Judge Colleen O'Brien

This afternoon, long-serving Oakland County Circuit Judge Colleen O'Brien was appointed by Governor Rick Snyder to the Michigan Court of Appeals. Tomorrow, the Governor has a scheduled news conference to announce his appointment to fill the vacancy on the Michigan Supreme Court created by Justice Mary Beth Kelly's surprise resignation in August.

Judge O'Brien has run for a seat on the Michigan Supreme Court in past elections and has been a persistent name mentioned whenever the discussion arises about appointments to the intermediate appellate court. She will be sorely missed by those of us who practiced before her in the Oakland County Circuit Court. A true "judge's judge", O'Brien is currently serving as the President of the Michigan Judges Association

Vacating her spot on the bench now leaves two seats open on the Oakland County Circuit Court that need to be filled soon. Judge Rudy Nichols retired over the summer and his seat has been filled temporarily by a visiting [retired] judge.

One rumor that proved true is that Oakland Family Court Judge Cheryl Matthews will move from the family court to the court of general jurisdiction. The family court is where new judges are usually assigned upon their election or appointment to the circuit court.

Judge Mathews follows former family court judges James Alexander and Martha Anderson to the general civil court. Could Judge Lisa Gorcyca be far behind?

Governor Snyder therefore now has his work cut out for him in filling these seats. Political influence will be spent in the upcoming weeks; the State Bar of Michigan will compile a list; and many a district court judge will angle for a promotion.

Some of the names we've heard over here at the Law Blogger we liked; other judicial hopefuls we're not so sure would make good judges. But we've come to accept that experienced litigators -lawyers that actually see the inside of a courtroom- are usually never considered for judicial appointments and rarely run for judge on the non-partisan ballot; go figure.

One lawyer that fits the non-litigator description on the Governor's short list for the Supreme Court is University of Michigan Law Professor Joan Larsen. Professor Larsen graduated from Northwestern University Law School and has recently served as a special counsel to the UM Law School Dean. If Professor Larsen is appointed to the High Court, she will be going from one ivory tower to another.

These recent events, and the Governor's imminent appointments to the Oakland Circuit Court, will have an important impact on Oakland County residents planning to file for divorce in the upcoming months. If you are involved in proceedings before the Oakland County Circuit Court, consider hiring lawyers that have experience in this town.

Our lawyers have seen judges in this town come, and we've seen judges go. We're still here; open for business at 8:00 tomorrow morning.

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An interesting defamation lawsuit was recently filed in Oakland County Circuit Court, just in time for bow season which opens today for deer.

Last year, an archery company here in nearby Holly, MI resolved to revamp their website.  They turned to Five Sparrows, a web design and marketing firm based in Heartland, MI.

Apparently, Jim Beasley, owner of Spot Shooter Archery, was not satisfied with the performance of the web design firm, telling the Oakland Press that customers could not access products and the owner could not change prices within the online store created by Five Sparrows.

After some obvious "back-and-forth", Beasley had enough and posted a negative review on G+ as well as sent a letter to the local B2B group that connected the two businesses in the first place.  Five Sparrows' demand for a retraction was ignored and a defamation lawsuit followed.

The lawsuit, now assigned to Oakland Circuit Judge James Alexander, seeks damages in excess of the jurisdictional amount of $25,000.  Beasley's lawyer is none other than our friend down the street here in Clarkston; Robert Kostin.

Although this case was initially assigned to Judge Leo Bowman, we suspect it was re-assigned to Judge Alexander with a determination this was business litigation belonging to the new Business Court.

This litigation will be interesting.  In a defamation lawsuit, the plaintiff has the burden of proving that the statements made were false and were made intentionally or with reckless disregard for the truth.  Truth, by the way, is a valid defense to a defamation suit.

We here at the Law Blogger anticipate that Mr. Kostin will file a motion for summary disposition to dismiss this case.  And we like his chances as we feel this type of suit, always difficult to prove, is especially susceptible to dismissal given the facts of this case.

The Internet is nothing if not a massive functional forum for free speech.  Reviews of local businesses are crucial to the hyper-local evolution of commerce and trade.

Take a look at Spot Shooter's web site for yourself to see whether Five Sparrows constructed a functioning web site.  If you wanted to get outside today for the first day of bow season, would you be able to purchase your equipment on-line from Spot Shooter Archery?  If not, whose fault would that be?

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On June 3rd, the Oakland County Business Court commences here at the Oakland County Circuit Court.  The Michigan Supreme Court has appointed Oakland Circuit Judges Wendy Potts and James Alexander to preside over the docket.

To qualify for the Business Court, a dispute must seek at least $25,000 in damages and all litigants must be business entities; not individuals.  In addition, the Business Court will adopt e-filing and feature cost-saving tools such as audio/video conferencing and an emphasis on alternative dispute resolution.

Judges Alexander and Potts will be assigned cases in a blind-draw system; each judge will serve a 6-year term on the special court.  Bench trials -trials without juries- are expected to be the norm in the Business Court.  Both judges are expected to take a "hands-on" approach to the docket, with a scheduling-emphasis that features bringing the litigants into court early on with an emphasis on settlement; not trial.

If you ask us over here at the Law Blogger, this sounds like a very interesting gig for a jurist; here's why.  The Business Court will be the exclusive forum to hear and resolve the following type of disputes:

• Information technology, software, web-site design and hosting;
• Internal disputes within a business organization;
• Contract disputes, including intellectual property rights;
• Commercial banking transactions;
• Commercial real estate transactions;
• Business or Commercial insurance disputes.

For specific statutory language contained in the Revised Judicature Act controlling which cases are expressly included and which cases are expressly excluded in the Business Court, click here.

Litigants that desire to be included on the Oakland Circuit's Business Court docket should download and complete this Notice of Assignment to the Business Court Form.  For more information about the Business Court, click here.

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Honorable Edward Sosnick

Since we last addressed this topic, some things have changed.  Although former 51st District Court Judge Phyllis McMillen is now installed at 1200 N. Telegraph, she was assigned to a general docket courtroom (civil matters and criminal felonies) rather than the Family Court Division, as we previously reported.

Also, Oakland County Family Court Judge James Alexander did not take over departed Judge Mark Goldsmith's docket but rather, is scheduled to "swap dockets" with long-time Oakland County Circuit Judge Edward Sosnick.

The last time Judge Sosnick handled a divorce was prior to the statutory creation of the Family Court back in 1998.  As a seasoned jurist, however, he will acclimate quickly to the divorce docket as he rides-out his last two years on the bench.

Finally, long-time Oakland Family Court and Probate Judge Eugene Moore is retiring from the bench at the end of the year.  His replacement will be determined via the November 2 election between candidates Kathleen Ryan and Dana Hathaway.

If you lose track of your newly assigned judge, reassignments can be tracked by using the Oakland County Circuit Court's Court Explorer.

Be sure to vote on November 2, and don't forget to make your selection for judge on the non-partisan ballot!

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Recently, President Obama appointed Oakland Circuit Judge Mark Goldsmith to the federal bench in Detroit. His appointment has been approved by the U.S. Senate and he is expected to assume his place at the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan by year's end.

Goldsmith's appointment creates an opening on the general docket of the Oakland County Circuit Court.  Oakland Family Court Judge James M. Alexander has announced that he will vacate his place in the Family Court to assume Judge Goldsmith's docket.

Judge Alexander will be handling general civil cases, and a criminal docket.  This means that attorneys, and parties that had matters pending with Judge Alexander in the Oakland Family Court will have their matters re-assigned to another judge.

This also means that another judge will be appointed, perhaps by the end of the year, to fill Judge Alexander's spot on the family court in Oakland County.  Rumors are rampant relative to Governor Jennnifer Granholm's appointment for this seat.  Among a few others, we've heard that 51st District Chief Judge Phyllis McMillen is under active consideration.

McMillen would be well-suited for the family court appointment.  A judge's judge, McMillen brings plenty of judicial experience as well as a valuable even-handed judicial demeanor to fill this important vacancy.  Unfortunately, in our system of political judicial appointments, the right person does not always get the job.

Our system of judicial elections for at-large seats, and gubernatorial vacancy appointments makes for an ever-changing bench at the county and municipal levels.  Good judges help to instill in the general public the proper confidence in our judicial system.

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