Spotlight on Michigan Lawyers

Mock Trials are Nothing to Mock

What inspired you to become an attorney?

For me, one inspiration was my participation in the Genesee County Explorers Law Club in high school, which allowed me to compete in a mock trial competition. I remember memorizing my witness statement, getting dressed up in a suit and too-high heels and entering a courthouse and courtroom for the first time in my life. The whole experience drew me in, from the stark formality of the bench with the American flag behind it to the complicated mandate to be creative and persuasive within a strict set of evidentiary rules. I was mesmerized as students older than me made objections and a real judge ruled on them. I knew this was where I wanted to spend the rest of my life: in a courtroom.

“It’s been said that not all mock trial students become lawyers, but they all become leaders,” Linda Start, director of the Michigan Center of Civic Education, said. Linda has been working enthusiastically since 1984 to grow MCCE’s mock trial program, now led by Kalamazoo attorney James Liggins, of Miller Canfield. Michigan Center for Civic Education has many excellent programs well suited for local bar community law-related education efforts. The State Bar of Michigan is a proud partner of MCCE.

I had the honor of judging the final round of the Michigan High School Mock Trial Tournament on March 19, 2016, along with the Hon. Carl J. Marlinga of the Macomb County probate court, and attorney M. J. Stephen Fox, of Fox & Associates, in Grand Rapids.

The state final competition took place at the Veteran’s Memorial Courthouse in Lansing, just around the corner from the State Bar of Michigan's home, the Michael Franck Building. This year’s case involved a bullied student accused of planting a homemade bomb in a high school garbage can.  The two final teams, Kalamazoo Central High School and Ann Arbor Community High School, had tried the case previously at the regional competition level. On the day of the final round, they also endured grueling eliminating trials, and in the end, Kalamazoo Central High School unseated the reigning champions, Ann Arbor Community High School, to proceed to the national competition.

The Michigan Center for Civic Education has conducted the Michigan High School Mock Trial Tournament since 1983.  Throughout the program’s history, the MCCE has made changes to respond to the needs of participants, and available funding and staffing.  Here is a brief history:

• From 1983-1988, the MHSMTT was a one-day event held at the Coleman Young Municipal Center in downtown Detroit. In the first five years, the tournament grew from 10 schools from the metro Detroit area to 40 schools from across Michigan.
• In 1989, at the request of participating teachers, MCCE offered schools the opportunity to compete in a West Michigan Regional Tournament in Grand Rapids. MHSMTT became two regional tournaments and a State Final Tournament in Lansing.
• In 2003, the Eastern Michigan Regional Tournament was moved from Detroit to Pontiac.
• In 2013, a third regional tournament was added in Ann Arbor to accommodate the growth in the number of teams.
• In 2014, though a partnership with the Macomb County Bar Foundation, an additional regional tournament was added in Mt. Clemens.

"I always leave the state finals feeling energized, and impressed by the students," said Linda, who has attended over 60 tournaments. "I have seen first-hand what this program can do for all students, from all academic backgrounds. Although the assumption is often that students participate because they want to pursue a career in law (many do), others know that this rigorous academic competition can help them in any field they pursue.  I believe in this program because civic learning should take place in authentic locations like courthouses, and students need to interact with lawyers, judges and other professionals to understand and appreciate their role.  Students gain an understanding of the importance of the rule of law and the role of lawyers. They graduate from high school more confident, ready to problem solve in real-world situations, and more prepared to engage in society as active citizens. And, mock trial gives students the opportunity to be a part of a team even if they do not participate in sports."

Linda finds the lawyer volunteers are happy to "give back" and encourage students to consider law as a profession.

When I was sworn in as the president of the State Bar of Michigan, I told members I have three expectations of our attorneys: (1) Take care of yourselves; (2) Treat others as they would like to be treated, even if they do not reciprocate; and (3) continue volunteering in the profession, through pro bono work, law related education and bar association participation.

If you do not do so already, consider volunteering for a mock trial team in your community, or starting a team if you do not already have one. The most successful mock trial teams are led by a dedicated teacher assisted by lawyer volunteers who serve as attorney coaches.

To begin setting up a team in your community where one does not exist, contact a social studies teacher in your local school, as well as your local bar association, the Michigan Center for Civic Education or the State Bar of Michigan Law Related Education Committee, co-chaired this year by attorneys Allan Motzny, of Troy, and Monica Nuckolls, of Auburn Hills.

"What Have You Done For Me Lately?"

How often have you been introduced to someone as “a lawyer”? It happens to me all the time: “Meet, Lori Buiteweg, she’s an attorney.” The immediate reaction is typically raised eyebrows, followed by, “Oh! What kind of law do you practice?” When I respond, “I work with families going through transition,” (I try avoiding the D-word because it has unnecessarily negative connotations), I usually hear, “Boy, I could have used you a few years ago,” or “I wish you could help my friend.”

As lawyers, we are in the privileged position of being able to actually do something for those in need of help that may make many years’ worth of difference in their lives, sometimes even a lifetime’s worth of difference. With that privilege comes the responsibility of belonging to our state bar.

I am pleased to report the financial responsibility of Michigan lawyers is well below the national average. Bar dues for active membership are $90 for discipline, $180 for State Bar membership, and $15 for the Client Protection Fund for a total of $285 annually. The average required professional fees for active lawyers in the 51 U.S. jurisdictions is $352, excluding the cost of mandatory continuing legal education (CLE) requirements in the 45 U.S. jurisdictions that have them.  (Michigan lawyers have a strong tradition of participation in continuing legal education, and we are in one of only six U.S. jurisdictions that do not have some form of mandatory continuing legal education requirement.)

 

A closer look at our neighboring states illustrates the value Michigan lawyers are getting. In Wisconsin, the only neighboring state with a unified bar, annual dues, including $254 mandatory bar membership are $490. In Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, lawyers must pay state licensing fees that do not include any bar association benefits; those mandatory licensing fees are $350, $160, and $382, respectively. To get the benefits of bar membership, lawyers must pay an additional amount that can be as much as $305, $280, and $320, respectively.

Because the deadline to pay dues without incurring a late fee is November 30th, it’s a good time to talk about what you get for your bar dues. I like to think of dues as falling into two service baskets: one basket is filled with things we do for our individual members; the other is filled with things we do for and on behalf of the profession that individual members do not have the time or perhaps inclination to do for themselves. Both baskets sit in a larger pallet I’ve labeled, “public service.”  

Included in the basket of services we provide individual members:

• Marketing, including enhanced member directory profile (have you filled out yours? It’s like having your own, free personal website, and the aggregated content of all our members’ enhanced profiles makes the directory a powerful online marketing presence)    Login into the member area to update your profile
• Career development resources and a Career Center
• Outstanding publications, including the Bar Journal and daily e-Journal
• Resources to help you manage your practice
• Education on substantive areas of law as official partners with ICLE and via sections’ programs
• Discounts on goods and services
• Networking opportunities at the many bar events throughout the year and through section membership
• Personal professional ethics counseling 
• Help with addiction and wellness issues

Included in the basket of services we provide for and on behalf of the profession:

• Administer the character and fitness bar admissions program
• Process and pay claims from the client protection fund
• Promote and facilitate the delivery of legal services to the poor
• Provide guidance on policy issues concerning the regulation of the legal profession and quality of legal services

Assist in the rehabilitation of lawyers and judges

• Raise awareness of unconscious bias and improve diversity in our profession to strengthen its credibility
• Educate the public about the rule of law
• Obtain and disseminate demographics of our profession
• Enhance the credibility of the profession through the Client  Protection Fund
• Protect the public from the harm of unauthorized practice of law
• Provide a forum for mentor partnerships
• Assist local bar associations with strategic planning

Directly or indirectly, all the work we do at the Bar benefits the public. And the bar membership cost to each individual member is less than $15/month, about the cost of a weekly venti Chai Tea Latte at Starbucks, without the calories.

Want to know how to help us do even more with your money? Ask us to send your dues invoice by e-mail, only. If all our members agreed to receive their dues notices on-line, only, we would save more than $25,000!

Lori is a shareholder at Nichols, Sacks, Slank, Sendelbach, Buiteweg, & Solomon, P.C.

Bar Associations Benefit from Civic Education Projects

Bar leaders differ but all seem to share a core set of beliefs:

• Our members are energized when their own, personal contributions to the organization are meaningful;
• As lawyers, we promote the rule of law;
• We must shine a positive public light on our organizations to improve the image of attorneys and the legal profession;
• The credibility of our legal system is rooted in the diversity of its membership; and
• Everyone should have access to justice.

I’ll call these beliefs “PRIDE”, a pneumonic that reflects how bar leaders should feel about being doctors of jurisprudence.

Are you looking for ways for your organization to show its PRIDE? There are many opportunities, starting with civic education. To find one right for your community, look at this page, where you will find links to specific resources from the Center for Civic Education, the American Bar Association, the Dirksen Congressional Center, the Michigan Supreme Court Learning Center and the State Bar of Michigan.

One way to cover a lot of ground in a civics education project is to partner with your local school system. They will likely welcome your offer to do so because of an amendment by Senator Robert C. Byrd (D-West Virginia) to the consolidated Appropriations Act of 2005, which was signed into law as Public Law 108-447 by President George W. Bush on December 8, 2004, all education institutions receiving Federal funds must hold an educational program on the United States Constitution on September 17th for the students served by the educational institution. If September 17th falls on a Saturday, Sunday or holiday, the law allows the celebration to take place during the preceding or following week. Michigan former Governor Jennifer M. Granholm proclaimed “Constitution Day” in Michigan for schools and the public to reflect on the importance of the U. S. Constitution.

By giving your members an opportunity to speak in a public school about the Constitution, you are providing an opportunity for personal engagement of your members and simultaneously advancing the rule of law.

Because the law requires a program to be held on September 17th, each teacher must submit what they did for Constitution Day. If you provide them with a curriculum for the day, you make their job easy! This helps the image of lawyers.

Try to select school systems where the student population is diverse. Have your members start and end the lesson by explaining that anyone is eligible to be a lawyer, regardless of their race, religion, cultural background, gender or ethnicity. Many students never imagined becoming a lawyer as an option for them. This one presentation could plant the seed in the mind of a young minority student who later ends up in bar leadership.

Consider leaving the teacher with a business card for Michigan Legal Help, a joint project of the Michigan Bar Foundation and the State Bar of Michigan, or asking the principal if they would put up a Michigan Legal Help poster in their main office. Let the teacher know if they or anyone they know needs legal help, they can start by accessing this website and from there, get answers to questions or a referral to a lawyer. By connecting with a teacher, you help to insure access to justice for everyone.

Everyone is busy and you may think, “This is a nice vision, but it will never fly.” Trust me: it will fly. The Washtenaw County Bar Association has been running a project on Constitution Day for 7 years by placing over 60 lawyers in classrooms of 6th, 7th, 8th, and 11th graders to teach about Bill of Rights: the 1st, 4th, 6th, and 14th Amendments. The project energizes the lawyers, draws deep appreciation from the teachers, and many students remember from year to year what they learned the year before. “Constitution Day” has become a happily-anticipated event in the Ann Arbor Public Schools in huge part because the teachers feel supported by the lawyers in their community and the lawyers feel like they are making a positive difference in the lives of our next generation of leaders. When Constitution Day falls on Curriculum Night, the teachers tell the students’ parents all about it, further enhancing the positive image of attorneys in the community.

Next year on September 17th, let’s light things up on Twitter at #ConstitutionDay!

Pictured in photo: Social Studies Teacher Elaine Richmond lawyer volunteer Robyn McCoy. 

Lori is a shareholder at Nichols, Sacks, Slank, Sendelbach, Buiteweg, & Solomon, P.C.