Secrest Wardle celebrated William Hampton’s 40 memorable years with the firm at its annual holiday party which took place on December 3 at Plum Hollow Country Club. At the event, Senior and Co-Managing Partner, Mark Morley, presented Hampton with a large engraved gavel, on behalf of the firm, to commemorate his esteemed career in municipal law and his years serving as an Oakland County Circuit Court judge. Hampton’s retirement from Secrest Wardle will become effective January 1, 2017.
Hampton has practiced law for more than five decades and is recognized as a leading authority in the area of municipal law. Hampton developed Secrest Wardle’s Municipal Law Practice Group from its inception into the renowned municipal law practice group that it is today. Hampton is a former president of Secrest Wardle, as well as former senior partner and managing partner of the Municipal Law Practice Group. He has served as general counsel for the City of Bloomfield Hills, City of Auburn Hills, Charter Township of Bloomfield, and Charter Township of West Bloomfield for several years.
Hampton was elected commissioner of the State Bar of Michigan, and has served as an Oakland County Circuit Court judge, including a term as presiding judge. He was elected to the Michigan House of Representatives, where his tenure included terms as majority and minority leader. He was appointed by Governor Engler and served as the chairperson of the State Officers Compensation Commission from 1994-1998. Hampton also served as co-chairman of the State Bar Committee on Judicial Qualifications, from 1990-1996, and served as chair on the State of Michigan Attorney Discipline Board by appointment from the Michigan Supreme Court.
Over the course of his career, Hampton has been voted to DBusiness magazine’s list of Michigan Super Lawyers by his peers from 2006 through 2016. In 2013 he was chosen as one of thirty Michigan attorneys to be honored as a “Leader in the Law.”
In 2014, Hampton was selected to receive the Oakland County Bar Association’s “Distinguished Career Achievement Award,” and the Bloomfield Hills Optimist Club “Respect for Law Award,” an award presented in honor of his position as a well-respected municipal law attorney in the community.
In 2016, Hampton was named the recipient of the 2016 Michigan Association of Municipal Attorneys Distinguished Municipal Attorney Award. The award honors municipal attorneys who have reached the highest level of professional accomplishment in the representation of cities, townships or villages and their contributions to other municipal attorneys through participation in and service to professional organizations.
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