Organization elects board at annual banquet may 20
By Frank Weir
Legal News
The Washtenaw Association for Justice held its annual awards banquet May 20 at Barton Hills Country Club. The WAJ presented awards to five, presented and swore in its board for the next year, and heard keynote speaker Kenneth Mogill discuss the marriage equality litigation in which he has participated.
New officers include: John Bredell, past president; Lana Panagoulia, president; Chad Engelhardt, vice president; Benjamin Muth, treasurer; Elizabeth Graziano, secretary.
Those honored at the banquet included: Barry Gates, Ronald W. Egnor Jr., Outstanding Attorney Award; Retired Justice Michael Cavanagh, Blair Moody Jr., Award; Judge Darlene O'Brien, Justice Marilyn Kelly Award; Judge Carol Kuhnke, Professionalism and Community Outreach Award; Rick Boothman, Respected Defense Counsel.
Boothman was honored for "his significant work on behalf of patients and physicians at the University of Michigan Health System."
Engelhardt presented the award and said of Boothman, "Rick Boothman did something remarkable that has established a national trend. He said that if you want to address health care spending, you do it by making medicine safer. You remove the problem, not the symptom.
"He developed a program to improve patient safety which is called the Michigan Claims Model. It is transformative and dispute resolution at its finest. Its hallmark is transparency and the power of apology. As lawyers, we make mistakes and errors are made in the health care system. Rick came forward and said, don't hide them. Disclose them to the patient the tell them how it won't happen again and compensate the patient and family promptly and fairly."
Heidi Salter-Ferris presented the Ronald W. Egnor Jr. Outstanding Attorney Award to long-time WAJ member and officer, Barry Gates. It marked the second time Gates has received the award.
"Ron was a very generous layer and an excellent trial attorney," Salter-Ferris said. "Barry has the same qualities. Barry is the only attorney from Washtenaw County to have served as president of the Michigan Association of Justice, which is a huge undertaking. He served the MAJ very well and was a wonderful state-wide representative as well as locally.
"He is the most trustworthy person that I know, a modern-day Atticus Finch. Before he was a civil trial lawyer, he was at the public defender's office and the go-to person for battered women accused of crimes as a result of violence. No battered woman (that Gates represented) who was charged ever served a day in jail."
She also noted that Gates is the only attorney to have received the award twice.
Benjamin Muth presented the Blair Moody Award to Retired Justice Michael Cavanagh, who was unable to attend the banquet. Judge Timothy Connors accepted the award on his behalf.
The WAJ noted that the award was presented to Cavanagh because he "has made significant contributions to judicial excellence, the rights of individuals, and protecting our cherished right to a jury trial" in the state.
Muth noted that Cavanagh served on the Michigan Supreme Court from 1983 to 2014 and, when combined with his appellate court service, is the longest serving appellate judge. "He is a champion of the right of individuals to have a jury trial. In the 2,005 cases he heard, he offered a majority opinion in 120 of them and, as a sign of the strength of his convictions, a dissenting opinion in 217."
Judge Connors said of Cavanagh that, "Another aspect that I know of him is his tremendous quiet work on behalf of child welfare. I think its important to acknowledge that. We are an embarrassment in this state in terms of juvenile justice aligning with southern states like Louisiana in our approach. But we have good judges working diligently on this."
Judge Pat Conlin presented the Justice Marilyn Kelly Award to Judge Darlene O'Brien "for her jurisprudence advocating for the rights of individuals in the Circuit Court." He began by noting that O'Brien represented his grandmother's estate when an insurance company refused to pay for coverage she had purchased. "Our family hired Darlene to sue and brought the matter to a fair settlement. It meant a lot to our family for that. She has stood up for the rights of all parties in Circuit Court."
In addition, he said, "This award to Darlene is highly significant for two reasons," Conlin said. "One Justice Marilyn Kelly was a big mentor for her, a role model of a woman on our highest bench. When Darlene was first on the bench, Justice Kelly came and sat with her. Another reason is that the WAJ is made up of plaintiff personal injury and family law advocates. Those attorneys often don't have the same resources as your opponent. They are outnumbered. The client usually doesn't litigate all the time. "
Peter Davis presented the WAJ Professionalism and Community Outreach Award to Judge Carol Kuhnke. Davis said that Kuhnke joined his firm in 1996 and "is such a wonderful writer, has a wonderful disposition and a great sense of humor. She is a terrific lawyer, and now a wonderful judge."
Judge Kuhnke noted that she was proud to receive the award given that she has been "a member of this group for many years. You are my colleagues. I grew up with you as a lawyer. I couldn't be happier to receive an award from you and at the same program honoring Justice Cavanagh, Judge O'Brien, Rick Boothman, and Barry Gates.
In discussing his representation of April DeBoer and Jayne Rowse, Kenneth Mogill noted that, "I can't think of another case that when I got home I compared my life to my client's life to such an extent. They love one another and are committed to their children yet they are denied the rights of marriage.
"It leaves me sad and angry but motivates me in the struggle."
He added that the case originated when they each adopted two children, two with special needs. But under the law, they could not adopt the children as a couple, since they were not married and couldn't marry since they are the same sex. So each child has just one parent.
A near-miss traffic accident caused the couple to visit a lawyer and they discovered if one of them were to die, there was no guarantee the survivor could adopt the children of the deceased. The court could split the family sending surviving children of the decedent to a distant relative or foster care.
"That was not satisfactory to the two so in July of 2012, we filed suit in the Eastern District of Michigan to enable them to adopt each other's children. Subsequently, we amended the complaint so as to challenge the state's constitutional prohibition of same-sex marriage."
The complaint argued the prohibition violates due process and equal protection clauses given the historical recognition of marriage as a fundamental right and treating same-sexed couples differently from heterosexual couples.
Mogill noted that marriage has evolved over the generations changing from a "patriarchal model oppressive to women to one that is equal and devoid of gender.
"It is now an institution that is a bilateral civil contract where rights and responsibilities don't depend on gender. When you recognize that marriage always was a matter of civil law with no requirement to procreate or adopt to get a marriage license, any opposition to same-sex marriage vanishes."
Published: Thu, Jun 04, 2015
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