August, 2015 | Fraser Blog

Fraser Web Week: Manic Monday

Dealing with Monday morning email inboxes can be difficult. A whole weekend worth of email has piled up and it’s hard to know where to start. The same can be said for your news source – there are many ways to get up-to-date news and information. But what if you don’t have time to check it all, or need specific information right away on a complex legal matter?

All week, we’ll showcase our new website and its many features designed to simplify and enhance your experience with Fraser Treblicock – starting with a great way to help ease some of the pain of your manic Mondays!

Our redesigned blog provides immediate updates on legal proceedings and changes that may affect you. From client alerts to breaking news on major case rulings, our blog is designed to keep you informed on important legal updates. Outside of legal updates, we share opportunities and news that is important to our communities and clients. We are your one-stop-shop for legal updates as well as interesting community information.

Take a peek at current postings on our blog, by clicking on the side navigation of various legal topics:

And learn more about our redesigned website in THIS press release just published under our website’s News section:

Fraser Trebilcock Attorney Marlaine C. Teahan Honored by Best Lawyers

Teahan chairs the Trusts and Estates department at Fraser Trebilcock. With nearly 30 years of experience as an attorney, she works closely with individuals and families to create estate plans to fit each client’s unique situation. She is an officer of the Probate and Estate Planning Section of the State Bar of Michigan as well as a Fellow of the American college of Trust and Estate Council. Teahan is also a co-chair of the Ingham County Bar Association Probate and Trust Law section as well as a member of the Board of Trustees for the Capital Region Community Foundation. She has achieved an AV peer review rating by Martindale-Hubbell in addition to being named to ‘Top 50 Female Attorneys in Michigan’, ‘Top 50 Consumer Law Attorneys in Michigan’, and ‘Top 25 Female Consumer Law Attorneys in Michigan’ lists by Super Lawyers in 2014.

Best Lawyers© is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey in which almost 50,000 leading attorneys cast nearly five million votes on the legal abilities of other lawyers in their practice areas; because lawyers are not required or allowed to pay a fee to be listed, inclusion in Best Lawyers is considered a singular honor.

Fraser Trebilcock Attorney Mark Kellogg Honored by Best Lawyers

Kellogg currently chairs Fraser Trebilcock’s Business and Tax Law group after nearly 30 years serving the needs of clients in the areas of business planning, succession planning and estate planning. He is the Vice President on the Board of Directors for the Ingham County Bar Association as well as a member of the Board of Directors for the Lansing Regional Chamber of Commerce. Kellogg remains involved in the Lansing area community and surrounding communities by serving as the President of the Dewitt Public Schools Board of Education in addition to being a member of the Board of Directors for the Make a Wish Foundation of America.

Kellogg was recently elected to the Council of the Probate and Estate Planning Section, of the Michigan Bar Association, and currently serves as the President of the Michigan chapter of the American Association of Attorney-Certified Public Accountants. He has achieved AV Preeminent peer review by Martindale-Hubbell and was selected as a ‘2014 Leading Michigan Lawyer’ by Leading Lawyers for Trusts, Will & Estate Planning.

Fraser Trebilcock Attorney Elizabeth H. Latchana Honored by Best Lawyers

Latchana serves as Secretary on Fraser Trebilcock’s Board of Directors where she specializes in employee health and welfare benefits. Her expertise includes ERISA, COBRA, Cafeteria Plans, Wrap Plans, and Health Savings Accounts (HSAs). She is a member and past president of the Women’s Lawyers’ Association of Michigan, Mid-Michigan Chapter, past Board of Directors member and Community Service Committee chair of Highfields, Inc. Latchana has achieved AV peer review rating, the highest possible by Martindale-Hubbell in addition to serving as an expert panelist for a series of Health Care Reform seminars sponsored by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan.

Fraser Trebilcock Attorney Thaddeus Morgan Honored by Best Lawyers

Fraser Trebilcock attorney Thaddeus E. Morgan was recently selected by her peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America© 2016 in the field of Commercial Litigation and Construction Litigation.

Mr. Morgan currently serves as Fraser Trebilcock’s Litigation Department Chair and is the firm’s State Capitol Group voting representative. He has achieved an AV peer review rating, the highest possible by Martindale-Hubbell as well as previously served as the Assistant Attorney General for the State of Michigan. In addition to being selected for the seventh year to the 2013 Michigan Super Lawyers list in the field of Business Litigation, Mr. Morgan was designated as the 2015 “Lawyer of the Year” in Lansing for Construction Litigation by Best Lawyers.

Fraser Trebilcock Attorney Brian Morley Honored by Best Lawyers

Mr. Morley currently serves as Vice President on Fraser Trebilcock’s Board of Directors, as well as assisting as an Advisory Member of the State Bar of Michigan Standing Committee on Character and Fitness. He has nearly a decade of experience as a certified police officer, which provides a unique perspective in assisting his clients in the areas of criminal defense and family law.

Fraser Trebilcock Attorney Gary C. Rogers Honored by Best Lawyers

Mr. Rogers has been with Fraser and Trebilcock for over 30 years handling personal injury work and bankruptcy. He has been named “Lawyer of the Year” by Best Lawyers, and also holds the highest possible rating in both legal ability and ethical standards as an AV peer reviewed attorney by Martindale Hubbell. Mr. Rogers is listed as a Top Lawyer by American Registry’s Corporate Counsel, and is listed in Best’s Directory of Recommended Insurance Attorneys and Recommended Creditors Rights Attorneys. He is a member of the Ingham County Bar Association taking part in both the Bankruptcy and Real Estate Practice Sections, as well as a member of the Michigan Defense Trial Counsel. He serves as a Court Appointed Case Evaluator for Ingham, Clinton and Jackson counties.

Fraser Trebilcock Attorney Thomas L. Sparks Honored by Best Lawyers

Fraser Trebilcock Attorney Thomas L. Sparks was recently selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America© 2016 in the field of Administrative/ Regulatory Law where he has been listed since 2007.

Mr. Sparks has achieved an AV Preeminent® peer review rating by Martindale-Hubbell, as well as being selected as a ‘2014 Leading Michigan Lawyer’ by Leading Lawyers for Governmental, Municipal, Lobbying & Administrative Law and Health Law. He has lectured at the Michigan State Bar Annual Health Care Seminar, the Michigan Pharmacist Association, the Michigan State Medical Society, and the American Academy of Physician Assistants. Mr. Sparks is past Chair of the Ingham County Bar Association Health Law Section, as well as the Administrative Law Council of the State Bar of Michigan. He has been appointed and served as a Special Assistant Attorney General for provider reimbursement matters, as well as the Governor’s Prescription Abuse Data Synthesis Committee.

Lunch and Learn: Fraser Trebilcock Associates Mentor Next Generation of Lawyers

Fraser Trebilcock’s associate attorneys welcomed 12 summer interns from the Ingham County Probate Court for a Lunch and Learn at the firm’s Lansing office last week. The interns ranged from recent college graduates, to current law school students, to recent law school graduates. During the meeting, the associates shared insight from their career paths, as well as ideas on how to get ahead and set yourself apart from the rest of the professional legal pack.

The interns asked excellent questions about how choices made now would help to mold their futures in law. For instance, all of the associates agreed: find a specialty of law that you love to practice.

“It was very helpful to be on the business side of the law firm relationship,” said associate J.J. Burchman, who explained that being in both private practice and in-house counsel helped him provide better service to clients. “I was able to figure out what a business wanted from its law firm and better provide that service to clients.”

Work ethic and tips to working efficiently were also addressed. “One of the most important things I learned was to know when to say, ‘I don’t know’ to a senior partner,” added Melisa Mysliwiec. “It’s worse to give an incorrect answer than to ask for time to get the right one.”

Other topics included advice on which extracurricular groups were most helpful in practical legal experience, the importance of community involvement, and tips on networking.

Troubleshooting the Affordable Care Act After Five Years

On the five-year anniversary of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), we bring you a retrospective look back at what some of Michigan’s top health care attorneys say worked, and what did not work, with the new law. A Fraser Trebilcock attorney worked with the State Bar of Michigan Health Care Law Section to complete a paper titled, Troubleshooting the Affordable Care Act: A White Paper Compilation of Views and Lessons After Five Years.

This article has been shared with permission by the State Bar of Michigan. The original article can be found by clicking HERE.