Michael D. Wiese

Patrick R. Drueke regularly represents landlords and tenants leasing commercial or industrial space; buyers and sellers of commercial and residential property; developers and other property owners seeking zoning approval; neighborhood associations as general counsel; businesses and individuals in disputes regarding their real estate or construction projects; owners and operators of environmentally contaminated sites facing enforcement action; and commercial and residential contractors in cons...

Harvey Koning is a partner in the Corporate Practice Group and is active in the firm’s Financial Institutions Industry group. He works with a wide variety of businesses, from start-ups to public companies. He represents companies involved in mergers, acquisitions, divestitures and also initial and secondary public offerings. Harvey’s corporate practice also includes private equity, venture capital, securities regulation and executive compensation. He works extensively with a numbe...

Pam helps individuals, families, and business owners preserve their legacy through proper estate planning and by working with them to resolve family strife during times of disability or death. This includes listening and understanding the client’s concerns so that she can recommend and prepare proper estate plans, establishing guardianships and conservatorships where appropriate, working through various potential tax issues, attending hearings and other matters at the probate court when...

Benjamin A. Zainea, a native of Grand Rapids, graduated from Northview High School in 1992. He attended the University of Michigan School of Business Administration, where he served as president of the professional/service fraternity of Delta Sigma Pi and graduated with high distinction in 1996. He earned his law degree from the University of Michigan Law School in 1999. Ben specializes in business transactions, mergers and acquisitions, business formation, general business and real estate la...

Fred is a member of the Estate Planning Practice Group. He has been assisting his clients with their estate planning needs since he first began his practice, and he has during that time handled a wide variety of estate settlements and estate settlement issues. His particular focus is on counseling clients on techniques to minimize estate and gift taxes, and drafting the documents to accomplish that objective. Fred is also a trusted personal advisor to many of the families he has worked with o...

Rick is a member of Varnum's Labor and Employment Practice Group. He focuses on the defense of employers in workers’ compensation litigation, from managing contested cases in an aggressive and efficient manner to assessing cost-containment methods. He represents employers at all levels of the court system, including the Workers’ Compensation Appellate Court, the Michigan Court of Appeals, and Michigan Supreme Court. Rick has handled multiple Michigan Occupational Safety and Health...

Chris works intimately with clients and their advisors to create estate plans that enable families to plan for today as well as for future generations. Chris regularly prepares sophisticated estate plans, emphasizing probate avoidance, estate tax planning, and business succession planning. In addition, Chris has an emphasis on helping families with cottage succession planning. Chris's practice also includes a significant focus on post-death planning and estate and trust administration. Chris ...

Kaplin concentrates his corporate practice on advising clients regarding choice of entity and transactional tax planning; structuring tax-free reorganizations and like-kind property exchanges; setting up and advising tax-exempt and nonprofit corporations; handling IRS audits and appeals hearings; commencing and settling tax litigation; formulating and drafting tax opinions; and preparing IRS ruling requests. Kaplin negotiates and structures the following types of transactions: asset and prope...

Brian Kersey concentrates his practice in aviation law and commercial finance matters. He brings nearly 30 years of wide-ranging experience as a lawyer and as a banker to bear in providing practical solutions and guiding his clients to successful outcomes quickly and efficiently. Mr. Kersey is Co-Chair of Bodman's Aviation Law and Finance Practice Group. His aviation law practice encompasses a wide variety of areas, including purchase and sale transactions, regulatory compliance, risk managem...

Amy is experienced in representing employers in the retail, hospitality, warehouse, distribution, manufacturing, food production, transportation and healthcare industries. She advises and trains clients on employee relations, union avoidance, collective bargaining strategies, sexual harassment and compliance with state and federal employment laws. Amy also offers an in-depth understanding of Title VII, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA),...