Wayne Law News

An alumni golf outing is being planned for Monday, June 6, at the Country Club of Detroit in Grosse Pointe Farms.   

R. Craig Hupp, '83, is sharing his expertise with Wayne Law's Transnational Environmental Law Clinic students to review the proposed Interstate 94 highway widening project.

Chris Bzdok, '96; Jehan Crump-Gibson, '09; Sheila Cummings, '02; and Michael Taylor, '08 will discuss "Policy Making" on Thursday, Jan. 28, as part of the Wayne Law Alumni Speaker Series.

Timothy Andersson, '92, will share his insight and expertise Tuesday, Jan. 19, about international law based on his years of experience representing U.S. companies in business transactions throughout the world.

The Levin Center at Wayne Law had its first international training in December for legislative staff in Ukraine on how to conduct oversight investigations.

Eleven families, including 17 adults and eight children in need, had a warmer holiday season thanks to a donation drive supported by students, faculty, staff and friends of Wayne Law.

Unifying people to give them a more powerful voice is a skill Jeremy Orr brings to his job.

Students Brandon Barlog and Lauren Potocsky won the Wayne Law Moot Court Arthur Neef Competition finals Monday, Nov. 16.

Twenty-three students competed Friday, Nov. 13, in Wayne Law’s second annual Transactional Law Competition.

Students Anthony Casaletta and Matt Opperman won the Wayne Law Mock Trial in-house final competition Monday, Nov. 9.

An essay by Wayne Law Distinguished Professor Robert A. Sedler is included in the recently published book, "Reclaiming Integration and the Language of Race in the 'Post-Racial' Era."

Wayne Law Assistant Professor Kirsten Matoy Carlson was selected to present a paper at the Association of American Law Schools annual meeting in New York City.

Wayne Law Professor Peter J. Hammer was honored by the Historical Society of the District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan for his work on a book about Judge Damon J. Keith.

Wayne Law faculty and staff gathered for a Holiday Celebration on Tuesday, Dec. 15, at the Law School. 

Student Affairs arranged for a Pet Therapy event Wednesday, Dec. 2, at the Law School. 

Upcoming Events

Jan. 16 - Water Crisis Forum/Teach-In

Jan. 19 - Attorney Timothy Andersson speaking about International Business Law

Jan. 27 - Professionalism in Action

Jan. 28 - Wayne Law Alumni Speaker Series: Policy Making

Feb. 4 - State of the Law School Alumni Update - Bloomfield Hills

Feb. 18 - Has America Fulfilled Its Promise of Equal Justice for All?

Feb. 18 - State of the Law School Alumni Update - Ann Arbor

More Events

Alumni Accomplishments

Sarah Brutman, '04, joined Maddin Hauser Roth and Heller PC as an associate in the Defense and Insurance Coverage Practice Group. She concentrates her practice on commercial insurance coverage and liability defense.

Jason Canvasser, '06, of Clark Hill PLC was appointed to the Birmingham Board of Zoning Appeals.

Greg Dodd, '89, is president of the Washtenaw County Bar Association.

Dan Dozier, '71, of Press and Dozier LLC in Bethesda, Md., wrote a chapter in Alternative Dispute Resolution in State and Local Governments, Analysis & Case Studies. Dozier's chapter is "Evaluating Scope of Services and Provider Qualifications in State ADR Programs."

Sam Fares, '13, was named a shareholder with Howard & Howard Attorneys PLLC in Royal Oak. He concentrates his practice in intellectual property law with a specialized focus on patent preparation, prosecution and clearance matters in the electrical and computer arts.

Steven Gonzales, '78, co-edited a book, Alternative Dispute Resolution in State and Local Governments, Analysis & Case Studies. It was published by the American Bar Association on behalf of the Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice Section. Gonzales is associate professor of law at Arizona Summit Law School.

Roy Gotham, '73, announced his retirement after 25 years as circuit court judge in Gogebic and Ontonagon counties.

Linda Hallmark, '77, was nominated for the 2015 Daniel J. Wright Lifetime Achievement Award. She is chief judge of the Oakland County Probate Court.

Andrew Hopko, '07, joined the Trusts and Estates Practice Group of Plunkett Cooney. He is a member of the firm's Bloomfield Hills office and practices in the areas of estate planning, probate and trust administration, elder law, special needs planning and probate litigation.

Marc Jerabek, '04, has been named a shareholder at Plunkett Cooney. He works in the Bloomfield Hills office.

Lona Julien, '00, was named Branch County Friend of the Court referee, a position in which she supports the court with family law issues including divorce, paternity, custody and support.

Gil Kaminski, '85, joined Pepper Hamilton LLP's Detroit office as special counsel in the Corporate and Securities Practice Group.

Julie Markgraf, '93, joined Hall Render Killian Heath and Lyman's Detroit office. She focuses her practice on health care law. 

Mary Massaron, '90, a partner with Plunkett Cooney, was named by DBusiness magazine to its list of 2016 Top Lawyers.

Stefan Osterbur, '05, joined intellectual property law firm Reising Ethington as of counsel. He is a patent attorney. 

Stanley Prokop, '68, of Plunkett Cooney was named by DBusiness magazine to its 2016 list of Top Lawyers. 

Joseph Sullivan, '85, joined Litchfield Cavo in Chicago. His practice focuses on toxic tort/product liability.

Ronda Tate Truvillion, '06, was named partner at Lewis & Munday PC, one of the nation's oldest and largest law firms founded by African-Americans. She is a member of the Detroit firm's Litigation Group.

Matthew Van Dyk, '04, joined the Kalamazoo office of Miller Johnson. He specializes in real estate law.

Daniel Villaire Jr., '99, was named a shareholder with Howard & Howard Attorneys PLLC in Royal Oak. He concentrates his practice in labor and employment law.

Arnold Weintraub, '68, was appointed director of AfterMaster Audio. He is the company's patent and intellectual property attorney and a member of The Weintraub Group PLC.

Cathy White, '83, was named a 2016 fellow of the Michigan Political Leadership Program at Michigan State University.

Joan Young, '74, received the first Justice Marilyn J. Kelly Award for Outstanding Service. This award was named after retired Michigan Supreme Court Justice Marilyn J. Kelly, '71. Young is chief judge pro tempore of Oakland County Circuit Court, serving in the family division. She is presiding judge of the men's section of the Oakland County Adult Treatment Court.


More Alumni Accomplishments

Student Accomplishments

Robert VanSumeren, a first-year student, started a Friday night Self Management and Recovery Training (SMART) group for people recovering from addictions. The cognitive-behavioral group therapy, the only one of its kind in Jackson, offers a substitute to the spiritual/religious Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. VanSumeren and SMART were featured in an MLive story.


More Student Accomplishments

Faculty Accomplishments

Otto Hetzel co-edited a book, Alternative Dispute Resolution in State and Local Governments, Analysis & Case Studies. It was published by the American Bar Association on behalf of the Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice Section.

Robert Sedler spoke about the Constitution and marriage equality to a group at Birmingham NEXT, a nonprofit organization for people over the age of 50 in Birmingham, Bingham Farms, Beverly Hills, Franklin and surrounding areas.

Kathryn Smolinski was the keynote speaker at the the third annual Johns Hopkins Cancer Survivorship Conference in Baltimore. Her talk was "Hope and Humor." She also presented "Legal Concerns for Survivors" at the conference.


More Faculty Accomplishments

Professors in the News

Robert Ackerman was interviewed by Al Jazeera America for a report on a recent surge in people taking firearms training. 

Jocelyn Benson wrote a guest column, New bills boost legislators' attack on democracy, published in the Detroit Free Press.

Peter Hammer spoke about his book, Crusader for Justice: Federal Judge Damon J. Keith, with John L. Hanson Jr., producer and host of In Black America on KUT.org, Austin's NPR station.

Peter Henning was quoted by Michigan Radio for its report, In 'uncommon' move, judge halts trial of Detroit water protesters.

John Mogk shared his predictions for Detroit five years from now in an Hour Detroit magazine article, Foresight is 2020.

John Rothchild was quoted by WXYZ-TV for its report, Wayne County judge files application to trademark "Detroit RiverWalk" for profit.

Robert Sedler appeared on WJR's Paul W. Smith Show, with guest host Guy Gordon, examining the constitutionality of Donald Trump's call to prohibit Muslims from entering the United States.

Jocelyn Benson was quoted in the Grand Rapids Business Journal for its report, Law school partners with university. 

Peter Henning was quoted by Crain's Detroit Business for its report, Ex-Mumford principal, 2 others indicted in Detroit reform school district corruption case.

John Mogk was quoted in a Detroit Free Press report, Thousands of downtown Detroit apartments are on the way.

John Rothchild was quoted by Crain's Detroit Business for its report, Wayne County judge files to claim trademark for Detroit RiverWalk.

Robert Sedler was interviewed by Stephen Henderson on WDET's Detroit Today for its report, Trump, Obama and Muslims in America.

Peter Henning was quoted in a Detroit Free Press report, Snyder declares emergency as feds probe Flint water.


More Professors in the News