Wayne Law News

All Wayne Law alumni are invited to the Wayne Law Reunion on Friday, Oct. 16, honoring the classes of 2005 to 2014, 1980 and 1965. Buy your ticket today.

Wayne Law is creating an Alumni Wall of Fame Award, and nominations for the initial honorees are being sought. Submit nominations by Saturday, Oct. 31.

Wayne Law alumni represent three of the Top 10 and 29 of the Top 100 Michigan Super Lawyers for 2015, as well as 15 of the Top 50 Women Super Lawyers.

Thirty of the Detroit area’s top women lawyers, as selected by Michigan Lawyers Weekly, cast their ballots and selected Dana Nessel, '94, as the 2015 Woman of the Year.

Wayne Law Dean Jocelyn Benson, a civil rights advocate and national election law expert, will be inducted into the 32nd class of the Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame.

Michael W. Maddin, ’65; David L. Rogers, ’82; and Mark Zausmer, ’80, spoke about Leading Successful Law Firms at the Wednesday, Sept. 16, installment of Wayne Law’s Alumni Speaker Series.

Lauren Rennert, who graduated in May from Wayne Law, has won the $1,000 third prize in the 2015 Founding Fathers Religious Liberty Student Writing Competition.

Susan Haack, a professor of law, humanities and philosophy at the University of Miami, will deliver the I. Goodman Cohen Lecture in Trial Advocacy on Wednesday, Oct. 7, at Wayne Law.

Elliot Diringer, executive vice president of the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions, will present "Paris Preview: How the New Global Climate Agreement is Shaping Up" on Tuesday, Oct. 13, at Wayne Law.

National Labor Relations Board General Counsel Richard F. Griffin Jr. will deliver the keynote address during the Bernard Gottfried Memorial Labor Law Symposium on Thursday, Oct. 15, at Wayne Law.

Thirty leaders from local organizations are joining together as members of the second year’s cohort for Wayne Law's Detroit Equity Action Lab to further the cause of racial equity.

Second-year student Jaspreet Singh shows off one of the water-resistant socks created by his 5 Water Socks company. It’s one of several business ventures by Singh. He is a real estate agent, has created an online course of lectures to assist entrepreneurs with marketing and has created an organization called The Minority Mindset to inspire other young minority entrepreneurs.

Michigan Supreme Court Justice David F. Viviano spoke Thursday, Sept. 24, at Wayne Law.

Wayne State University Press and Wayne Law celebrated the book launch Thursday, Sept. 17, of "The People’s Lawyer: The Life and Times of Frank J. Kelley, the Nation’s Longest-Serving Attorney General."

A 10-member German delegation, including three members of the German Parliament, visited Wayne Law on Monday, Sept. 14.

Second- and third-year students working in Wayne Law’s clinics and externships for fall semester 2015 participated in a swearing-in ceremony Tuesday, Sept. 8

Wayne Law Assistant Professor Kirsten Matoy Carlson was selected to present a paper at the Conference on Empirical Legal Studies in October in St. Louis.

Upcoming Events

Oct. 2 - Book Signing, Documentary Screening and Panel Discussion

Oct. 3 - Youth Day

Oct. 7 - I. Goodman Cohen Lecture in Trial Advocacy (for law students)

Oct. 7 - I. Goodman Cohen Lecture in Trial Advocacy (public event)

Oct. 8 - Law School Alumni Reception during State Bar Annual Meeting

Oct. 8 - Race and Society: The Dignity of People, the Destiny of Detroit

Oct. 13 - Paris Preview: How the New Global Climate Agreement is Shaping Up

Oct. 15 - 23rd annual Bernard Gottfried Memorial Labor Law Symposium

Oct. 15 - Great Lakes Environmental Law Center's Blue Water Bash

Oct. 16 - Wayne Law Review Symposium - Corporate Counsel as Gatekeepers

Oct. 16 - 2015 Global Health Symposium: Sustainable Solutions to Improve the Health and Lives of the Underserved at Home and Abroad

Oct. 16 - Wayne Law Reunion

Oct. 20 - Congressional Oversight of Classified Programs - 40 Years after the Church Committee

Oct. 22 - Race and Society: The Dignity of People, the Destiny of Detroit

Oct. 29 - Wayne Law Alumni Speaker Series - Corporate Counsel

Oct. 29 - Race and Society: The Dignity of People, the Destiny of Detroit

Nov. 2 - Congressional Oversight of Classified Programs: Covert Action, Electronic Surveillance and the Rule of Law

More Events

Alumni Accomplishments

Brad Arbuckle, '84, of Miller Canfield played a key role in the firm's representation of AVIC Automotive of China in the acquisition of Henniges Automotive from Littlejohn. This transaction represents the single largest overseas acquisition by a Chinese automotive supplier in history.  

Kelly Blumline, '12, joined the Troy office of Hall Render Killian Heath & Lyman, the largest health care-focused law firm in the nation. She focuses her practice on real estate and business transactions.  

Linda Burwell, '85, served as a panelist at the American Conference Institute's 23rd national conference on employment practice liability insurance. The event was in New York.

Sue Carter, '91, will be inducted into the 32nd class of the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame. She is a professor of journalism and former broadcaster. 

Janet Cooper, '74, will be posthumously inducted into the 32nd class of the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame. She was a civil rights advocate. 

Joyce Draganchuk, '86, Ingham County Circuit Court judge, gave a presentation on the state's judicial system during a People's Law School session in East Lansing. People's Law School, sponsored by the Sinas Dramis Law Firm, Wayne Law and Michigan Association for Justice, is open to the community.  

Diane Fears, '89, wrote Tipping the Scales: Courting Diverse Judicial Clerkship Applicants, published in the September edition of the NALP Bulletin. Fears is director of Career Services and the Student Voluntary Pro Bono Program at Wayne Law.

R. Craig Hupp, '83, of Bodman PLC was appointed by the governor to the state's new Michigan Pipeline Safety Advisory Board.

Paul Isso, '11, owner and managing attorney of The Isso Law Firm, became a licensed sports agent in the state of Arizona. The Isso Law Firm, recently launched in Phoenix, focuses on entertainment, media and sports law; civil litigation; criminal defense; and legal ethics.

Nicholas Jones, '15, joined Honigman Miller Schwartz and Cohn LLP's Corporate Department in the firm's Detroit office.

Robert Kaatz, '02, has been named partner and shareholder at Cardelli Lanfear PC. 

Daniel Kelly, '74, a St. Clair County Circuit Court judge, was the subject of a feature story, "Judge Dan and Mary Kelly together in law," in the Times Herald.

Paul Kittinger, '08, has been named partner and shareholder with Cardelli Lanfear PC.

Daniel Kubiak, '80, of Mika Meyers in Grand Rapids wrote How does a reverse mortgage work? published in the Grand Rapids Business Journal.

Ryan Lawlor, '02, joined Hilco Global as vice president and assistant general counsel. Hilco Global, headquartered in Northbrook, Ill., is a financial services holding company that helps businesses maximize their assets.

Richard Marek, '76, was elected president of the Vermont State Historical Society. He ended 12 years of service in the Vermont House of Representatives earlier this year, after retiring from practicing corporate law.

Matthew Mann, '06, was appointed to the St. Joseph Mercy Health System legal team in Pontiac as interim general counsel until January, when he'll assume the role of the system's general counsel. 

Mary Massaron, '90, co-wrote a chapter in A Young Lawyer's Guide to Defense Practice, a comprehensive book that guides young defense lawyers through their early years of practice. She is an attorney with Plunkett Cooney.

Debra Nance, '99, is serving a six-year term as judge of the 46th District Court. Her term began Jan. 1, 2013. The 46th District Court serves the Oakland County communities of Southfield, Lathrup Village, Beverly Hills, Bingham Farms and Franklin Village.

David Newblatt, '91, will receive the Hart Award at the 2015 Michigan Women's Hall of Fame awards dinner. He is a Genesee Circuit Court judge and creator of Michigan's first "Girls' Court," where at-risk young women are given an opportunity to break unhealthy cycles. 

James Reid, '05, a shareholder at Maddin Hauser Roth & Heller PC, was appointed chair of the Oakland County Bar Association's Employment Law Committee. Reid also serves as Resource Partner Program co-director for the Michigan Council of the Society for Human Resource Management.

Dan Ringo, '13, has been named chief operating officer of Continuum Services, a building maintenance and facility services company based in Southfield. 

Bryan Robbins, '11, and business partner Matthew Licavoli announce the establishment of Robbins and Licavoli PLLC, a Bloomfield Hills law firm specializing in family law, bankruptcy and immigration.

Neil Rockind, '93, has been selected to speak at the second annual TEDx Oakland University. Rockind's TED Talk will discuss the "joy of the jury." He is the founder of Southfield-based criminal defense law firm, Rockind Law. 

Margaret Scott, '88, was presented with a "Challenge Coin" for her service to the North Oakland County Veterans Treatment Court. She is an executive partner at Secrest Wardle and a former prosecuting attorney.

Joel Serlin, '68, received the Oakland County Bar Association's Professionalism Award. He is the first and only Oakland County Circuit Court ombudsman and a senior partner with Seyburn Kahn in Southfield. 

Michael Skoczylas, '13, has joined Jaffe Raitt Heuer & Weiss PC as an associate in the firm's Tax Practice Group. 

George Sinas, '75, a senior partner at Sinas Dramis Brake Boughton & McIntyre PC in Lansing, gave a presentation on the state's auto no-fault law during a People's Law School session in East Lansing. People's Law School, sponsored by the Sinas Dramis law firm, Wayne Law and Michigan Association for Justice, is open to the community.

Sherry O'Neal Taylor, '96, a member of Dickinson Wright PLLC's Detroit office, was appointed to the Pro Bono Initiative of the Committee on Justice Initiatives for the State Bar of Michigan.

Jermaine Wyrick, '96, of the Law Offices of Jermaine A. Wyrick PLLC was selected to the Fair Housing Center of Metropolitan Detroit Board of Directors.

Matthew Zmijewski, '10, joined the General and Automotive Practice Group at Collins Einhorn Farrell PC.


More Alumni Accomplishments

Faculty Accomplishments

Linda Beale was named to the American Bar Association Section of Taxation's Appointments to the Tax Court Committee for a two-year term ending in June 2017. 

Jocelyn Benson moderated a Constitution Day debate at Macomb Community College about the meaning and interpretation of the U.S. Constitution. The event was sponsored by the Macomb County Bar Association.

Blanche Cook was part of a panel discussion during the Michigan Future Law Professors Workshop at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.

Peter Hammer delivered a keynote address at Sustainability Summit Detroit 2015. The title of his presentation was "The Impact of Beliefs and Conditioning on Society."

Nick Schroeck and third-year law student Justin Sterk spoke on "Sustainable Development in the United States: Current Challenges and Planning for the Future" at a research symposium about social institutions and sustainability.

Robert Sedler participated in a Constitution Day debate at Macomb Community College about the meaning and interpretation of the U.S. Constitution. The event was sponsored by the Macomb County Bar Association.

Kathryn Smolinski represented the Legal Advocacy for People with Cancer Clinic at the fifth annual Prostate Cancer Symposium at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History. The event, hosted by Karmanos Cancer Center, was attended by more than 150 cancer patients and their caregivers.


More Faculty Accomplishments

Professors in the News

Jocelyn Benson was quoted in a Macomb Daily report, Constitution, Supreme Court decisions subject of Macomb College talk.

Susan Cancelosi was interviewed for a report, Elder Bankruptcy and Debt, on Comcast's Newsmakers.

Peter Henning was quoted in a PBS Frontline report, Justice Department Signals a Shift in its Policing of Wall Street.

Nick Schroeck was interviewed for a WKAR radio report, Environmentalists tell MDOT to pump the brakes on I-94 expansion.

Robert Sedler was quoted in a Macomb Daily report, Constitution, Supreme Court decisions subject of Macomb College talk.

Peter Henning was quoted in a Detroit News report, GM's cooperation in probe key to early resolution.


More Professors in the News