Ingham County Bar Association
Membership Updates
Stay Informed
ICBA Updates are published twice a month!

Calendar of Events
July 1, 2015 - June 30, 2016

Board Meeting
October 14, 2015
7:30 a.m.
Ask A Lawyer
October 22, 2015
4:30 - 7:30 p.m. at Cooley Law School

Annual Dinner
November 19, 2015
Crown Plaza

Board Meeting 
December 9, 2015 
7:30 a.m.

Top 5 Under 35 Awards deadline 
January 5, 2016
Meet the Judges 
January 7, 2016

Board Meeting 
February 10, 2016 
7:30 a.m.

Bench Bar
February 20, 2016 
Grady Porter Building

7th Annual Barristers Night 
March 24, 2016 
6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. U Club 
Board Meeting 
April 13, 2016 
7:30 a.m.

Board Election Deadline 
May 17, 2016 
5:00 p.m.

Annual Shrimp Dinner/Annual Meeting 
Lansing Liederkrantz 
May 18, 2016 - 5:00 - 9:00 p.m.
Board Meeting 
June - MTG/Location/Date TBA
Lawyer's Table - NEW




Address: 333 S Washington Square, Lansing, MI 48933

The Lawyer's Table will be an informal lunch gathering for all Mid-Michigan attorneys.  The purpose is to get to know each other informally. 

The Table will meet weekly on Tuesday's at the Crafty Palate located on the corner of Kalamazoo and S. Washington (where the Mediterann used to operate). 

The first session will be Tuesday Nov .3rd at noon. 

Once a month on the first Tuesday at noon we will have a "Focus Guest".  This will be a senior attorney from varied disciplines who will be asked to share stories and antidotes about their careers.  The first "Focus " will be on Dec. 1st. 

This is a collaborative effort between:
Ingham County Bar Association
Ingham Bar Foundation
ICBA Young Lawyer's Section
Mid-Michigan Woman's Lawyer Association.
Davis Dunnings Law Association.

Buy your own lunch and we will reserve space in the private room at the restaurant.

By Honorable Clinton Canady III
Creator of Lawyer's Table
ICBA Litigation Section Meetings - TBA

For more information, contact Sandra Lake at [email protected]
ICBA Employment/Labor Law Section Meetings - TBA

For more information, contact James K. Fett at [email protected]
ICBA Family Law Section Meetings

To RSVP for the Family Law Section Meetings, email Cynthia Harmon at [email protected]

Family Law Section meetings will be held on the 2nd Wednesday of each month at noon.

ICBA Family Law Section Co-Chairs
Cynthia Harmon and Brook VanVuren-Hay
ICBA Bankruptcy Law Section Meetings
 
To RSVP for the Bankruptcy Section Meetings, email Patricia Scott at [email protected] 
or call 517-371-8132.
 
The Bankruptcy section meets the fourth Thursday of the month at noon.

Location: Western University Cooley Law School (new red brick building) Room 835 - 300 S. Capitol Ave

Our next lunch Meeting will be on Thursday, September 24, 2015 at noon at the Cooley Center, Room 835.  The Honorable John T. Gregg of the United States Bankruptcy Court of the Western District of Michigan will be presenting, along with Kevin Schumacher and Kristen Krol.  The panel will discuss recent court decisions, new mediation rules,  and other topics.  The panel, including the Judge, are happy to discuss other topics and take questions - to create more of a dialogue, than a presentation.
 
Foster Swift will be the lunch sponsor.  Please join us on September 24th for a great discussion with Judge Gregg, Kevin, and Kristen.
 
Please RSVP to Patricia Scott at [email protected].   
Bankruptcy Law Section Co-Chairs
Patricia Scott and Norm Witte
ICBA Probate and Trust Section Meetings 
Location: Thomas M. Cooley Law School (Room 911)
300 S Capitol Ave, Lansing, MI 48901 
 
To RSVP for the Probate and Trust Section Meetings, email Marlaine Teahan at [email protected] or Rosemary Buhl at 
[email protected]
 
Probate and Trust Section meetings are held on the 3rd Tuesday of each month at noon at Western Michigan University Cooley Law School. 
 
October 20, 2015 - "Special Needs Trusts: Beyond the Basics, Administering and Reporting", Presented by Ray Harris, Bernick, Radner, Ouellette and Little, PC

November 17, 2015 - "Forms and Court Rules Updates", Presented by George Strander, Court Administrator and Probate Register, Ingham County Probate Court

December 15, 2015 - Holiday Networking Lunch - location TBD

January 19, 2016 - "2016 Tax Update", Presented by Greg Walthorn and Katie Hamilton, Plante Moran, PC - Note: Room Change - Room 835
 
February 16, 2016 - "Modification and Termination of Irrevocable Trusts" Presented by Christine Savage, The Lowe Law Firm, PC

March 15, 2016 - "View from the Bench", Presented by the Honorable Thomas Byerley, Chief Judge, Eaton County Probate Court - Note: Room Change - Room 835

April 19, 2016 - "Estate Planning in the Era of Portability and High Exclusion Amounts" Presented by Doug Mielock, Foster Swift Collins & Smith, PC

May 17, 2016 - "Same Sex Marriage Issues, Where Are We Now?", Presented by Bradley Vauter, Bradley Vauter & Associates, PC

June 21, 2016 - Networking Lunch -location TBD
 
ICBA Probate and Trust Section Co-Chairs
Marlaine Teahan and Rosemary Buhl
ICBA Real Estate Section Meetings

To RSVP for the Real Estate Section Meetings, email Charles Barbieri at [email protected] or Tracey Lackman at [email protected]

Real Estate Section meetings will be held on the 4th Friday of the month at noon.

ICBA Real Estate Section Co-Chairs:
Charles Barbieri and Tracey Lackman
ICBA Criminal Law Section Meetings

To RSVP for the Criminal Law Section Meetings, email [email protected]
 
Criminal Law Section meetings will be held on the 1st Friday of the month at 9:15 a.m.

November ICBA Criminal Law Presentation

The Ingham County Bar Association's Criminal Law Section is hosting a presentation on
Friday, November 6, at 9:15 a.m. on Changes and Updates from the Michigan Indigent Defense Commission. 
 
The Michigan Indigent Defense Commission has been up and running since February.  In October, the Commission intends to submit a first set of proposed minimum standards to the Michigan Supreme Court for review, hearing, and adoption.  Jonathan Sacks, the first Executive Director of the Commission, will discuss the mandate of the Commission, these minimum standards, the process for setting up compliance plans and state grant funding to meet these standards, and the impact on Ingham County.
 
We will be meeting at the State Bar of Michigan, 306 Townsend St., Lansing, MI 48933, Rooms 1 and 2 for approximately one hour and a half.  There will be ample opportunity for questions and answers.  This session is a critical one for attorneys who represent indigent clients. 
 
Our presenter will be Jonathan Sacks. A career public defender, Jonathan Sacks is the first Executive Director of the Michigan Indigent Defense Commission (MIDC). Jonathan first represented clients as a trial level public defender in Philadelphia, where he served in the major trials unit and as a felony trial supervisor for the Defender Association. Then, in Michigan, Jonathan represented clients at the State Appellate Defender Office and served as the Deputy Director for eight years. He set up successful units there to focus on social worker sentencing assistance for clients and a response to the closure of the Detroit Crime Lab for unreliable evidence. Jonathan was appointed by the MIDC pursuant to MCL �780.989(c) and began his work in February of 2015.
 
There is no cost to attend - it is FREE, so please share this invitation with others who may be interested.
 
So that we can make sure that we have enough seating and handouts, please RSVP to [email protected] or call 517.482.2000 if you have any questions. 
 
Please note that beverages are not provided, so please feel to bring your own if you'd like one.
 
Please also note that the State Bar has asked that we do not park in the lot, but participants who do will not be required to move their cars (we've finally addressed this issue). 
 
We hope to see you there!
Mary Chartier and John Dewane
ICBA Criminal Law Section Co-Chairpersons
ICBA Ask a Lawyer Event 2015 Volunteers

Save the Date! The ICBA is once again partnering with Legal Services of South Central Michigan to offer the free "Ask-A-Lawyer" event in the Cooley Law School Lobby from 4:30-7:30 p.m. on October 22nd.  Members of the public will be invited to attend this free event to consult one-on-one with an attorney from our esteemed Bar Association. Highest areas of need are Landlord/Tenant, Family, Probate & Estate and Bankruptcy, but all practitioners are strongly encouraged to participate. Do you have questions or want to volunteer as a lawyer at this community-focused, pro-bono event?  Contact Lizzie Mills at 517.381.3209 or [email protected] or Raymond Harris at 517.371.5361 or [email protected].


ICBA - Young Lawyers Section
 
Mentor-Mentee Opportunities

Fellow ICBA-YLS Members,

I am writing to inform the ICBA-YLS Members that the ICBA-YLS Membership Outreach Committee is working with the ICBA Mentoring Committee to pair interested newer attorneys with experienced attorneys to cultivate mentoring relationships that best serve the legal community and the parties involved. These relationships may be brief or continue on for an extended period of time - the mentor and mentee are best equipped to make this decision. I would like to hear from our membership and connect compatible attorneys for these mentoring relationships. Please reply to this post with the area of law that interests you, so we can place you with an attorney in that field; furthermore, I would even suggest providing other interests, hobbies, or skills, so we could connect with others based on another mutual interest. You are also free to contact me at [email protected] if you have any questions.

Sincerely,
Reid Felsing
 

Tailgate - Saturday, September 26, 2015 
 
Join ICBA-YLS for a tailgate on Saturday, September 26, 2015 as Michigan State hosts Central Michigan! We'll have music, yard games and snacks, but bring your own drinks.

The exact location and start time for the tailgate are still TBD as kickoff time has not yet been announced. We will send another e-mail with information about the location and start time closer to game day. Please also feel free to check out the YLS Facebook event page or e-mail Jackie Dupler for more information.

The event is free for all ICBA members and their families. Please RSVP to [email protected] with the number of guests in your group by Friday, September 11th to ensure that YLS can provide enough snacks for all. 


Motion Call Wednesday
 
Hello Everyone,

You're invited to the upcoming Motion Call Wednesday Criminal Docket educational event that will be held on Wednesday, September 30, 2015. Find attached a flyer with regards to the upcoming MCW event!

For those who are unfamiliar, Motion Call Wednesday is an educational event hosted by the Educational Programs Committee of the Ingham County Bar Association Young Lawyers Section. At this event, a group of young lawyers, law students, and current or aspiring paralegals will view a Circuit Court Judge's morning criminal or afternoon civil docket. After the conclusion of the docket, the Judge will answer questions regarding his or her decision-making process and judicial philosophy as well as share tips and tricks for the practice of law.

 

 
Resources
 
To access the ICBA-YLS Google Drive which is currently being populated with many pieces of helpful information, visit https://goo.gl/PgD0nW 
 
ICBA List-serve

ICBA would also like to remind you that as a service to our members the ICBA has established a general list-serve. Please contact Josh Ard if you wish to sign up.

Use the following address/link to communicate with all in the list-serves (your email must be added to the list before the message you send will work):

ICBA YLS list-serve

ICBA - Young Lawyers Sections would also like to remind you that as a service to our members, the ICBA - YLS has established a general list-serve. Please contact Chris Wickman if you wish to sign up.

Briefs

Visit Here for Advertising Rates
Visit Here for Author Guidelines
Sponsorship Packages

The Ingham County Bar Association invites you to sponsor the following events:

121st Annual Dinner

7th Annual Barristers Night

Annual Shrimp Dinner

5th Annual Meet the Judges Reception

Bench-Bar Conference


Or to get an even better deal, we suggest the Premium Sponsorship, which covers all of these events!


Deadline for Premium Sponsorship is September 15, 2015


Premium Sponsors
Alane & Chartier, P.L.C.
Fahey Schultz Burzych Rhodes, P.L.C.
Foster, Swift, Collins & Smith, P.C.
Fraser Trebilcock Davis & Dunlap, P.C.
Sinas Dramis Brake Boughton & McIntyre, P.C.  
Speaker Law Firm P.L.L.C.
as of 9-8-2015
Sixty-Minute Mentoring is Looking for You!

Greetings Future Mentors and Mentees,

 

As you may know, the Ingham County Bar Association has a mentoring program that pairs interested newer attorneys with experienced attorneys to try and develop mentoring relationships that best serve the legal community and the parties involved. These relationships may be brief or continue on for an extended period of time - the mentor and mentee are best equipped to make this decision.

 

As Chairperson of the Mentoring Committee, please feel free to contact me if you are interested in being a mentor or if you are a newer attorney in need of a mentor. Please let me know your practice areas so that we can try to make the best match.

 

Thank you for continuing to support the Ingham County Bar Association!

 

Mary Chartier

[email protected]

 

Other Legal Community Events

Memorial Contributions

In the over 50 years that I have been privileged to practice law, there is a common denominator that I have found with all lawyers that I have come in contact.  They are "proud to be lawyers."  While we engage in many activities that are highly competitive, the comradery and professionalism amongst us as a group shines through.  As the great sportswriter, Grantland Rice, once said "when the great scorer comes to mark behind your name he marks not how you won or lost but how you played the game."  For each of us who has been fortunate enough to be in the legal profession that quote is apt.  Those of us who learned and played by the rules, know no greater compliment than to be referred to as a "lawyer."

Read More
 - Webb A. (Tony) Smith

Medical Miracle for Will


Small Talk Children's Assessment Center announces their 2nd Annual Charity Auction October 5th featuring many outstanding auction items!

For all Spartan fans the Live Auction will feature a once in a lifetime unbelievable MSU basketball experience which includes roundtrip travel for 2 on the plane with Coach Izzo and the team, overnight hotel stay at the team hotel, attending a shoot around before the game and tickets to the game.

All proceeds will make a difference in a life of a child.

Please join us: 
October 5 from 5-8 PM 
Troppo 
111 E. Michigan Ave, Lansing. 
Silent auction from 5:00-6:30 PM 
Live Auction, Hosted by Kirk Montgomery from WILX, from 7:00-8:00 PM. Tickets are $25 at are available at smalltalkcac.org 
For any questions please contact Lisa McCormick at 517-719-1626
FEDERAL PUBLIC DEFENDER

Western District of Michigan at Grand Rapids
Notice of Vacancy (Extended Deadline to October 7, 2015) 

Application forms and further information may be obtained from the Office of the Circuit Executive, 503 Potter Stewart United States Courthouse, 100 East Fifth Street, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202-3988, (513) 564-7200, or from any office of the Clerk of the United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan or on the internet at www.ca6.uscourts.gov. Extended deadline: Applications must be received in the Office of the Circuit Executive no later than October 7, 2015.

The Ingham County Sobriety Court Foundation Fourth Annual Breakfast

The Ingham County Sobriety Court Foundation Board of Directors Cordially invites you to our Fourth Annual Breakfast. Your host for the breakfast is Sheri Jones, Anchor, WLNS/Channel 6.

FRIDAY OCTOBER 23, 2015
7:30-8:30 a.m.

Accepting Donations!

Guest Speaker
Patrick McPharlin
Director, Michigan Department of Insurance
and Financial Services

Country Club of Lansing
2200 Mores River Drive
Lansing, Mi 48911

RSVP by Friday October 16 to [email protected] or call Sharla at 517-371-8188

Unable to attend? Donations are appreciated and are tax deductible. Make checks payable to ICSCF and mail to: Attn: Sherrie Blankenship, Maner and Costerisan, 2425 E Grand River Ave. Ste 1, Lansing, MI 448912

Michigan State University Mock Trial - 3rd Annual Tournament of Roses

Event Title: Michigan State University Mock Trial - 3rd Annual Tournament of Roses

Event Date: Saturday, October 17, 2015 & Sunday, October 18, 2015

Event Description: Michigan State University's undergraduate Mock Trial Team is hosting its 3rd Annual Tournament of Roses, an intercollegiate trial advocacy competition in which students take on roles as attorneys and witnesses. This year is a criminal case where students must represent both the prosecution and defense. We are seeking volunteer judges to evaluate the students' performances.

Who to contact for more information: Scott R. Shimkus (P77546), Head Coach, at [email protected]. Judges can also sign up at http://doodle.com/g8m2bfcbtipznp92.

50th Anniversary Celebration - Legal Services of South Central Michigan Open House

Organization Wide Event
Date: Thursday October 29, 2015
Cocktail Hour and Dinner

Speakers:
The Honorable Justice Bridget M. McCormack
The Honorable Victoria A. Roberts

No Registration Required

Location:
Sheraton Ann Arbor Hotel
3200 Boardwalk Dr.
Ann Arbor, MI 48108

Please see miadvocacy.org for ticket purchases and sponsor opportunities

Get the Save Date - Ann Arbor Event



Lansing Open Event
Date: Thursday October 15, 2015
Time: 5:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
Short Presentation at 6:00 p.m.

Appetizers and Drinks will be provided.

No Registration Required

Location:
LSSCM Lansing Office
3490 Belle Chase Way, Suite 50
Lansing, MI 48911

Mentor Jets

Again this year, Cooley is co-hosting a speed mentoring event with the National Association of Women Judges (NAWJ).  This year's event will take place on Thursday, November 5, 2015 at the Cooley Center in downtown Lansing.  Sign-in is from 5:00 to 5:30; the speed mentoring is from 5:30 to 6:30; and the reception is from 6:30 to 7:30. 
 
As before, a little over one hour will be spent in a speed-mentoring format, where the students will have an opportunity to talk to 10 attorneys for approximately six minutes each.  Afterward, there will be a reception where students will have a chance to socialize with the attorney mentors over light refreshments.

If you would like to participate in this event as an attorney mentor or have any questions, please contact me at [email protected] or 517-371-5140 ext. 4103.  I hope to hear from you soon!
 
With warm regards,
Karen Poole

Executive Committee

Jason HanselmanPresident
Liisa SpeakerImmediate Past President
Mark Kellogg
President Elect
Jessica Fox
Vice President
James Dalton
Secretary
Mary Chartier
Treasurer

Ingham County Bar Association

P.O. Box 66

Grand Ledge, Michigan 48837

Phone: 517-627-3938

Fax: 517-627-3950

[email protected]


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