Patrick Lee on WSJ Law Blog likes them: "Michigan Jurors Will No Longer Be Treated Like Kindergartners." (But he gets Justice Hathaway's name wrong.)
George Washington law prof Jonathan Turley doesn't. In "Michigan Implements New Changes In Role Of Jury and Judge In Trials," he zeroes in on the provision that allows judges to summarize evidence:
One of the greatest problems that I have with trials in England is the pronounced role of judges in questioning witnesses and summarizing evidence. I have been before some highly biased judges who do everything they can to push a jury toward the prosecution. Many judges are former prosecutors or elected on “tough-on-crime” platforms. Currently, while such judges can rule against you on motions and instructions, the impact is mitigated by the fact that they cannot summarize the evidence. Judges have considerable influence over jurors who may be entirely unaware of bias.
