Wayne Law News

Critical issues that impact southeast Michigan will be the focus of a monthly Public Opinion and Good Governance Lecture Series being introduced Thursday, Jan. 16, at Wayne Law. Former Detroit federal bankruptcy Judge Ray Reynolds Graves will give the inaugural lecture, “Bankruptcy and Detroit Restructuring: Can the Court Guarantee Financial Viability?”

Mix, mingle, network and reminisce at a winter gathering of the Wayne Law Alumni Association set for 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 30, in Royal Oak.

Chief Judge Gerald E. Rosen, who has served for 24 years on the federal bench in Detroit, will deliver the 29th annual I. Goodman Cohen Lecture in Trial Advocacy at Wayne Law on Tuesday, Feb. 4.

An alumni golf outing is being planned for Monday, June 2, at the Country Club of Detroit in Grosse Pointe Farms.

Jackson, Miss., Mayor Chokwe Lumumba, a longtime civil rights activist and 1975 alumnus of Wayne Law, and Wayne Law students Eliza Facio and Nicholas Klaus will be honored Saturday, Jan. 25, by the Detroit and Michigan Chapter of the National Lawyers Guild.

Three Wayne Law alumnae – Teri L. Dennings (top photo), Karissa Holmes and Ronda Tate – have been recognized as "Up & Coming Lawyers 2013" by Michigan Lawyers Weekly.

State Rep. Jim Townsend already is finding his studies as a first-year student in the evening program at Wayne Law to be helpful to his work in Lansing.

Wayne Law Associate Professor Paul Dubinsky recently returned from 10 days in China, where he visited several law schools to work on student and faculty exchange agreements.

Kathryn Smolinski, left, director of Wayne Law’s Legal Advocacy for People with Cancer Clinic, and Michele Buchanan, a social work intern with the clinic, show off the items donated as part of the Winter Wishes drive to help families who are clients of the Law School’s legal clinics.

Third-year students Brittany Bradshaw (top photo) and Weiling Chou are among those praising the experience and opportunities to help the revival of Detroit by working with Wayne Law’s Business and Community Law Clinic.

Wayne Law Professor Peter J. Henning is co-author of a new edition of the treatise Securities Crimes, published by Thomson Reuters.

Upcoming Events

Jan. 16 - Public Opinion and Good Governance Lecture

Jan. 22 - Estate Planning and Social Media

Jan. 29 - Alumni Speaker Series - Prosecutors

Jan. 29 - Young Alumni Professionals Mixer

Jan. 30 - Wayne Law Alumni Association Winter Happy Hour

Feb. 4 - I. Goodman Cohen Lecture in Trial Advocacy

More Events

Alumni Accomplishments

Michael Cone, '94, was been named acting managing partner of the Washington, D.C., office of FisherBroyles LLP. He practices in the areas of administrative, customs and international trade law and serves on the External Advisory Committee for Wayne Law's Program for International Legal Studies. Cone gave a presentation Dec. 19 at The Heritage Foundation in Washington, D.C., on "Why Women (and Sometimes Men) Pay More: Tariffs and Clothing Prices."

David DuMouchel, '75, has been appointed by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan as a member of the Magistrate Judge Merit Selection Panel. He is one of 13 metro Detroit lawyers and community leaders to receive this appointment. A Butzel Long attorney and shareholder based in the firm's Detroit office, DuMouchel chairs the firm's Corporate Compliance, Internal Investigations and Criminal Defense practice. DuMouchel's practice is limited to white collar criminal defense, professional licensure and criminal health care, criminal IRS investigations of both taxpayers and professionals, SEC enforcement of corporate executives, public corruption, as well as grand jury investigations, internal corporate investigations and compliance. Earlier, DuMouchel was appointed to serve as a voting member of the U.S. Sentencing Commission Practitioners Advisory Group. One person from each of the 11 federal circuits is appointed to this group. He is a recipient of the prestigious Leonard Gilman Award from the Federal Bar Association as the outstanding criminal law practitioner in the Eastern District of Michigan.

Roland Hwang, '84, (LL.M.) has been reappointed by Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder to the state's Asian Pacific American Affairs Commission. The 21-member commission advances the full and equal participation of Asian Pacific Americans in Michigan. Hwang is an assistant attorney general with the Department of Attorney General, where he has worked for 25 years. He handles tax liability, restitution and collection, and bankruptcy cases on behalf of the Unemployment Insurance Agency. Hwang was previously an attorney and product engineer for Ford Motor Co.

Phillip Korovesis, '87, was recently elected to serve a three-year term on the State Bar of Michigan Negligence Council. Based in Butzel Long's Detroit office, shareholder Korovesis is a Litigation Practice Group leader and also serves as the chair of Butzel Long's Trade Secret and Non-Compete Specialty Team, which focuses on trade secret, non-compete and business tort litigation. His practice is focused on commercial disputes, with trial, litigation and consultation expertise in non-compete/trade secret disputes, product liability defense, life insurance claims and business and financial services industry disputes. Korovesis has successfully tried cases in state and federal courts in various parts of the country and represented clients in state and federal appellate courts. He has arbitrated cases before the American Arbitration Association, National Association of Securities Dealers and New York Stock Exchange (now The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority). He is a regular presenter on trade secret and non-compete issues to lawyers and other professionals. Korovesis also serves on the Board of Directors of Leadership Oakland. He is the past president of the Michigan Defense Trial Counsel. Korovesis is an active member of the Defense Research Institute on its Commercial Litigation Committee.  

Thomas Lewand, '70, was named to the cabinet of Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan to serve as group exeuctive, jobs and economic growth. Lewand is a business, health care and municipal law and finance lawyer at Bodman in Detroit. He has worked in a number of high-profile capacities, including facilitating the building of Ford Field, serving as Gov. Jennifer Granholm's facilitator in a deal for $50 million in state help for the Detroit Medical Center and as a special master appointed by U.S. District Judge John Feikens during the Detroit Water and Sewer Department's federal oversight.

Aleksandra Miziolek, '80, has been appointed as vice president, general counsel and secretary, effective Feb. 3, 2014, of Cooper-Standard Holdings Inc., a leading global supplier of automotive sealing, fuel and brake, and fluid transfer systems. With more than 30 years of experience advising automotive companies, Miziolek will join Cooper Standard from Dykema Gossett PLLC. As a Dykema Gossett member, she held a variety of key management positions, including service on the firm's Executive Board and as director of its Automotive Industry Group. Her law practice has focused on mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance and SEC disclosure matters. She has counseled a broad range of automotive companies on cross-border transactions and strategic alliances involving North American, European and Asian businesses.

William Murphy, '70, was recently elected to serve as treasurer of the Council of Chief Judges of the State Courts of Appeal throughout the United States. This leadership position is the first on Murphy's path to being elected as the council's president within the next few years. The Council of Chief Judges of the State Courts of Appeal was formed in 1980 when judicial leaders of state appellate courts around the nation recognized the need to have "a body for consultation" and education "concerning the improvement of the administration of justice, rules and methods of procedure, and the organization and operation of state intermediate appellate courts." In addition to his recent election, Murphy also was asked to continue serving on the Council's Executive Board Committee. He was reappointed as chief judge of the Michigan Court of Appeals in November. He was appointed to the court in 1988 and has served as chief judge since November 2009.

Portia Roberson, '93, was named head of Detroit's new Civil Rights and Ethics Division by Mayor Mike Duggan. She was appointed by Detroit Mayor Dave Bing last year as the city's corporation counsel. Roberson worked for the U.S. Department of Justice from 2009 to 2011 as director of the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs. In November 2011, Roberson accepted an assignment with the White House Office of Domestic Policy Council and a position as Detroit team lead of the federal Strong Cities, Strong Communities Initiative. Roberson has served as an assistant prosecutor in Wayne County, where she was a principal in the community prosecution office. She also served as an associate general counsel at the Detroit Medical Center and as political director for Wayne County with the Michigan Campaign for Change.


More Alumni Accomplishments

Faculty Accomplishments

Charles Brower has joined Miller Canfield as of counsel to the International Dispute Resolution Section. He will continue full time as a professor at Wayne Law, where he teaches International Commercial Arbitration, Investment Treaty Arbitration, Contracts, and the Law of Armed Conflict. Brower is an elected member of the American Law Institute, vice chair of the Institute for Transnational Arbitration and winner of the Smit-Lowenfeld Prize for 2012. Brower has served as advocate for the government of the Republic of Costa Rica in proceedings before the International Court of Justice, visiting fellow at Cambridge University's Lauterpacht Research Centre for International Law and member of the American Arbitration Association's observer delegation to UNCITRAL Working Group II.

Susan Butterwick is director of a new project in Washtenaw County – a  Peacekeeping Court modeled on Native American tribal court traditions. The grant-funded court project is the first in Michigan sanctioned by the state. Peacemaking courts seek solutions that will repair the harm done from conflict in relationships, repair those relationships and restore individuals involved to their communities or families. Types of cases suitable for the court might involve juvenile delinquency, domestic conflicts, eldercare issues or business disputes. The project is funded through a Michigan Supreme Court grant from the state's Court Performance Innovation Fund.


More Faculty Accomplishments

Professors in the News

Laura Bartell has been widely quoted by media about Detroit's bankruptcy, including in an NPR story, Bankruptcy Casts Shadow Over Detroit's Plan To Fix Streetlights, and in a USA Today report, Detroit bankruptcy judge releases 150-page order.

Peter Henning was quoted in a Bloomberg News report, JPMorgan Sues FDIC Over $1 Billion-Plus WaMu Liabilities.

John Mogk wrote a column, Here's a way Lansing can help cities besides an emergency manager. The piece was published in the Detroit Free Press.

Nick Schroeck was quoted in an article in the Daily Mail (United Kingdom), Disturbing levels of heart drugs found in drinking water, says study, as concern for long term health effects grows.

Robert Sedler wrote a column, Feedback: 'Defending free speech' is not a valid argument for allowing dark money in politics, which was published in the Detroit Free Press.

Michael Steinberg was quoted in a Michigan Radio report, ACLU seeks to prevent eviction of domestic violence victim.


More Professors in the News