Best Lawyers in Michigan, United States

Bill Acker is a shareholder, director and corporate vice president. He maintains an “AV” peer review rating with Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory, the highest peer review rating for attorneys. He was also selected for inclusion in the 2010-2019 issues of Michigan Super Lawyers magazine featuring the top 5% of attorneys in Michigan in the practice area of Estate Planning & Probate. He has also been selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America© 2020 in...

Steve Afendoulis is a partner and past chairman of the trial practice group. He is a trial and appellate advocate with a focus in the areas of complex commercial; partnership, shareholder and LLC disputes; personal injury; real estate; and trademark and unfair competition. He is a certified facilitative mediator and is trained in advanced alternative dispute resolution.

Katie has a broad practice that allows her to serve many different individuals and families. She creates estate plans of all types – from those with estate tax issues and succession planning for business owners to young families planning to protect their young children. Katie helps families determine what steps to take after the loss or incapacity of a loved one and works through any probate, guardianship and conservatorship, or trust administration that may be required. She has signifi...

Scott focuses his practice in corporate and business law with an emphasis on health care law and life sciences, including all aspects of hospital and nursing home law, third party reimbursement, public and private health care provider financing, and commercialization of physician inventions and ideas. He provides counsel on mergers and acquisitions, finance, securities, real estate development, labor relations, construction contracting and business succession planning.

Mark sues insurance companies when they fail to pay claims. Varnum represents only insureds in these matters. Mark has helped shape the landscape of Michigan Insurance Law since 1985.He is regularly asked to speak on insurance issues for continuing legal education programs, and at other bar related activities. Mark is also Varnum's lead attorney in litigation matters dealing with employee benefit issues under ERISA. He has handled all facets of employee benefit litigation, from benefit claims...

John Allen focuses his practice on business and commercial litigation. He is a Board Certified Civil Trial Advocate, by the National Board of Trial Advocacy. With over 30 years experience handling legal problems, John has written and co-written dozens of articles and books, and speaks frequently to business and law groups. On a regular basis, he teaches courses in law and trial practice to other lawyers, and often serves as an expert witness. He is a certified arbitrator and mediator.

Michael H. Allen's practice focuses on health care (business organizations including physician practices) and personal services (estate planning, trust and probate administration).

Meg Alli has focused her practice on the representation and counseling of management concerning the umbrella of employment laws and regulations affecting corporate clients, not-for-profit organizations and educational institutions. She has defended employers, schools and colleges in state and federal courts, administrative agencies and arbitration proceedings. Meg has also served as select counsel for employment practices liability insurance carriers and represented employers in wage/hour lit...

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William Altman practices in the areas of labor, employment, and benefits litigation on behalf of private and public sector employers. He has extensive experience representing employers in cases involving anti-discrimination laws, whistle-blower and retaliation actions, ERISA actions, non-competition agreements, trade secrets, fiduciary duty actions, and class actions. William defends employers in state and federal courts and before state and federal agencies. He has particular experience defe...

Mr. Amburn concentrates his practice on intellectual property protection and litigation. He prepares and prosecutes patent and trademark applications, drafts intellectual property opinions and agreements, and counsels clients in obtaining and enforcing intellectual property rights. He works on a wide variety of technologies including mechanical, software, and business methods. Mr. Amburn has over fourteen years of litigation experience including first chair jury trial, mediation, arbitration,...

Jon is a partner in the real estate group. His practice is transaction-oriented, assisting clients in real estate purchases, sales, exchanges, leasing, financing and development matters. He represents businesses, institutions, developers, and investors in their real estate needs. In addition to Jon’s current community commitments, he has been involved in a variety of community organizations over the years including the State Bar of Michigan Access to Justice Campaign, Legal Aid of Weste...

Frank’s practice focuses on intellectual property litigation. Frank has successfully tried patent, trademark, trade secret and copyright cases in Federal Courts nationwide, the Courts of Appeals for the Sixth and Federal Circuits, and the International Trade Commission. As a registered patent attorney, Frank is authorized to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Frank has been lead counsel for a wide variety of clients, from individuals to major corporations, in intellec...

Ms. Aref represents financial institutions in commercial lending transactions, including the structuring, negotiating and documenting of loan transactions, including syndicated loans, bilateral loans, subordinated loans and participations. She also has experience assisting corporate clients, including private equity firms, with borrowing and re-financing transactions, including secured and unsecured credit facilities, asset-based lending facilities, leveraged lending facilities, mezzanine fin...

John S. Artz, a partner with Dickinson Wright PLLC has more than twenty-five years of experience and practices in all areas of intellectual property litigation. He also has extensive experience with the acquisition, management, and prosecution of patent, trademark, copyright, and trade secret assets. He serves and has served as lead counsel for many companies in federal courts across the country, including the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals. John also has served as lead counsel in 25+ IPRs ...

Michigan Trial Attorney William M. Azkoul specializes in personal injury law, complex commercial litigation, banking and credit union law, securities and alternative dispute resolution. Community Service Board of Elders, Calvary Church, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 2014-2017, Chairman 2000-2013 Grand Rapids Bar Association 3Rs Program, Instructor of Civics Education Program at Ottawa Hills High School, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 2014 – present Facilitative Mediator for the Dispute Resolution Ce...

Allison is a corporate attorney with experience in matters spanning a range of complex commercial transactions and business issues, with a particular focus on mergers and acquisitions. Allison is known for her pragmatic and creative approach to assisting clients in navigating their business and legal issues. She also brings her background in insolvency and restructuring to the table and routinely advises her clients on finance and insolvency-related matters. Allison works primarily with priva...

Mr. Bakst represents clients in the areas of creditors' rights, bankruptcy, reorganization, and insolvency. He regularly represents secured and unsecured creditors, debtors, trustees, and creditors' committees in loan workout and other negotiations and in state and federal courts. Upon graduation from Wayne State University Law School, Mr. Bakst clerked for a U.S. Bankruptcy Judge for the Eastern District of Michigan. He is a former two-term board member of the Detroit Chapter of the Turnarou...

Leslie Banas counsels companies and individuals in business and real estate matters. She assists clients in organizing business entities, acquiring assets, negotiating contracts, and satisfying regulatory requirements. Her clients include entrepreneurial and established companies in the real estate, housing, service, health care, manufacturing, hospitality and other industries. Ms. Banas represents real estate owners and investors in dealing with office, retail, hospitality, industrial and co...

Mark Bank's legal career has focused on complex matrimonial matters for more than 30 years. For 2020 and 2021, he was voted as one of the "Top 10 Lawyers in Michigan" by Super Lawyers , and every year since 2009, he has been named as one of the "Top 100 Lawyers in Michigan" by Super Lawyers . Best Lawyers selected him as the Detroit Family Law "Lawyer of the Year" for 2014-2015 and Troy Family Law "Lawyer of the Year" for 2016-2017. Mark is a Diplomate of the American College of Family Trial ...

Maxwell N. Barnes is a Member in the firm’s business section and has been practicing law since 1997. He concentrates his practice on advising clients in the areas of mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, and general business matters. General Business/Transactional Experience Mr. Barnes assists businesses of all sizes and their owners in addressing their day-to-day legal needs. This involves counseling clients on organizing and structuring new entities, employment issues, equity i...

Eric Bartley specializes in complex commercial real estate finance transactions for national bank and non-bank lenders on both portfolio investments as well as investments intended for securitization in the capital markets. Specifically, Eric has served as lead counsel for clients in commercial mortgage originations – both senior and subordinate lien positions, mezzanine financing, preferred equity investments, and the related negotiation of intercreditor and participation agreements on...

J. Adam Behrendt represents a variety of businesses in their day-to-day disputes. He focuses on finding pragmatic and cost-effective solutions to problems both large and small. These matters often concern commercial law and contract disputes, land use, and affairs concerning shareholder and minority owner oppression. Adam has significant experience in assisting financial institutions in virtually all aspects of their business including litigation surrounding insolvency, loan workout and recei...

John Below is a labor and employment and general business litigation attorney. His practice is concentrated in resolving employment, complex financial services and general commercial disputes. John aggressively solves problems and wins cases for his clients, which include, large employers in the construction and health care industries, regional and national banks, and major manufacturing and industrial companies. John partners with his clients and together, they forge and execute strategies f...

Tom has over 30 years of experience in helping clients efficiently and effectively define their estate planning goals and to arrange their affairs accordingly. His expertise includes facilitating the direction of a client-centered and directed strategy and then drafting clear and understandable legal documents to implement it, thereby protecting client wealth, closely-held businesses, and families from taxes, post-mortem chaos and expense, and unnecessary complexity. He has expertise and expe...

Mr. Berman concentrates his practice in construction, contracts, real estate and business matters including claims and alternative dispute resolution. He also focuses on "green" building and "lean" construction matters. Mr. Berman is active in several major construction industry associations. He a member of the Forum on the Construction Industry of the American Bar Association, the Washtenaw Contractors Association, and the Builders and Remodelers Association of Greater Ann Arbor. Mr. Berman ...

Frank E. Berrodin is a Member of the firm and has been practicing law since 1987. Mr. Berrodin’s practice is devoted primarily to employee benefit and executive compensation issues, particularly the design, drafting and administration of qualified and non-qualified retirement and welfare plans for both taxable and tax-exempt entities. A significant portion of Mr. Berrodin’s practice involves the resolution of disputes that arise between employers and employees regarding the benefi...

Jeff’s practice focuses on business law, real estate, and estate planning. He works with many small- and medium-sized companies and handles all of their legal issues, including business transactions, financing, contracts, licensing matters, and real estate transactions. Jeff has special expertise in commercial real estate development and financing and in the ownership, management and transfer of family cottages, farms and vacation properties. He also represents clients in the agricultur...

David assists businesses and financial institutions in navigating complex commercial transactions. His experience is broad in scope from facilitating the transaction on the front end to providing solutions when problems arise. After gaining an understanding of the needs of our clients, he works collaboratively with them to plan the best route to achieve the desired outcome, whether that outcome requires an “all hands on deck” approach or, as is frequently the case, a simple solution.

Robert S. Bick possesses extensive corporate law experience, having completed hundreds of merger, acquisition, divestiture, going private, financing, and related transactions. For more than thirty years, he has represented clients of all sizes across a range of industries in corporate and business law matters. Robert counsels and represents public and private companies, entrepreneurs, venture capital and private equity groups, boards of directors and business owners on matters related to corp...

I help business leaders, house counsel, and individuals remove barriers to success by providing creative dispute resolution and transactional services. In addition to a national complex commercial litigation, mediation, and arbitration practice; I maintain an outside general counsel practice for individuals and business leaders who have varied legal needs. In the latter, I am aided by my experience handling business disputes across the country. I have been: - Recognized by Lawyers Weekly for ...

Managing Director of the Private Equity Practice at Dickinson Wright PLLC. Mr. Bolton has extensive experience in all areas of corporate finance, private equity, mergers & acquisitions and securities. He has represented companies in a wide variety of transactions, including IPO and "going private" transactions, mergers, asset acquisitions or divestitures, recapitalizations, MBOs and LBOs. Mr. Bolton has also represented the sponsors of private equity and mezzanine funds in the organizatio...

David C. Bosman helps banks and other financial institutions make loans to companies and individuals. David’s attention to detail and systematic approach to loan transactions help commercial lenders meet the demands and deadlines of their borrowers. He works side-by-side with his clients to structure, document, and negotiate middle market and commercial real estate loans.One client wrote about David: “What really sets him apart for me though is his ability to organize complicated ...

Erin's practice involves counseling domestic and international clients from start-ups to Fortune 100 companies on their intellectual property portfolios, with a focus on obtaining domestic and foreign patents and handling patent prosecution procedures. Her practice also includes patentability investigations, infringement and right-to-use analysis, and intellectual property transactions and licensing agreements, trademark, trade dress, and copyright issues. Erin has an expansive understanding ...

Ms. Bowman has had a significant amount of experience acting both as bond counsel and underwriter’s counsel in a number of bond transactions, both at the state and local levels. She has acted as bond counsel for regional wastewater treatment and other systems, and represented the owners of a $230 million racetrack in Kansas City, Missouri in connection with bond financing for the facility. Ms. Bowman represents clients in securities law matters. She has also counseled clients on complia...

Elizabeth K. Bransdorfer received her bachelor’s degree from the College of Liberal Arts and her law degree cum laude from the Law School, both at the University of Minnesota. Liz specializes in divorce and family law using mediation, and collaborative practice as well as traditional litigation and arbitration. She is admitted to practice in all Michigan state courts, the United States Supreme Court, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, the United States District Co...

Traditional labor lawyer and employment law counselor Keith Brodie represents the interests of employers in Michigan and across the country. Personable, detail- and business-oriented when rendering critical legal advice, Keith’s willingness to listen, combined with his strategic legal thinking, allows him to serve client interests while building rapport and consensus. Keith advises on traditional labor law matters under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). His experience includes co...

Ms. Brouwer practices exclusively in labor and employment law, with particular experience in the defense of lawsuits against employers, including claims of race, age, religion, national origin, gender and disability discrimination, harassment and retaliation, as well as FLSA, FMLA and non-competition suits. She also provides harassment training and conducts discrimination and harassment investigations for employers. She has extensive experience in appearing before administrative agencies, inc...

Robert D. Brower is a Member of the firm and has been practicing law since 1972. His practice is focused on representing a wide range of closely held business owners and executives, their families, fiduciaries, and other individuals in matters involving business and estate planning, probate and trust administration, and contested estate matters. Contested Trust, Estate and Fiduciary Matters Mr. Brower has extensive experience in representing individual and corporate personal representatives, ...

James R. Brown concentrates his law practice in municipal law and real property law. He represents many townships, villages, cities and other municipal bodies throughout West Michigan and elsewhere in the state. His law practice has a particular emphasis in the representation of townships, and he serves as general counsel for a large number of townships in Kent County and in surrounding counties. Jim is also an experienced township official, having served for 25 years as chairperson of the Gr...

Daniel J. Broxup practices in the areas of commercial litigation and securities litigation and arbitration. He regularly litigates business disputes in state and federal courts, representing a diverse group of clients from industries such as auto manufacturing, construction, transportation, retail, banking, and finance. In addition, he represents victims of investment fraud and malpractice in state- and federal-court litigation and in arbitration proceedings administered by FINRA, AAA, and JA...