| Congratulations to Michael D. Umphrey and John B. Kemp on 40 years of service to the legal profession. Colleagues, friends and family honored Umphrey and Kemp at an Oakland County Bar Association ceremony held at Shenandoah Country Club this summer. Umphrey is well known in the estate planning and probate practice areas. Kemp, a business and corporate lawyer who is no longer in private practice, is one of the founding fathers of Kemp Klein Law Firm. |
| The Information Technology Law Section of the State Bar of Michigan launched its first electronic newsletter to its members in August 2008. Ron Nixon will gather news about Information Technology Law and edit the bi-monthly newsletter which updates section members on noteworthy Information Technology Law Section developments and events. |
Shannon N. Scheloske has been approved to be included on the Oakland County and Wayne County Probate Court mediator lists, and is approved as a case evaluator by the Wayne County Probate Court. She was previously accepted as a Civil Mediator in both Oakland and Macomb Counties.
Scheloske joins Barbara P. Andruccioli (Mediator for Wayne and Oakland Counties) and Raymond L. Morrow (on Oakland County approved list of Mediators since its inception and also a case evaluator in Wayne and Oakland Counties) who are also accepted Civil Mediators. |
| Stuart Sinai presented to the State Bar of Michigan’s Securities Regulation Committee concerning a recent U.S. Supreme Court case which will dramatically affect the federal securities laws antifraud rules as they apply to, among others, Enron defendants. Sinai also published an article on the same topic in the Spring 2008 edition of the Michigan State University College of Law Journal of Business & Securities Law (Vol. 8, Issue 2). The title of the article is “Stoneridge – Escape from Securities Liability Notwithstanding Active, Intentional Deceptive Conduct.” |
| Ralph A. Castelli, Jr., was recently featured in a July 17 article in the Oakland Business Review regarding the complexities of running a law firm and being Mayor of Pleasant Ridge, MI. Read Full Article Here |
| The Kemp Klein Foundation has become a founding sponsor of the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial to be built on the National Mall in Washington, DC to commemorate the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. |
| Cynthia E. Brazzil was featured in the May 12th issue of Crain’s Detroit Business, “Women in law: Guiding women business owners.” Crain’s featured Brazzil because she has successfully worked with closely-held, women-owned businesses for 20-plus years. According to client Lynn Alexander, owner of Your Aging Well Advisor, “Cynthia has a great understanding of partnerships and how to not only start up a business but how and when to sell it.” Go to www.crainsdetroit.com to read the full article. |
| As our aging population increases, there is a growing need for lawyers practicing “Elder Law.” Cynthia E. Brazzil has expanded her practice to include Elder Law, with its emphasis on estate planning for possible incapacity and on assisting clients who need help maintaining their current assets while preparing to age into the Medicaid and Medicare system. Ms. Brazzil will also help individuals and families plan for the management and care of disabled relatives, as well as addressing a variety of other “special needs” issues. Ms. Brazzil joins Thomas V. Trainer, who has practiced in the areas of Elder Law and Disability Planning for 30 years. |
Cynthia L. Umphrey will be a frequent contributor to Crain’s Detroit Business “Small Talk,” an online resource for small businesses in Michigan. See www.crainsdetroit.com.
Ms. Umphrey was also featured in Oakland Business Review’s Feb. 7, 2008 article “Alternative lending options can benefit entrepreneurs.” |
| Ronald S. Nixon has been invited to submit a brief for the 2008 Distinguished Brief Award from the Thomas M. Cooley Law Review. The Distinguished Brief Award is given to promote excellence in legal writing, and it recognizes the most scholarly briefs filed before the Michigan Supreme Court as determined by a panel of judges and professors. Three winning briefs will be chosen and published in each of the 3 editions of the Thomas M. Cooley Law Review over the next year. The brief was a part of the successful efforts of Raymond L. Morrow and Mr. Nixon in winning an important property rights case decided by the Michigan Supreme Court in July 2007 involving the location of a local city’s dog park. |
| David D. Marsh, Barbara P. Andruccioli and Brian H. Rolfe have all been appointed to serve on the State Bar District I Character and Fitness Committee for a 2-year term beginning January 1, 2008. The Committee investigates and makes recommendations regarding the character and fitness of applicants for admission to the State Bar of Michigan. Cynthia E. Brazzil and Cynthia L. Umphrey have also previously served terms on this Committee. |
Kemp Klein shareholder & CEO Ralph A. Castelli, Jr. spoke on a panel at Leadership Oakland’s Economy & Government Program at the County Commission Chambers regarding being a local elected official. The session looked at the local and global economy and the economic impacts facing Oakland County and Southeastern Michigan. Local and regional elected officials shared information on local and community governmental structures and responsibilities in the region. Mr. Castelli has served 7 consecutive terms as Mayor of Pleasant Ridge.
Mr. Castelli also recently had his article “The Changing Face of the Delivery of City Services” published in the Michigan Privatization Report (Winter 2008) which is published by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. |
| Kemp Klein hosted over 400 people on September 6th at Artview, a preview event for Common Ground Sanctuary's Art in the Park. Artview was created and sponsored by Kemp Klein to generate awareness and funds for Common Ground Sanctuary's programs which serve more than 35,000 individuals and families each year. The event was held at Design Within Reach in Birmingham. |
| The Oakland County Bar Association has appointed Cynthia E. Brazzil Vice Chair of the Membership Committee. Ms. Brazzil is also a member of the Ad Hoc Committee on Due Process and has been a sustaining member of the OCBA since 2003. She is also a current Trustee and Fellow of the Oakland County Bar Foundation. |
The Kemp Klein Foundation has formed a new relationship with Common Ground Sanctuary, a local non-profit which helps children and adults with a variety of crisis situations. Kemp Klein has agreed to sponsor all of their support groups and to become active participants in their cause. Our funding will pay for workbooks, flyers, videos and more. Attorneys and staff will participate in at least two hands-on volunteer activities this year, including: cooking and serving a meal to homeless youth in crisis at Common Ground Sanctuary in late Spring and, in late Summer, collecting and stuffing backpacks with school supplies for children in need.
Common Ground Sanctuary has been helping people in need for more than 30 years. Their mission is to provide services to youths, adults and families in crisis. The agency’s 24-hour crisis hotline, youth and family services, emergency psychiatric services, support groups and other programs throughout Oakland County are a lifeline for runaway and homeless youths, families in crisis situations, victims of crime, people with mental illnesses and others in critical situations. Common Ground Sanctuary serves more than 35,000 individuals per year and the agency received Honorable Mention in the 2005 Crain’s Detroit Business Best Managed Non-Profit Contest.
To learn more, visit their web site at: www.commongroundsanctuary.org. |
| Kemp Klein recently became a Supporting Member of Automation Alley. This new membership will provide to the firm and its business clients valuable information and resources such as, access to market research, training programs and overseas contacts.
To learn more, visit their web site at: www.automationalley.com. |
| Business and Estate Planning Attorney Cynthia L. Umphrey recently was elected to serve on the Council for the Business Law Section of the State Bar of Michigan. Ms. Umphrey also leads the Small Business Forum, a subcommittee of the Section which hosts educational and networking events for small business owners, attorneys, accountants and other business professionals. |
Kemp Klein shareholder and securities expert Stuart Sinai recently was asked by attorneys for Enron Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Skilling to file a motion on behalf of Skilling challenging the validity of the 10 “insider trading” counts contained in the federal indictment against him.
Skilling’s attorneys had already filed their own motion and that challenge was based partly upon Sinai’s 80 page law review article which had appeared in the Securities Regulation Law Journal in 2002. |
| Ralph A. Castelli, Jr. (Kemp Klein CEO) has been re-elected to a seventh consecutive term as the Mayor of the City of Pleasant Ridge. |
| Kemp Klein attorneys Alan A. May (Wayne County) and George J.A. Heitmanis (Macomb County) have been appointed Public Administrators. A Public Administrator is a lawyer in private practice appointed by the Michigan Attorney General, Public Administration Division, to represent the State and others as determined by the Probate Court in probate, trust, conservatorship, and guardianship matters. |
