Written by T. Joseph Seward, Managing Partner

Happy New Year! As 2012 is upon us, we reflect back on 2011 and the successful year we had at the Firm. The Firm received some significant verdicts and settlements on behalf of our clients. In addition, we hired several new attorneys, won numerous awards and celebrated some remarkable anniversaries. 

 

The five attorneys who joined the Firm in 2011 are Mark Rouland and Carla Testani, who joined our Livonia office; Jason Thomas, who joined our Sterling Heights office; and Maurice Kane and Ryan Miller, who joined our Riverside, CA office. 

 

Mark Rouland brings with him a wealth of experience in the areas of police liability defense, civil litigation defense, family law and labor and employment law. Mr. Rouland was a police officer from 1989 – 2003 and has been an instructor at Schoolcraft College in Livonia since 2002 where he trains law enforcement and security personnel regarding constitutional law, criminal law and procedure, rules of evidence and civil liability. Mr. Rouland can be reached at (734) 261-2400 or mrouland@cmda-law.com.

 

Carla Testani joined CMDA to head our Family Law Group. Whether acting as an advocate for her clients or a neutral mediator, Ms. Testani focuses her practice on divorce, child custody, child support, spousal support, paternity, adoption and nuptial agreements. For over 14 years, she has tried to minimize the economic and emotional damage to her clients while helping them face their most difficult family situations. Ms. Testani can be reached at (734) 261-2400 or ctestani@cmda-law.com.

 

Jason Thomas focuses his practice on municipal liability defense, insurance defense, municipal law and health care law. He has experience dealing with issues relating to land use, internet privacy and commerce clause litigation and is also a court appointed civil mediator for the Oakland County Circuit Court. Mr. Thomas can be reached at (586) 731-5000 or jthomas@cmda-law.com.

 

Maurice Kane has earned a reputation throughout California for his quality and cost-effective representation. The Harvard University graduate has handled employment discrimination cases in state and federal civil litigation from inception through trial in the areas of race, retaliation, sexual harassment, disability, reasonable accommodation and lack of good faith bargaining. Mr. Kane can be reached at (951) 276-4420 or mkane@cmda-law.com. 

 

Ryan Miller focuses his practice on employment and labor law, real estate, medical malpractice, public entity defense, personal injury and business litigation. Mr. Miller can be reached at (951) 276-4420 or rmiller@cmda-law.com. 

 

All of these attorneys are wonderful assets to the Firm, and I am sure you will hear much more about them in future newsletters.

 

Michigan Lawyers Weekly, the weekly publication providing legal news to readers throughout Michigan, presents three separate awards to Michigan attorneys based on their leadership skills, noteworthy cases and notable contributions to their profession and community. We are extremely pleased that in 2011 attorneys from our Firm were recipients of each of these three awards. Eileen Husband, a partner in our Livonia office, was awarded with the Women in the Law award and was also recognized as a leader in education law by Crain’s Detroit Business. Susan Lumetta, an associate in our Livonia office, was awarded with the Up & Coming Lawyer award for her outstanding research and writing skills that have provided numerous successful results for our clients in both the State and Federal appellate courts. [Editors note: Joe Seward was awarded with the Leaders in the Law award, but seeing as he is the author of this article, and a pretty humble guy, he did not want it mentioned. I thought otherwise and snuck it in.]

 

Each year Traverse City’s newspaper, The Record-Eagle, invites their readers to vote for their favorite businesses, services and places in the Grand Traverse area.  Haider Kazim, an attorney in our Traverse City office, was selected by the readers as the Top Lawyer in the Grand Traverse Area.  

 

Four of our employees celebrated important anniversaries with the Firm in 2011. Vicki DeVitis, a legal assistant, celebrated a remarkable 35 years with the Firm; Gail Massad, an attorney, celebrated her 25th year with the Firm; and Ethan Vinson, a Partner, and Brenda Jefferson, a legal assistant, both celebrated their 15th year with the Firm.   We are fortunate to have such a wonderful group of people working at the Firm and thank them all for their dedication.

 

Whether your legal needs are for commercial, municipal, insurance or a personal matter, we truly appreciate your business. As 2012 is upon us and we enter our 46th year of business, we are proud and grateful for the trust that you have placed in us and for allowing us continue to be one of Michigan’s premier law firms. Have a wonderful 2012.