Honors and Successes
Best Law Firms in America
U. S. News and Best Lawyers, the leading survey of lawyers worldwide, rank Fraser Trebilcock one of America's "Best Law Firms" in 2013. Fraser Trebilcock received a Tier 1 ranking, the highest of the three tiers, in Administrative/Regulatory Law, Arbitration, Corporate Law and Mediation. More than 10,000 firms were ranked in as many as 80 national legal practice areas and another 118 metro or state practice areas. Fraser Trebilcock is the only firm in Michigan receiving this honor in four of its practice areas.
First published in 1983, Best Lawyers is nationally regarded as the definitive guide to legal excellence. Best Lawyers is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey in which more than 36,000 leading attorneys cast almost 4.4 million votes on the legal abilities of other lawyers in their practice areas, and because lawyers are not required or allowed to pay a fee to be listed, inclusion in Best Lawyers is considered a singular honor. Corporate Counsel magazine has called Best Lawyers "the most respected referral list of attorneys in practice."
This Tier 1 ranking was determined through the Firm's overall evaluation, which was derived from a combination of impressive client feedback, and the high regard from lawyers in other firms.
Fraser Attorneys Listed in Best Lawyers in America
Seventeen lawyers from Fraser Trebilcock have been selected by their peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® 2013. Those selected include:
Douglas J. Austin*, Real Estate Law
Stephen L. Burlingame*, Corporate Law
Michael E. Cavanaugh*, Administrative/Regulatory Law, Commercial Litigation, Litigation – Labor & Employment
Graham Crabtree, Appellate Practice
Anita Fox, Commercial Litigation
Jennifer Heston, Administrative/Regulatory Law
Max R. Hoffman, Jr., Administrative/Regulatory Law
Peter D. Houk, Alternative Dispute Resolution
Elizabeth Latchana, Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law
Darrell Lindman*, Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law
David E.S. Marvin*, Administrative/Regulatory Law, Corporate Law
Thaddeus Morgan, Commercial Litigation, Litigation-Construction
Brian P. Morley, DUI/DWI Defense
Gary C. Rogers, Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights/Insolvency and Reorganization Law
Thomas L. Sparks, Administrative / Regulatory Law
Marlaine C. Teahan, Trusts and Estates
Ryan M. Wilson, Trusts and Estates
* Listed for 10+years
Some of the attorneys at Fraser Trebilcock have been listed as America's Best Lawyers® for over 10 years, such as Stephen Burlingame, Darrell Lindman (15 years) and David E.S. Marvin (19 years), and some for more than 20 years, including Michael Cavanaugh and Douglas Austin.
Super Lawyers
Sixteen lawyers, from Fraser Trebilcock, were named as "Super Lawyers" by Super Lawyers magazine, a publication of Thomson Reuters. Each candidate is evaluated on 12 indicators of peer recognition and professional achievement, and only the top five percent of the nominees in any state or region are included in the final list each year. Our lawyers selected as "Super Lawyers", include:
Nicole Proulx, Employment Litigation/ Rising Star
Peter Houk, Alternative Dispute Resolution
Graham Crabtree, Appellate
Thaddeus Morgan, Business Litigation
Darrell Lindman, Employee Benefits/ERISA
Michael Perry, Environmental Litigation
Marlaine Teahan, Estate Planning
Mark Bush, General Litigation
David Marvin, Utilities
Michael Cavanaugh, Business Litigation
Kirby Albright, Eminent Domain
Max Hoffman, Health Care
Thomas Sparks, Health Care
Michael Ashton, Administrative Law
Anita Fox, Business Litigation
Elizabeth Latchana, Employee Benefits/ ERISA/ Rising Star
Outside Professional Recognition
Attorney Gary C. Rogers was named "2013 Lawyer of the Year," by Best Lawyers in the areas of Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights/Insolvency and Reorganization Law. Only one lawyer in each practice area, in each community, is honored as the “Lawyer of the Year," by Best Lawyers.
dbusiness Magazine, Detroit's top business magazine, named Michael P. Donnelly as one of Detroit's Top Lawyers for 2013. He received Detroit's Top Lawyers honor in the area of commercial litigation, where he represents a vast array of clients in complex commercial litigation matters, ranging from large insurance fraud to intellectual property cases.
In 2012, Attorney Nicole Proulx received the "10 Over the Next Ten" Award from Grand River Connection and Lansing Regional Chamber. This award is given to ten of the region’s top young professionals who are expected to contribute significantly to the region over the next ten years. This is judged based on their professional achievement, community involvement and personal success.
Fraser Lawyer victorious on behalf of ERISA health plan client
Fraser Trebilcock shareholder and President, Thaddeus E. Morgan, obtained a significant victory on behalf of the Firm's ERISA health plan client in Glover v Nationwide, 676 F.Supp.2d 202 (W.D. Mich. 2009). At issue was the plan's right to seek reimbursement for paid medical expenses from its member's personal injury settlement. The court ruled in favor of the Firm's client. This was an issue of first impression in Michigan, resulting in a published federal district court decision - only approximately 10% of all federal district court opinions are published in the Federal Supplement.
Mr. Morgan practices in the areas of ERISA and health care litigation. He can be reached at (517) 377-0877 or tmorgan@fraserlawfirm.com.
Fraser Lawyers Prevail In Major Gaming Patent Case
Toni L. Harris prevailed in a major gaming industry patent infringement lawsuit in the United States District Court for the District of Nevada.
A publicly-traded company located in Nevada that manufactures and distributes electronic gaming devices filed a patent infringement lawsuit against a small privately-held Michigan business that manufacturers and distributes similar electronic gaming devices. The publicly-traded company had successfully sued other companies for infringement involving the same patent.
Harris first prevailed in the Markman Claim Construction Proceeding. Then, with the federal court construing the critical patent claim terms as argued by Harris, they moved for summary judgment of non-infringement. The federal court granted the motion in a thirteen-page, sealed Opinion and Order.
Harris has extensive experience trying patent and other intellectual property cases throughout the country. Harris, who has a master's degree in electrical engineering, is also licensed to practice before the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
After Six Months, Fraser Lawyers Prevail
Toni L. Harris successfully tried an arbitration case that lasted more than six months, in which they prevailed on all of the patent issues, obtained a dismissal of the other company's state law claims, and received an award of their attorney fees and costs. The arbitration decision was subsequently affirmed by the court.
Fraser Attorneys Successfully Defend Defamation Suit
In the published case, Oesterle v Wallace, 272 Mich App 260 (2006), attorneys Peter L. Dunlap and Ryan K. Kauffman successfully defended a defamation suit in the Michigan Court of Appeals, which affirmed summary disposition for their client. In a matter of first-impression in Michigan, the Court followed suit with other jurisdictions and held that the absolute privilege, which applies to judicial proceedings, protects statements made during settlement negotiations.
