West Branch Lawyers

Meet Hannah Roberts, a formidable defender of justice specializing in criminal defense. Armed with a Bachelor's degree from Eastern Michigan University in 2015, she honed her legal skills at Western Michigan University Cooley Law School, graduating Magna Cum Laude with a concentration in Litigation. As a proud member of the Criminal Defense Attorneys of Michigan, Hannah's commitment to her craft shines brightly. She gained invaluable experience interning at the William Booth Legal Aid Clinic, the Family Law Assistance Project, and under Judge Maureen McGinnis at the 52-4 District Court in Troy. With specialized training in litigation, Hannah navigates the complexities...

James Wendt graduated from Eastern Michigan University with a Bachelor of Business Administration in 2007. While at Eastern Michigan, James was recognized as “Most Outstanding Junior Class Business Student” as well as “Most Outstanding Senior Class Business Student.” Thereafter, he attended Wayne State University Law School, where he graduated in the top 15% of his class and received honors for his work in legal research and writing. Prior to joining the Mike Morse Law Firm in January of 2012, he maintained a private practice, serving clients in the areas of domestic litigation and criminal defense. In his free time, James enjoys...

Shawn is the owner of The Head Law Firm, PLC. He is licensed to practice law in the State of Michigan, and the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. He represents individual and business clients throughout the Detroit Metro Area, including Livonia, Westland, Plymouth, Canton, Northville, Farmington Hills, West Bloomfield, Novi, Troy, and other surrounding areas.

Shawn has been repeatedly recognized as one of Metro Detroit’s Top Lawyers in the areas of criminal defense and commercial litigation by DBusiness Magazine. He has also been selected as a Rising Star by Michigan Super Lawyers every year since 2015.

Shawn graduated...

Louis C. Szura practices in the area of health care law and business litigation. Mr. Szura focuses on advising and representing health care providers from all areas on the formation and operations of their businesses and in various types of litigation. He has experience with practice formation; contract negotiations; employment disputes; management contracts; noncompete agreements; insurance and network provider disputes; HIPAA; Stark; AKS; and other compliance and license issues. Mr. Szura has also represented numerous whistleblowers under the federal False Claims Act, Michigan Medicaid Act, and other similar statutes. He is an active council member of the State Bar of...

Daniel Larin is recognized as a leader in the defense of drinking drivers charged with drunk driving, OWI or other alcohol-related charges in the State of Michigan. The Larin Law Firm is a Criminal Defense Law Firm specializing in the defense of those charged with:

Drunk Driving (OWI, OUIL / OUID, DWI or DUI)
Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol and Drugs (OUIL / OUID)
Driving While Impaired (Impaired Driving)
Reckless Driving
Vehicular Manslaughter
Operating Under the Influence Causing Serious Injury
Operating Under the Influence Causing Death (Homicide, Manslaughter, Murder)
All other traffic related crimes
Alcohol-related crimes

Additionally, he represenst people...

For over 25 years, my passion has been helping companies navigate the waters of patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets and other forms of Intellectual Property.

The firm I founded has been honored to secure in 500+ US Patents, hundreds of US Trademarks, and IP rights in over 60 Countries, on 6 Continents, for clients that range from the individual inventor to the Fortune 50.

It is likewise an honor to have multiple clients place their trust in our work for two decades, and to continue to represent my first corporate client all these years later.

I have been fortunate to have worked...

Derek Howard was a longtime Judicial Staff Attorney in Oakland County’s Business Court. In 2019, Derek launched his own business law firm and has quickly enjoyed a string of business litigation success, including multiple cases featured in legal publications. Derek has also published articles on various topics including, software disputes, fraud, and mediation. In 2023, Derek teamed up with Joseph Doerr and Sara MacWilliams to form a firm that offers clients a deeper bench of expertise and legal support, while maintaining the individualized, attentive service the partners are known for. Doerr MacWilliams Howard PLLC offers highly skilled, personalized legal services...

Nicolas Guibert de Bruet consults as an attorney and engineering leader dedicated to helping businesses strategize and successfully navigate the technology maze. His practice revolves around advising technology-intensive businesses on how to start-up, operate, innovate and protect intellectual property assets to keep the business viable. He also concentrates on privacy law compliance, cybersecurity risk management, aviation regulations and transnational agreements.

Mr. Guibert de Bruet has worked as a technical expert and manager in the electronics and software industry for two decades. He has accepted assignments for a wide array of applications in the areas of defense, utilities, court systems, consumer electronics,...

Michael Jaafar is an accomplished and highly sought-after attorney who has made a name for himself as a tenacious litigator and skilled advocate. With an unwavering commitment to excellence and an unrelenting drive to win, Michael has earned a reputation as one of the most formidable attorneys in the field. Michael's impressive track record of success includes settling a personal injury case for $2 million when the initial offer was only $25,000, as well as securing one of the largest class action settlements in history against McDonald's Corporation. He has also been recognized for his outstanding legal skills and accomplishments, having...

Wedad Ibrahim is an attorney in our correctional practice group where she focuses on defending correctional medicine physicians and mid-level practitioners in civil rights and medical malpractice cases, practicing both in federal and state court. Wedad also has experience in litigating consumer protection cases and advocating in employment discrimination cases.

Wedad was a graduate of Michigan State University College of Law in May of 2017. While in law school, Wedad was the recipient of multiple oral advocacy awards and competed on the law school’s Trial, Negotiation, and Mediation competition teams. She served as the President of the Middle Eastern Law Student...

Ron has achieved received a significant number of notable high-profile acquittals and dismissals for physicians and health care entities facing allegations of improper prescribing and health care fraud.

Ron is the managing shareholder of Chapman Law Group’s Michigan Office and represents clients nationally in the areas of health care fraud and abuse, federal investigations, DEA registration matters, and physician licensing defense. As a former prosecutor, Ron also has a significant amount of experience dealing with state and federal agencies during high-level criminal investigations, criminal trials, and administrative proceedings.

In his most recent trial, United States v. Dr. A, two physicians were...

I have been practicing for over thirty-five years. My practice is limited to specializing in issues concerning disability, estate, probate, long term care, nursing home, Veterans, Medicaid and special needs planning. I am the immediate past President/Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Alzheimer’s Association - Greater Michigan Chapter (after having served for the last 6 years) and member of the Association's executive committee and an Assembly Delegate to Alzheimer’s Association – National Chapter, Chicago, Illinois. I am also a Member of National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys and have been listed since 1991 in...

Education: 1974 graduate of Bloomfield Hills Andover, the University of Michigan, B.A. 1979, and the Detroit College of Law, J.D, 1986. Experience: Prior to beginning my practice I was an intern to the late former Congressmen James G. O’Hara and James J. Blanchard, who later became governor. I was also a judicial clerk to the late Hon. Richard D. Kuhn, Oakland County Circuit Court Judge and Research Intern for the Hon. Gene Schnelz, Oakland County Circuit Court Judge, retired. I was a hearing panelist chairman for the Attorney Discipline Board, a former Special Assistant Attorney General, and I have taught business law at...

Phil was admitted to practice law in 1991 and he is now in his 28th year as an attorney. Phil is one of the founding partners of Serafini, Michalowski, Derkacz and Associates, P.C. and he focuses his practice in the areas of personal injury, automobile accident claims, no-fault claims also known as personal injury protection benefits, third party automobile negligence claims, slip and fall injuries, motorcycle injuries, trucking accidents and general civil litigation. Phil grew up in St. Clair Shores and Royal Oak and he has been fortunate to return to Macomb County to practice law.

From 1995 to present, Phil...

Admitted to the practice of law in 1971 and formed the Law Firm of Colman and Goodman, P.C. in 1974 in the Sterling Heights/Utica communities of Macomb County, Michigan. In August 2015 Colman Law Center, PLLC was established. It is a law office dedicated to the general practice of law with an emphasis in the area of family law encompassing, but not limited to, divorce, custody, parenting time, It child/spousal support and change of residence. Neil M. Colman has rendered skillful and conscientious representation for clients throughout Southeastern Michigan for more than 45 years. Other areas of practice include, but...

Devin is a partner at Paesano Akkashian, PC. He has successfully litigated complex business and securities matters in state and federal courts across Michigan and the United States. Devin’s securities practice spans both litigation and transactional work. On the litigation side, he represents investors and corporations in shareholder disputes and regulatory investigations conducted by the SEC and state securities agencies. His experience also includes handling FINRA arbitration cases, where he represents customers and brokers in investment disputes, employment claims, and other industry matters. On the transactional side, Devin advises companies on compliance with the Securities Act of 1933 and the...

Mark's practice is primarily focused on aviation law and complex personal injury law. Aviation law is a very general term and can encompass a broad swath of practice areas, Generally, Mark's aviation law practice includes the representation of persons injured or killed in aviation in air carrier (airline) passenger accidents, passenger board bridge (sometimes called jetbridge or jetway) injuries or airport injuries. Other types of personal injury cases Mark regularly handles include other travel/tourism-related common carriage or travel-related locales such as, shuttle bus, cruise ship, recreational and hotel & resort settings. As an FAA certificated commercial pilot and...

Car accidents are extremely serious and can occur with little to no warning. If you are dealing with damages or injuries from a car accident, you may be wondering where you can even begin to turn to find the help and representation your case requires. You can breathe more easily now, because you have come to the right place! At Abrahams Law firm, you can receive the help you need from Attorney Abrahams. He is a car accident attorney in Detroit who has dealt with all kinds of car accidents and car accident injuries and is well equipped to take...

Patrick Derkacz grew up in Warren, Michigan where he attended public school. He graduated from Warren Mott High school in 1984 where he played football. He then went to Eastern Michigan University where he graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Chemistry in 1988. After graduation he worked as an analytical chemist for the Parke-Davis Pharmaceutical Research Division in Ann Arbor, Michigan for several years.

Mr. Derkacz went back to law school at the Detroit College of Law (now Michigan State University Law School) in 1990. He graduated from DCL with Honors in 1993. While in Law School he participated in the...

For the past 30 years, Mike Cunningham has been enormously successful in representing injured plaintiffs in medical malpractice, auto accident, and premises liability matters, obtaining many verdicts and settlements in excess of $1 million. He has also pursued cases with similar outcomes in other states including California, Ohio, and Illinois.

Outside of the office, Mike’s hobbies include playing guitar and golf.

Sunjay Sterling practices in all areas of tax and corporate law.

Tax Law

Sunjay has represented corporations, partnerships, LLCs, nonprofit organizations and individuals as a tax attorney in a wide variety of tax law matters including audit defense and resolution of tax controversies, tax compliance, tax planning, and structuring business transactions to minimize taxable impact. Sunjay Sterling is a tax attorney adept at identifying and resolving tax issues and audit risks in addition to formulating and implementing tax strategies and practical tax planning to further personal and business objectives.

Corporate/Business Law

Sunjay has represented and counseled C corporations, S corporations, general and limited partnerships,...

Attorney Symantha Heath has practiced law for over 23 years. She earned a Juris Doctor from the University of Detroit Law School in 1993 and is licensed to practice in Michigan and U.S. Federal Court. She is a member of the Michigan State Bar Association, Oakland County Bar Association, Women Lawyers Association of Michigan, and Wayne County Family Law Bar Association.

Symantha is a past president of the Wayne County Family Bar Association and was an executive board member for six years. She is also a past County Chairwoman of the WCRC and the Northville Township Trustee. She currently serves on...

Susan Elkouri is a trial lawyer, certified Collaborative Divorce Law practitioner, and certified mediator. Ms. Elkouri has practiced divorce law for over 23 years. She earned a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Detroit Law School in 1994 and is licensed to practice in Michigan and Federal Courts.

Susan is a member of the Michigan State Bar Association, Oakland County Bar Association, Wayne County Family Law Bar Association, and the Women Lawyers Association of Michigan. She is an active participant in the Michigan Family Law Certification program and a past University of Detroit Law School Moot Court Judge.

Susan Elkouri is...

Tracy M. Clark is a bankruptcy attorney with the Michigan law firm of Steinberg Shapiro & Clark. Ms. Clark has been practicing bankruptcy law since 1999 in the areas of debtor and creditor rights. Ms. Clark enjoys developing solutions to the legal problems faced by financially distressed individuals and businesses and, when necessary, litigating those issues at the trial and appellate levels. Ms. Clark believes that every client deserves her full attention and takes pride in personally meeting with all of her clients and handling her cases from beginning to end. Using this approach, Ms. Clark has successfully guided numerous...

Lance Young is a senior shareholder at Sommers Schwartz, P.C., and co-chairs the firm’s Complex Litigation Department. For almost twenty years, Lance has successfully represented investors, employees, consumers, and other injured parties in high-profile class actions and multidistrict proceedings involving violations of federal and state securities, antitrust, wage and hour, and consumer protection laws. His current cases include the nationally publicized In Re Auto Parts Antitrust Litigation and multi-state Real Estate Transfer Tax litigation, along with several vehicle defect cases pending against major auto manufacturers. He also co-manages and supports the firm’s busy Fair Labor Standards Act practice

Jay Yasso, a senior shareholder with Sommers Schwartz, focuses his practice on medical malpractice, automobile negligence, and personal injury. He has litigated, mediated and facilitated numerous multi-million dollar settlements on behalf of injured victims for over twenty years, and his experience and expertise allows him to sit on mediation panels in Oakland, Wayne and Macomb County Circuit Courts.

In addition, for the last 23 years, Jay’s professional practice has also focused on representing individuals and businesses in the entertainment industry, including representing record companies, recording artists, music and film producers, production companies, artist managers, agents, songwriters, music publishers, models and modeling...

Ben Wilensky is a member of Sommers Schwartz’s Personal Injury Litigation Group and focuses his practice on representing railroad workers who seek compensation for on-the-job injuries under the Federal Employers' Liability Act.

After graduating from Michigan State University, Ben served as an aide to U.S. Senators Jon Corzine and Frank Lautenberg in Washington, D.C. He then pursued his law degree at Chicago-Kent College of Law, where he was an Executive Articles Editor and a member of the Executive Board of the Law Review, and a professorial research assistant, before earning his Juris Doctor.

In addition to his active FELA practice, Ben has...

Arvin Pearlman is nationally known for the successful outcomes he has obtained on behalf of railroad workers who are injured or killed in the course of their employment. Since concentrating his practice on Federal Employers Liability Act (FELA) litigation in 1979, Arvin has tried numerous personal injury cases before judges and juries across the United States, many with multi-million dollar awards. FELA cases arise from many types of railroad workplace negligence including unsafe work environments, exposure to harmful substances and occupational illness, faulty equipment, and off-site injuries. He is designated legal counsel for the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen in...

Thomas N. Economy received his bachelor's degree from the University of Michigan-Dearborn in 1996, and his law degree from Michigan State University College of Law in 1999. His practice is devoted to representing seriously injured persons in cases involving no-fault insurance, automobile negligence and premises liability. He has successfully handled numerous important cases before the Michigan Court of Appeals and the Michigan Supreme Court. He is an active member of both the American Association for Justice and Michigan Association for Justice. Email: tom@buckfirelaw.com

Bjornrae Kemp is an associate attorney at the Mike Morse Law Firm. He graduated from the University of Houston in 2009. He went on to earn his law degree from Thurgood Marshall School of Law where he graduated Magna Cum Laude. Since 2020, he has been a member of the State Bar of Michigan and is also admitted to practice law in Texas. Bjornrae has represented accident victims for his entire legal career, recovering millions for his clients. In his free time, Bjornrae enjoys spending time with family, cooking, and reading.

Dan Hohf graduated from Western Michigan University in 2009 with a Bachelor’s Degree in History. While at WMU, he served as a Museum Technician at the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area in Pennsylvania as well as at the Kingman Museum in Battle Creek, Michigan. He joined the Mike Morse Law Firm team in 2011 as a paralegal and eventually went on to earn his law degree from Wayne State University Law School in 2019. While attending law school, he remained employed at the Mike Morse Law Firm as well as served as a Judicial Extern for the Honorable Edward...

Alex Lebedinski is an Equity Partner at Giarmarco, Mullins & Horton, P.C. and concentrates his practice in the areas of Health Care Law and Business Transactions. He represents health care providers, including physicians, large and small primary and specialty physician group practices, physician organizations, outpatient ambulatory surgery centers, diagnostic centers, laboratories and a specialty hospital in the areas of Federal and State regulatory compliance, as well as in a wide variety of business, corporate and employment law matters.

Lisa Screen practiced criminal law for over ten years before transitioning into the auto insurance arena in 2012. Screen has aggressively tried over 250 cases to a jury, and while as an assistant prosecuting attorney, she litigated several high-profile cases and was specially assigned to the Homicide Division for most of her tenure at the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office in Detroit, MI. She successfully convicted two individuals of murder despite the victim’s body never being located. Prior to working at the Prosecutor’s Office, she was an associate at a medical malpractice insurance defense firm. Up until she joined...

Kevin has been a truck accident lawyer for close to 25 years. He litigates cases involving large commercial vehicles and semi-trucks, Michigan No-Fault laws and insurance coverage disputes. Kevin has argued complex legal issues before the Michigan Court of Appeals and achieved victories for his clients every time. Kevin has obtained millions of dollars for his injured clients and is a tenacious fighter both inside and out of the courtroom.

Michael Hanna is a partner at Morgan & Morgan and leads the firm’s Michigan office. He received his undergraduate degree from Wayne State University and attended University of Miami School of Law, where he graduated with honors. As a class action employment attorney, Mr. Hanna has litigated hundreds of federal claims and represented thousands of clients across the nation. His areas of expertise include the prosecution of wage and hour claims for unpaid minimum and overtime wages, as well as discrimination and retaliation claims under various state and federal statutes. Many of the cases in which Mr. Hanna served as lead...

Gary Safir is a personal injury trial lawyer who specializes in fighting for victims of car accidents and motorcycle accidents, including “low speed” or “low-impact” accidents with minimal vehicle body damage. Gary believes that, no matter the speed of the crash, if a client’s injury has affected their life, their case is worth the fight. He is currently the senior trial attorney at Scott Goodwin Law, P.C., in Birmingham, MI. Gary has recovered millions of dollars for his clients and has been recognized as a top-rated personal injury attorney by nationally recognized legal rating services. Gary considers it a privilege to...

Steven A. Harms is a partner in Muller, Muller, Richmond, Harms & Myers, with offices in Birmingham, Grand Rapids and Traverse City, Michigan.Steve is a frequent lecturer and an author in addition to being a full time collection attorney. He also teaches in the MBA program at Walsh College, Troy, Michigan, live and online (winning an outstanding instructor award for online).Publications include many articles and seminar materials plus chapters of books including Michigan Basic Practice Handbook and Michigan Business Formbook. He co-authored International Commercial Secured Transactions with David Franklin, published 2010 by Thomson Reuters Publishing, a look at...