John has litigated cases involving a wide variety of subjects in appellate courts across the country, including 12 U.S. Supreme Court arguments, 32 Michigan Supreme Court arguments, arguments in the Kansas and Minnesota Supreme Courts, and six billion-dollar cases.

 

Administrative Law

-Azar v. Allina Health Services , 139 S.Ct. 1804 (2019) (successful amicus brief in Supreme Court decision holding that the Department of Health & Human Services was required to conduct notice-and-comment rulemaking before changing a substantive legal standard that will cost hospitals as much as $4 billion for care they have already provided to low-income patients)

-In re Application of DTE Electric Co., 2019 WL 488837 (Mich. Ct. App. 2019) (successfully prevailed in action on behalf of DTE Energy in billion-dollar appeal involving the Michigan Public Service Commission’s approval of a gas-powered generation facility)

-Talk America v. Michigan Bell Tel. Co., 131 S. Ct. 2254 (2011) (reversing Sixth Circuit and holding that competitive local exchange carriers, or CLECs, are entitled to regulated rates when engaged in interconnection with customers of incumbent local exchange carriers, or ILECs)

-Michigan Ass'n of Home Builders v. Director of Dept. of Labor & Econ. Growth, 750 N.W.2d 593 (Mich. 2008) (successfully represented amicus curiae Michigan Manufacturers Association (MMA) regarding scope of an administrative record on appeal)

 

Automotive

-Keiper, LLC v. Intier Automotive Inc., 467 Fed. Appx. 452 (6th Cir. 2012) (successful reversal of summary judgment in automotive supply dispute involving alleged defective recliner seats)
-NSK Corp. v. Robert Bosch Corp., 2009 WL 454940 (Mich. Ct. App. 2009) (persuaded the Michigan Court of Appeals to compel arbitration in an automotive supply dispute)
-Robert Bosch Corp. v. ASC Inc., 2006 WL 2595301 (6th Cir. 2006) (persuaded the Sixth Circuit to bind party to standard terms and conditions that it had never seen or received)
-Participated in non-binding "trial" in automotive recall dispute on behalf of Fortune 100 Tier I automotive supplier, resulting in favorable settlement of a $750 million dispute with the OEM
-American Bumper & Mfg. Co. v. TransTechnology Corp., 652 N.W.2d 252 (Mich. Ct. App. 2002) (Michigan Court of Appeals used section 2-607 notice provision of the Uniform Commercial Code to dismiss $9 million claim against parts supplier arising from an automotive recall)

 

Bankruptcy

-Represented the Michigan Attorney General in the City of Detroit bankruptcy regarding public pensions and the Detroit Institute of the Arts
-In re MQVP, Inc., No. 10-10982 (E.D. Mich. 2010) (affirming bankruptcy court's confirmation of trustee’s settlement of client's multimillion-dollar trademark dispute with debtor)
-In re Pilch, 2009 WL 2707374 (6th Cir. 2009) (successful representation of bankruptcy trustee in Sixth Circuit appeal disputing trustee's compensation)
-Ad Hoc Comm. of Series A Convertible Shareholders v. Lothian Oil, Inc., No. MO-08-CA-074-H (W.D. Tex. 2009) (successful assertion of the equitable-mootness doctrine, resulting in affirmance of a bankruptcy court's confirmation order approving a contested, multimillion-dollar settlement agreement)

 

Business/Contract Litigation
-Innovation Ventures, LLC v. Custom Nutrition Laboratories, LLC, 912 F.3d 316 (6th Cir. 2018) (successful reinstatement of $70 million dollar breach-of-contract lawsuit)

-Innovation Ventures, LLC v. Liquid Mfg., LLC, 885 N.W.2d 861 (Mich. 2016) (establishing standards for evaluating commercial non-competes and adequacy of contractual consideration)
-Service Source, Inc. v. DHL Express (USA), 856 N.W.2d 60 (Mich. 2014) (successful vacation of leave grant, preserving multi-million-dollar trial-court award)
-Magellan v. Sylvan Township, 2011 WL 1901805 (Mich. Ct. App. 2011) (successfully overturned multimillion-dollar breach-of-contract judgment against the Township)
-Spartan Graphics, Inc. v. Entermarket Corp., 2010 WL 4628643 (Mich. Ct. App. 2010) (persuaded the Michigan Court of Appeals to reinstate multimillion-dollar claims for misappropriation of trade secrets and tortious interference, after the trial court erroneously dismissed the litigation as barred by a broadly worded settlement agreement)
-Old Republic Nat'l Title Holding Co. v. First Metropolitan Title Co., 2010 WL 1056609 (Mich. Ct. App. 2010) (reversing summary disposition opinion and reinstating client's million-dollar breach of contract claim)
-Nightwatch Capital Grp., LLC v. Questor Mgmt. Co., LLC, No. 2008-096312-CZ (Oakland County Cir. Ct. 2010) (retained after client's case was dismissed; filed successful motion for reconsideration that resulted in reinstatement of client’s multimillion-dollar breach-of-contract claim)
-Hubbard v. GeoStar Fin. Servs. Corp., 2009 WL 3486653 (6th Cir. 2009) (Sixth Circuit reversed adverse judgment in a breach-of-contract action involving the transfer of unregistered securities)
-Oneida Charter Twp. v. Grand Ledge, 771 N.W.2d 785 (Mich. 2009) (persuaded Michigan Supreme Court to peremptorily reverse, at the application stage, an adverse Court of Appeals interpretation of a Michigan statute that invalidated the City of Grand Ledge’s water contract with a neighboring township)
-Quixtar, Inc. v. Brady, 2009 WL 1160273 (6th Cir. 2009) (persuaded Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals to reject argument that mandatory arbitration agreement was unconscionable and unenforceable, resulting in a $25 million arbitration award for client)
-CMS Energy Res. Mgmt. Co. v. Quicksilver Res., Inc., 2009 WL 1815776 (Tex. App. 2009) (special appellate consultant in successful reversal of trial court's adverse judgment in $170 million breach-of-contract and fraud dispute)
-McKay Consulting, Inc. v. St. John Health, 2009 WL 127664 (Mich. Ct. App. 2009) (successfully affirming jury verdict in $10 million breach-of-contract dispute)
-Metro v. Amway Asia Pacific Ltd., et al., 2006 WL 2035510 (Mich. Ct. App. 2006) (persuaded Michigan Court of Appeals to reject $1 billion claim in class litigation alleging oppression and breach of fiduciary duty in a squeeze out)
-Lawnicki v. Wells Fargo Fin. Leasing, Inc., 2006 WL 2685136 (Mich. Ct. App. 2006) (upholding validity of a complex commercial financing transaction)
-Irish v. Natural Gas Compression Sys., Inc., 2006 WL 2000132 (Mich. Ct. App. 2006) (persuaded the Michigan Court of Appeals to reject plaintiff’s million-dollar claim for shareholder oppression arising out of a merger)
-Ninowski v. McConnell, 2005 WL 2372071 (Mich. Ct. App. 2005) (affirming dismissal of claims that alleged fraud and the invalidity of a corporate merger)
-Buist v. Van Haren Elec., 2004 WL 2291354 (Mich. Ct. App. 2004) (affirming summary disposition on former executive's breach-of-contract claim for share of corporate profits)
 
Constitutional/Public Law
-Uzuegbunam v. Preczewski, __ S. Ct. __, 2021 WL 850106 (2021) (holding that a request for nominal damages satisfies the redressability element necessary for Article III standing where a plaintiff's claim is based on a completed violation of a legal right)

-Council of Organizations and Others for Education About Parochiaid v. State, __ N.W. 2d __, 2020 WL 8019955 (Mich. 2020) (affirming favorable Court of Appeals ruling that allows private religious schools to receive state appropriations for health and safety mandates, notwithstanding Michigan's Blaine Amendment)

-Taylor v. Barnes, No. 1:19-cv-670 (W.D. Mich. 2020) (successfully obtained dismissal of lawsuit claiming that the Michigan Bar's mandatory dues assessment violates attorneys' free-speech rights, and that require membeship as a condition to practice law violates attorneys' free-association rights)

-Charter County of Wayne v. Wayne County Retirement Commission, 2019 WL 2079540 (Mich. Ct. App. 2019) (agreeing with legal theory of client, the Wayne County Board of Commissioners, and invalidating the County's plan to impose a new retirement board on the County pension plan)

-Lee v. United States, 137 S. Ct. 1958 (2017) (a defendant who is misadvised about the deportation consequences of a plea is entitled to withdraw the plea even if the evidence of guilt is overwhelming)

-Attorney General v. Board of State Canvassers, 896 N.W.2d 485 (Mich. Ct. App. 2016) (persuaded the court to stop a presidential-election recount requested by the Green Party candidate for President on the ground that she was not an "aggrieved" candidated for purposes of Michigan election law)

-Yono v. Department of Transp., 885 N.W.2d 445 (Mich. 2016) (establishing that a parallel-parking lane is not "designed for vehicular travel" within the meaning of the highway exception to the Governmental Tort Liability Act)

-Michigan v. Bay Mills Indian Community, 134 S. Ct. 2024 (2014) (granting plaintiffs the ability to file Ex Parte Young-type actions against tribal officials to circumvent tribal immunity)
-Schuette v. Coalition to Defend, 134 S. Ct. 1623 (2014) (upholding Michigan’s constitutional ban on discrimination or the use of race- or sex-based factors in public-university admissions)
-UAW, UAW Local 6000 v. Green, 2013 Mich. App. LEXIS 1425 (Mich. Ct. App. 2013) (upholding Michigan’s Right to Work Law as applied to the state civil service)
-Michigan Bldg. & Constr. Trades Council v. Snyder, 729 F.3d 572 (6th Cir. 2013) (successful defense of Michigan law prohibiting governmental entities from excluding non-union labor from bidding on public-construction contracts)
-Bailey v. Callaghan, 715 F.3d 956 (6th Cir. 2013) (upholding Michigan law prohibiting public schools from collecting union dues)
-State v. McQueen, 828 N.W. 644 (Mich. 2013) (legality of medical-marijuana dispensaries)
-Successful defense of the State in dozens of lawsuits challenging Michigan’s emergency manager laws and the appointment of emergency managers
-People v. Likine, 823 N.W.2d 50 (Mich. 2012) (successful defense of Michigan’s deadbeat-parent statute)
-Stormans, Inc. v. Selecky, 586 F.3d 1109 (9th Cir. 2009) (Ninth Circuit followed our amicus curiae brief in support of rehearing and vacated that part of its initial opinion holding that religious animus evident in a statute’s enactment history cannot be considered when analyzing an Establishment Clause claim)
-United States v. Huntington Nat'l Bank, 574 F.3d 329 (6th Cir. 2009) (persuaded the Sixth Circuit to reverse and remand adverse decision in a three-quarter-million-dollar criminal forfeiture proceeding)
-Moore v. Detroit Enter., L.L.C., 755 N.W.2d 686 (Mich. Ct. App. 2008) (affirming trial court verdict, holding that casino’s private security personnel were acting under color of state law when they violated the plaintiff’s constitutional rights)
-Engquist v. Oregon Dep’t of Agric., 128 S. Ct. 977 (2008) (successful cert. petition in case involving a class-of-one equal protection claim)
-Wallace v. Kato, 127 S. Ct. 1091 (2007) (co-counsel in U.S. Supreme Court case regarding the time when a claim for unlawful arrest accrues)
-Czymbor's Timber v. City of Saginaw, 733 N.W.2d 1 (Mich. 2007) (Michigan Supreme Court vacated adverse Court of Appeals decision, paving the way for regulatory amendments that will result in the preemption of local laws client seeks to displace)
-CETAC v. Kempthorne, 492 F.3d 460 (D.C. Cir. 2007) (represented citizens group challenging federal government's land-in-trust decision)
-TOMAC v. Michigan, 732 N.W.2d 487 (Mich. 2007) (represented citizens group challenging Michigan Governor's amendment of a compact as violative of the constitutional separation of powers)
-Cuno v. DaimlerChrysler Corp., 126 S. Ct. 1854 (2006) (successful amicus curiae representation in U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to vacate Sixth Circuit decision that held investment tax credits unconstitutional)
 
Election Law
-Perez v. Abbott (Tx. Redistricting Panel, August 15, 2017) (upholding boundary lines of Congressional District 23 on behalf of U.S. Congressman Will Hurd, despite special three-judge panel's decision to strike down other Texas Congressional Districts)

-Attorney General v. Board Of State Canvassers, 896 N.W.2d 485 (Mich. Ct. App. 2016) (persuaded court to hold that Green Party candidate for President was not entitled to a recount under Michigan law)

-Berry v. Garrett, 2016 WL 3368184 (Mich. Ct. App. 2016) (reversing trial court and striking from the ballot a candidate who improperly completed candidate application affidavit)
-Protect Our Jobs v. Bd. of State Canvassers, 822 N.W.2d 534 (Mich. 2012) (represented Michigan’s Governor and Attorney General and argued three different Michigan Supreme Court cases in one day involving challenges to various 2012 ballot initiatives)
-Stand Up for Democracy v. Sec'y of State, 822 N.W.2d 159 (Mich. 2012) (successfully reversed long-standing Michigan Supreme Court precedent regarding standard for challenging a ballot initiative)
-NAACP & Michigan Democratic Party v. Snyder, No. 11-15385 (Redistricting panel, Apr. 6, 2012) (for the first time in several decades, successfully dismissed challenge to Michigan’s redistricting plan on motion, without the need for a lengthy and expensive trial)

 

Environmental

-Burleson v. Dep’t of Envtl. Quality, 808 N.W.2d 792 (Mich Ct. App. 2011) (landmark decision involving the DEQ’s regulatory authority on the beaches of the Great Lakes)
-Nat'l Wildlife Fed'n v. DNR, 2011 WL 1004525 (Mich. Ct. App. 2011) (rejecting numerous environmental challenges to proposed nickel mine)
-Citizens for Envtl. Inquiry v. Dep't of Envtl. Quality, 2010 WL 446047 (Mich. Ct. App. 2010) (defeated challenge, modeled afterMassachusetts v. EPA, that would have forced the Michigan Department of Natural Resources & Environment to regulate greenhouse gas emissions)

-Wolverine Power Supply Coop., Inc. v. Dep’t of Envtl. Quality, 777 N.W.2d 1 (Mich. Ct. App. 2009) (persuaded Michigan Court of Appeals to invalidate the MDEQ's Rule 1830, which allowed any individual or entity to file a contested case proceeding when the department grants a permit to install)
-Beaulier v. Ford Motor Co., 2008 WL 4367541 (Mich. Ct. App. 2008) (affirming dismissal based on the statute of limitations of a claim for environmental contamination)
-ITT Indus. v. BorgWarner, Inc., 506 F.3d 452 (6th Cir. 2007) (in this multimillion-dollar cleanup dispute, the Sixth Circuit held, in a landmark ruling, that an administrative order by consent (AOC) is not a basis for a contribution action under CERCLA Section 113)
-Beauchamp v. Ford Motor Co., 2005 WL 1229749 (Mich. Ct. App. 2005) (affirming dismissal of multimillion-dollar class action seeking damages for environmental contamination)
-Preserve the Dunes, Inc. v. MDEQ, 684 N.W.2d 847 (Mich. 2004) (the Michigan Supreme Court followed reasoning and result advocated in amicus curiae brief submitted on behalf of the Michigan Aggregates Association (MAA) in case involving the scope of the Michigan Environmental Protection Act)

 

Financial Institutions

-TCF National Bank and Flagstar Bancorp, Inc. v. Department of Treasury, 950 N.W.2d 469 (Mich. 2019) (multi-million dollar victory on behalf of the financial industry regarding how to calculate net capital for purposes of Michigan's financial-institution tax)

-Koons Buick Pontiac GMC, Inc. v. Nigh, 125 S. Ct. 460 (2004) (successful amicus curiae representation in U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overrule Fourth Circuit and interpret the Truth In Lending Act as capping damages for non-mortgage, non-lease violations of the Act)
-Weston v. AmeriBank, 122 S. Ct. 1172 (2002) (successfully opposed petition for certiorari to the United States Supreme Court in class action alleging Truth In Lending Act (TILA) violations, drafting and filing the opposition brief on only four days' notice from client)
-Hayner v. Old Kent Bank, 2002 WL 227016 (Mich. Ct. App. 2002) (upholding dismissal of a Michigan Consumers Protection Act claim filed against a financial institution)

 
Insurance
-Williams v. Empoloyers Mutual Casualty Co. et al., 845 F.3d 891 (8th Cir. 2017) (prevailing on behalf of Owners Insurance in an $82 million dispute regarding the pollution-exclusion clause in an insurance policy)

-Smitter v. Thornapple Twp., 833 N.W.2d 875 (Mich. 2013) (successful appeal involving coordination of benefits under the Michigan Worker’s Disability Compensation Act)
-Priority Health v. OFIR, 803 N.W.2d 132 (Mich. 2011) (successfully upheld mandatory-minimum employer-contribution provision in health insurance policy)
-Copus v. MEEMIC Ins., 805 N.W.2d 623 (Mich. Ct. App. 2011) (case of first impression involving when “work loss” occurs under the no-fault act)
-Bernstein v. Bankert, 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 103669 (S.D. Ind. 2010) (successfully obtained summary judgment in multimillion-dollar CERCLA coverage action)

 
Intellectual Property
-In re Sealed Appellant, 2007 WL 4245417 (5th Cir. 2007) (represented one Global Fortune 150 company against another in persuading the Fifth Circuit to reject a 28 U.S.C. § 1782 discovery request for use in a billion-dollar licensing dispute pending in German court)
-Strong Sales, Inc. v. Vriesman, 2007 WL 2379516 (Mich. Ct. App. 2007) (Michigan Court of Appeals affirmed jury verdict in breach of warranty case involving defective software system)
-Saginaw Valley Neurosurgery, P.C. v. Adams (Mich. Ct. App. 2004) (denying application for leave and preserving preliminary injunction enforcing covenant not to compete with neurosurgeons’ professional corporation)
-Wrench LLC v. Taco Bell Corp., 256 F.3d 446 (6th Cir. 2001) (worked with a WNJ team to successfully reinstate lawsuit in the Sixth Circuit for theft of the Taco Bell Chihuahua ad campaign, which ultimately resulted in $42 million judgment in favor of clients)

 
Labor and Employment
-Shelby Township v. Command Officers Association of Michigan, 889 N.W.2d 703 (Mich. 2017) (affirming Court of Appeals opinion holding that public employer's allocation of employee health-insurance contributions under 2011 PA 152 is a mandatory subject of collective bargaining)

-Hartman v. The Dow Chemical Company, 657 Fed. App'x 448, 2016 WL 4363161 (6th Cir. 2016) (vacating jury verdict in favor of former employee claiming FLMA retaliation and entering judgment in favor of employer)
-Hecht v. National Heritage Academies, 886 N.W.2d 135 (Mich. 2016) (vacating the damages portion of the jury verdict in favor of former employee because trial court erroneously admitted evidence of defendant school's mandatory reporting of employee's misconduct under MCL 380.1230b)
-University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center v. Nassar, 133 S. Ct. 2517 (2013) (successful amici brief in landmark case establishing the proper analysis for Title VII retaliation claims)
-Brooks v. Gill Indus., Inc., 2008 WL 1914795 (Mich. Ct. App. 2008) (affirming dismissal of employment claims for retaliation, tortious interference with contract, and slander)

  
Personal Injury/Insurance
-Mueller v. Brannigan Brothers Restaurants and Taverns LLC, 918 N.W.2d 545 (Mich. Ct. App. 2018) (affirming dismissal of wrongful-death claim based on theories of negligent hiring, retention, or supervision of employees)

-Lance d/b/a J&B Discount v. Owner's Ins., 2016 WL 3092818 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2016) (vacating jury verdict awarding bad-faith and punitive damages under Tennessee Consumer Protection Act)
-Benefiel v. Auto-Owners Ins. Co., 759 N.W.2d 814 (Mich. 2008) (as amicus curiae, persuaded the Supreme Court to hold that a plaintiff who suffers successive injuries bears the burden of proving that a current injury was caused by the subject accident, not by some independent occurrence) 

-Kenny v. Pioneer State Mut. Ins. Co., 2008 WL 3851837 (Mich. Ct. App. 2008) (affirming a trial court judgment involving no-fault personal protection insurance benefits) 

-Bristol West Ins. Co. v. Smith, 2007 WL 397161 (Mich. Ct. App. 2007) (affirming multiple attorney-fee awards under Michigan's No-Fault Act and as sanctions for insurer's failure to pay personal-injury-protection benefits; successfully petitioned the Court of Appeals for appellate fees and punitive damages) 

-Talbot v. RT Detroit Franchise L.L.C., 2006 WL 1084402 (Mich. Ct. App. 2006) (hired by trial counsel and persuaded the Michigan Court of Appeals to reverse adverse summary disposition ruling in premises liability dispute)

 
Real Estate
-Tomecek v. Bavas, 759 N.W.2d 178 (Mich. 2008) (ruling in favor of clients in real estate dispute involving the Land Division Act and implied utility easements of necessity)
-In re Egbert R. Smith Trust, 745 N.W.2d 754 (Mich. 2008) (Michigan Supreme Court adopted argument embodied in amicus curiae brief of the Michigan State Bar’s Real Property Law Section regarding irrevocable nature of a right of first refusal) 

-Smiley v. Grosse Pointe War Mem'l Ass'n, 2008 WL 509874 (Mich. Ct. App. 2008) (successfully reversing adverse trial court decision in a multimillion-dollar dispute involving enforcement of a restrictive covenant) 

-United States v. Grossman, 501 F.3d 846 (7th Cir. 2007) (special appellate consultant in a successful appeal to the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals from an adverse judgment involving a $2 million criminal forfeiture proceeding and Michigan's race-notice recording statute) 

-Randolph v. Reisig II, 727 N.W.2d 388 (Mich. Ct. App. 2006) (replaced trial court counsel and persuaded the Michigan Court of Appeals to overturn adverse summary disposition ruling that invalidated right of first refusal contained in a set of restrictive covenants, both for violating the rule against perpetuities and creating a contract of indefinite duration) 

-Consumers Energy v. Leo Beard, 699 N.W.2d 303 (Mich. 2005) (hired at application stage and persuaded the Michigan Supreme Court to overturn adverse decision in a multimillion-dollar dispute involving adverse possession and prescriptive easements) 

-Randolph v. Reisig I, 2003 WL 22049115 (Mich. Ct. App. 2003) (replaced trial counsel and persuaded the Michigan Court of Appeals to overturn adverse summary disposition ruling in real estate dispute involving the severability of invalid restrictive covenants contained in an association agreement)

 
Religious Liberty & Conscience Litigation
-Brush & Nib Studio, LC v. City of Phoenix, 448 P.3d 890 (Ariz. 2019) (co-counsel in case holding that art and calligraphy business could not be compelled to create messages contrary to the owners' religious beliefs)

-Telescope Media Group v. Lucero, 936 F.3d 740 (8th Cir. 2019) (co-counsel in persuading court that videographer business could not be compelled to create messages contrary to the owners' religious beliefs)

-American Legion v. American Humanist Association, 139 S.Ct. 2067 (2019) (successful amicus in defense of large memorial cross against Establishment Clause challenge)

-Obergefell v. Hodges, 135 S. Ct. 2584 (2015) (argued on behalf of State of Michigan in defending its constitutional definition of marriage)
-Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church & School. v. Equal Employment Opportunity Comm'n, 132 S. Ct. 694 (2012) (successful amicus in case involving the ministerial exception to employment-discrimination laws)
-Elmbrook School District v. Doe, No. 12-755 (amicus brief in case involving whether the Establishment Clause prevents a school from holding a graduation ceremony in a church building for reasons of secular convenience)
-Ward v. Polite, 667 F.3d 727 (6th Cir. 2012) (submitted amicus brief in successful reversal of trial-court dismissal involving graduate counseling student’s exercise of conscience)

 
Tax
-TCF National Bank and Flagstar Bancorp, Inc. v. Department of Treasury, 950 N.W.2d 469 (Mich. Ct. App. 2019) (successful reversal of erroneous Court of Claims decision in multi-million-dollar dispute regarding how financial corporations calculate their Michigan taxes)

-Self-Insurance Institute of America, Inc. v. Snyder, 761 F.3d 631, 2014 WL 3804355 (6th Cir. 2014) (successful defense of new Michigan health claims tax against an ERISA preemption challenge; $1.2 billion annually at stake)
-Andrie, Inc. v. Treasury, 819 N.W.2d 920, 2014 WL 2853776 (Mich. 2014) (successful litigation of sales- and use-tax dispute; $2 billion at stake)
-Fradco, LLC v. Treasury, 845 N.W.2d 81 (Mich. 2014) (statute of limitations for filing a tax appeal when personal representative is not served)
-Michigan Props., LLC v. Northville Twp., 817 N.W.2d 548 (Mich. 2013) (issue of first impression regarding whether a taxing authority’s assessor may correct an erroneous taxable value of real property in a subsequent tax year)
-Self-Insurance Inst. of America, Inc. v. Snyder, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 124405 (E.D. Mich. 2012) (prevailing party in ERISA preemption challenge to Michigan’s new health claims tax)
-In re Request for Advisory Opinion Regarding Constitutionality of 2011 PA 38, 806 N.W.2d 683 (Mich. 2011) (successful decision regarding challenge to tax on public-employee pension distributions)
-Bay City v. Bay County, 807 N.W.2d 623 (Mich. Ct. App. 2011) (successfully represented City in case of first impression involving interpretation of Michigan’s tax foreclosure statute)

 
Tort/Product Liability
-Meirs v. Ottawa County, 821 Fed. Appx. 445 (6th Cir. 2020) (affirming dismissal of section 1983 action against county and its deputies after death of an inmate)

-Kudlacik v. Johnny's Shawnee, Inc., 440 P.3d 576 (Kan. 2019) (persuaded a unanimous Kansas Supreme Court to reject the adoption of a commonlaw claim for dramshop liability)

-Maethner v. Someplace Safe, Inc., 929 N.W.2d 868 (Minn. 2019) (ruling that partially vindicated John's client, the recipient of a domestic-abuse-survivor award, by holding that the plaintiff failed to prove reputational damages and that the client did not act with malice as a matter of law)

-Mueller v. Brannigan Brothers Restaurants & Taverns LLC, 918 N.W.2d 54 (Mich. Ct. App. 2018) (successful appeal in premises liability and wrongful-death suit)

-Edry v. Adelman, 786 N.W.2d 567 (Mich. 2010) (Michigan Supreme Court adopted position in amicus curiae brief submitted on behalf of the Michigan Health & Hospital Association involving the standard for admitting expert testimony in a medical malpractice action) 

-Reed v. Shurlow, 2009 WL 4827827 (Mich. Ct. App. 2009) (successfully defended trial court's decision in a condominium construction dispute) 

-Schaendorf v. Consumers Energy II, 2009 WL 563904 (Mich. Ct. App. 2009) (affirming exclusion of expert witnesses on Daubert grounds and also affirming dismissal of multimillion-dollar claim for damage allegedly caused by stray voltage)

-Schaendorf v. Consumers Energy I, 739 N.W.2d 402 (Mich. Ct. App. 2007) (defended multimillion-dollar claim for damage allegedly caused by stray voltage; persuaded Michigan Court of Appeals to hold that the discovery rule cannot extend limitation periods for stray voltage claims; nuisance claims do not exist in the stray voltage context, because such cases present essentially product liability claims; and the continuing-wrongful-acts doctrine does not apply in stray voltage litigation) 

-Morales v. Auto-Owners Ins. Co., 672 N.W.2d 849 (Mich. 2003) (successful amicus curiae representation in the Michigan Supreme Court’s decision to overrule long-standing line of authority denying statutory prejudgment interest during interlocutory appeal periods, resulting in $7 million benefit to client) 

-Henry v. The Dow Chemical Co., 701 N.W.2d 684 (Mich. 2005) (the Michigan Supreme Court followed reasoning and result advocated in amicus curiae brief submitted on behalf of the Product Liability Advisory Council (PLAC) in case involving whether Michigan should recognize a cause of action for medical monitoring agreement)

 
Trusts & Estates
-In re Abe Bansali Living Trust, 2017 WL 694679 (Mich. Ct. App. 2017) (affirming probate court's grant of a protective order that directed the creation of an irrevocable trust of estate property)

-In re Howard J. Stoddard Trust, 2007 WL 4245406 (Mich. Ct. App. 2007) (affirming probate court's division of a trust into three separate trusts, over a trustee's objection and despite the absence of any language in the trust instrument authorizing such a split) 

-In re John Kotsonis Irrevocable Family Trust, 2007 WL 4126669 (Mich. Ct. App. 2007) (the Michigan Court of Appeals followed the reasoning and result advocated in an amicus curiae brief filed on behalf of the grantor of an irrevocable trust in a dispute involving reformation of the trust to remove a beneficiary) 

-Sorkowitz v. Lakritz, Wissbrun & Assocs., PC, 706 N.W.2d 9 (Mich. 2005) (successful amicus curiae representation in the Michigan Supreme Court on behalf of State Bar's Probate and Estate Planning Section in decision extending the Mieras "four corners rule" to a legal malpractice claim challenging an estate planner's tax advice) 

-In re Estate of Reisman, 702 N.W.2d 658 (Mich. Ct. App. 2005) (hired by lower court counsel and persuaded the Michigan Court of Appeals to reverse adverse decision interpreting Michigan's Powers of Appointment Act of 1967 as it applied to an appointment clause in a trust document) 

-Traxler v. Rothbart, 703 N.W.2d 796 (Mich. 2005) (successful amicus curiae representation in the Michigan Supreme Court on behalf of State Bar's Probate and Estate Planning Section in decision reversing the Michigan Court of Appeals and interpreting Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.7404 as it applies to purchasers of trust property)

 
Zoning
-Laketon Twp. v. Advanse, Inc., 2009 WL 763447 (Mich. Ct. App. 2009) (reversing adverse trial court judgment, entered following a bench trial, and reaffirming that the time for determining whether a noncomforming use vests in a property owner is the date the relevant zoning ordinance was enacted or amended) 

-Houdini Props., LLC v City of Romulus, 743 N.W.2d 198 (Mich. 2008) (the Michigan Supreme Court followed reasoning and result advocated in amicus curiae brief submitted on behalf of the State Bar's Appellate Practice Section that a claim of appeal from an adverse zoning decision is not a "pleading" subject to joinder rules)