Kramer earned her law degree from George Washington University Law School and her B.A. from Michigan State University. Honigman is also pleased to announce that Jennifer Zbytowski Belveal, a partner in the firm's Litigation Department and leader of its White Collar Crime and Investigations Practice Group, has been appointed as co-chair of the State Bar of Michigan's Pro Bono Initiative. The Bar committee encourages and coordinates free or discounted fees for low-income individuals in need of legal assistance. She has served on the Pro Bono Initiative committee since 2011. Belveal, who also serves as Honigman's associate general counsel and chair of the firm's pro bono Committee, focuses her law practice on both white collar criminal defense and complex commercial litigation involving many aspects of business, real estate, health care and environmental laws. She is a Michigan State Bar Foundation Fellow and an Oakland County Bar Foundation Fellow. She also serves on the board of trustees of Detroit Public Television and on the executive board of the Giving Hope Women's Giving Circle. Belveal earned her law degree from the University of Michigan Law School. She received a B.A. from Michigan State University's Honors College. * * * Daniel J. Kelly of Giarmarco, Mullins, & Horton PC presented Governor Rick Snyder before his "Conversation on Jobs" speech at the Orchard Ridge Campus of Oakland Community College. Kelly is the chair of the Oakland Community College Board of Trustees. Kelly also serves on the Board of Directors for Giarmarco, Mullins, & Horton PC. Kelly received his BS from Western Michigan University, and his law degree from the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law. He is admitted to practice in the State of Michigan, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Michigan, Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, and Michigan Supreme Court. * * * William Coughlin, adjunct professor for Thomas M. Cooley Law School's Graduate Program in Intellectual Property Law (GPIPL), has been recognized as Automation Alley's "Entrepreneur of the Year." He was presented the award during the Automation Alley Award Gala on Sept. 13. Coughlin has taught at Cooley since 2003, teaching graduate-level courses, including Trade Secret Law and eCommerce Law. He also serves as chair on the advisory committee for Cooley's Graduate Program in Intellectual Property Law. He is president and CEO for Ford Global Technologies LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Ford Motor Company, and is responsible for managing all intellectual property matters on a global basis. Coughlin commented that, "Entrepreneurs need to either create or leverage intellectual property in order to build and protect business success. And teaching Intellectual Property Law for a decade now at Cooley has provided me with deeper insights into how intellectual property can really help businesses thrive more than most aspiring entrepreneurs will ever see. An award like this should inspire students of the law that entrepreneurial thinking is not just something for others to do. Lawyers can be, and in many situations need to be, entrepreneurial to help both their clients and their communities." * * * Johnson Law PLC, the law firm started by attorney Ven Johnson, is continuing its growth by adding more attorneys and expanding its Detroit office in the Buhl Building. The move comes just over a year after Johnson relocated his practice, which specializes in all areas of personal injury, including automobile/trucking negligence, product liability, police misconduct, medical malpractice and more, to downtown Detroit from Oakland County. Johnson Law is adding 2,200 square feet of space on the Buhl Building's 26th floor. The firm's attorneys are: * Jody L. Aaron, a medical malpractice attorney. She previously worked for McKeen and Associates. * Steven Brock, a personal injury attorney. Brock formerly worked at Bowen, Radabaugh, & Milton PC. * Juliana Sabatini, a personal injury and medical malpractice attorney. She formerly worked with Retier and Walsh PC. * Gary S. Fields, a personal injury, workers' compensation and social security attorney. He previously was a partner at Eisenberg, Benson, & Fields. * Ayanna D. Hatchett, a personal injury attorney. She formerly worked at Hatchett, DeWalt, & Hatchett. * Derek J. Brackon, a medical malpractice attorney. He previously worked for Mckeen and Associates. * Chris Desmond, an appellate attorney. He previously worked as a law clerk with the Michigan Court of Appeals. * * * Butzel Long attorney and shareholder Robin Luce Herrmann has been named co-chair, Roundtable Subcommittee of the Section of Litigation's Woman Advocate Committee, American Bar Association (ABA). As co-chair, Herrmann will identify speakers as featured presenters for future programs. Butzel Long's Michigan offices have hosted several of the networking programs. She also serves as co-chair for the Women in Communications Law Committee of the Forum on Communications Law. She is a past member and vice-chair of the ABA Law and Media Committee; the past chair of the ABA's First Amendment and Media Litigation Committee's Diversity Outreach Subcommittee, and, is active in the Media Law Resource Center. Herrmann, a Practice Group leader for one of Butzel Long's two Business Litigation Groups, concentrates her practice in the areas of media law, particularly defamation and access issues; commercial litigation, including Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO); non-competes and trade secrets; and civil rights. She also is general counsel of the Michigan Press Association. In addition, Herrmann previously taught Law of the Press in the Journalism Department at Oakland University. She has been a guest speaker on Law of the Press at Wayne State University, Central Michigan University, and Oakland University. In 2011, she was appointed to the State Bar of Michigan Law and Media Committee. Herrmann is a 1984 graduate of the University of Michigan and a 1993 graduate of the Detroit College of Law. * * * A Wayne State University Law School professor on leave while serving at a national agency in Ireland also is doing some teaching at a university in Dublin. Stephen Calkins has been appointed adjunct professor at University College Dublin. The appointment, approved by the Dublin university's Governing Authority, is for a three-year period. He is assigned to the UCD Sutherland Law School. The position of adjunct professor is an honorary one without remuneration. Calkins has given classes and participated in conferences at UCD Sutherland, and the expectation is that he will continue doing so as he participates in the life of the school. Calkins is on leave from Wayne Law while serving as a member of the Competition Authority of Ireland and director of its Mergers Division. The Competition Authority is the Irish body responsible for enforcing Irish and European competition law in Ireland. The authority is scheduled to be amalgamated with Ireland's National Consumer Agency, at which point Calkins will be a member of the amalgamated agency. Calkins began his service on the Competition Authority in December 2011. Immediately before assuming the position, he had been serving since 2008 as associate vice president for academic personnel at Wayne State, while also teaching a reduced load at Wayne Law. Earlier in his career Calkins served as general counsel of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, which enforces U.S. competition and consumer protection laws. He earned a bachelor of arts degree from Yale University and a law degree from Harvard Law School. * * * Piper Smith, an in-house paralegal with Wayne State University Physician Group's Legal Affairs and Compliance unit, has been sworn in as chair of the State Bar of Michigan's Paralegal/Legal Assistant Section. Smith was elected to a three-year term as chair-elect, chair and ex-officio chair of the section at the group's Sept. 21 annual meeting. The Paralegal/Legal Assistant Section of the State Bar of Michigan provides education, information and analysis about issues of concern through meetings, seminars, the web, public service programs and its newsletter. Membership in the section is open to qualified paralegals, legal assistants and all members of the State Bar of Michigan. Specializing in health law, governance and policies, Smith provides counsel to the WSUPG board of directors and executive committee, as well as its audit, finance and governance and nominating committees. She also currently serves as co-chair of WSUPG's policies subcommittee, and chair of its preparedness committee, which reports to the quality committee. Smith is a member of Oakland Community College's Paralegal Program Advisory Council for the American Bar Association Paralegal Curriculum. She also is an adjunct educator of e-filing presentations for litigation courses and has been a guest speaker at paralegal orientations at Oakland Community College. Smith is pursuing a bachelor's degree in communication studies at Wayne State University. In addition, she is proficient in Italian, sponsors a family in Tanzania, Africa, and actively supports Gleaners Food Bank of Southeastern Michigan. Published: Mon, Oct 28, 2013