Blogs

Q&A with Judge Anthony J. McDowell, 7th Circuit Court (Genesee County) – Family Division

By Lindsey DiCesare posted 3 days ago

Hon. Anthony J. McDowell is a circuit court judge for Genesee County. Before that, Judge McDowell was the director of the of the Genesee County Friend of the Court, serving as the administrator responsible for all Friend of the Court operations with a focus on improving access and education related to custody, parenting time, support, paternity, and other family law matters. Prior to his director role, Judge McDowell held the role of Deputy Friend of the Court, staff attorney, judicial advisory assistant, and lawyer in private practice. He is a member of the Family Law Section of the State Bar of Michigan, Genesee County Bar Association, and Friend of the Court ...

Five Favorite ICLE Resources

By Marissa Navarro posted 6 days ago

This past year has been full of firsts—and a few seconds too: first bar exam, second bar exam, first post-graduate fellowship, and the first time realizing that law school really does rewire the way you think. One of the things that’s helped me most is finding the right resources. The ones that meet you where you are, whether that’s trying to understand a new area of law, connect with people who’ve already been there, or figure out what kind of attorney you actually want to be. These are five resources I’ve found most helpful. Data Privacy and Cybersecurity Update 2026 As someone still building out my practice areas, I’ve been intentional about ...

Virtual Hearings in Michigan’s Circuit Courts: A 2026 Update for Practitioners

By Marissa Navarro posted 8 days ago

Michigan’s circuit courts, unlike the district courts, tend to be more formal and more consistent in how they communicate court procedures. But even with that structure, virtual‑hearing practices still vary widely from county to county. Some courts have fully integrated Zoom into their daily operations, while others have returned back to in‑person proceedings with only limited remote access. For attorneys handling cases across multiple jurisdictions, understanding which circuit courts still use Zoom and which maintain YouTube livestreams is essential for planning appearances, preparing clients, and ensuring compliance with local administrative orders. ...

How Many Michigan District Courts Still Use Virtual Hearings? A 2026 Snapshot for Practitioners

By Marissa Navarro posted 14 days ago

Since the pandemic, Michigan courts have taken very different paths on virtual access. Some courts have fully embraced Zoom and YouTube livestreaming; others have returned to in‑person operations with little or no digital footprint. For attorneys practicing across multiple counties, this inconsistency can create real challenges, especially when preparing clients, coordinating appearances, or tracking down remote‑hearing links. Based on a review of every Michigan district court website, here’s where things stand in 2026. Virtual Hearings: How Many District Courts Still Use Zoom? Note that Zoom allows remote participation, where parties can ...

Q&A with Judge K. Edward Black, 26th Circuit Court (Alpena County)

By Rachael Sedlacek posted 21 days ago

Hon. K. Edward Black is the Chief Judge of the 26th Circuit Court (Alpena County). Where can lawyers find your courtroom protocols, and what is something that lawyers often miss about them? We do not have a list of courtroom protocols. However, judge’s copies of motions and briefs are appreciated. These should be filed with the office of the 26 th Circuit Court in Alpena and not with the county clerk. Further, if judge’s copies are filed the day before the hearing, please alert my staff to ensure I have an opportunity to review them. For lawyers who have never been in your courtroom, what is your check-in process? There is no check-in ...

Can AI Write Case Summaries Like ICLE? Not Really.

By Marissa Navarro posted 24 days ago

Hi, all! I’m currently a Fellow with ICLE and a 2025 graduate of Michigan State University College of Law, now barred in Illinois. I’ve been really interested in how AI is starting to show up in legal work, especially when it comes to research and writing. ICLE wanted to test whether AI tools could generate case summaries similar to the ones we produce in-house. The short answer is no. For this project, I took ten case summaries from the Legal Updates page and used four different AI tools, Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, and Copilot, to create their own versions. The goal was to compare how closely they matched to ICLE’s summaries. Some of the results were ...

FinCEN Residential Reporting Rule Vacated by Federal Court Decision

By Nicole McNair posted 03-24-2026

A federal district court in Texas issued a memorandum opinion and order vacating the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) residential real estate reporting rule that recently took effect on March 1, 2026. Flowers Title Cos, LLC v Bessent , No 6:25-cv-127-JDK, ___ F Supp 3d ___ (ED Tex Mar 19, 2026). The court held that FinCEN exceeded its statutory authority under the Bank Secrecy Act, 31 USC 5311 et seq. , because the act only permits reporting requirements for suspicious transactions, and FinCEN has not justified treating all residential real estate transactions that the rule covers (nonfinanced transfers to a legal entity or trust that are ...

Spotlight on ICLE Contributors

By Rebekah Page-Gourley posted 03-13-2026

ICLE exists to keep Michigan lawyers updated, save them time, and prepare them to serve their clients effectively. Our team of nearly 50 employees (11 of whom are lawyers) is dedicated to this mission, but it’s ICLE’s volunteer contributors who make our work possible. ICLE contributors are lawyers, judges, and other professionals who donate their time, expertise, and insights to help Michigan lawyers succeed. Our contributors work on a variety of projects: from drafting book chapters and sharing time-saving drafted forms, to presenting at live events and moderating seminars in the ICLE studio. Their real-world experience and varied perspectives provide guidance ...

Spotlight on Michigan Law Online (MLO)

By Rebekah Page-Gourley posted 01-27-2026

One part of the ICLE Partnership that might be flying under your radar is the Michigan-only primary law resource known as Michigan Law Online (MLO) . You’ve likely encountered it while using your other ICLE resources—like when you click on a case link in a book chapter you’re reading—but you may not know about some of MLO’s most valuable features. Michigan Caselaw MLO includes a searchable database of Michigan Supreme Court (MSC) opinions from 1942 on, MSC orders from 1966 on, and published Michigan Court of Appeals (COA) opinions from 1965 on. Unpublished COA opinions from 1996 forward are also searchable. Once you’re looking at a specific ...

Q&A with Judge Patrick J. McGraw, 10th Circuit Court (Saginaw County)

By Tala Dahbour posted 01-19-2026

Hon. Patrick J. McGraw has been a probate judge since 1999 and was previously a trial attorney for 19 years. Judge McGraw is currently a member of the American Bar Association, the Probate and Estate Planning Section of the State Bar of Michigan, the Saginaw County Bar Association, the Michigan Probate Judges Association (MPJA), and the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges. He is also a member of many community groups and has won several awards, such as Local Legislator of the Year by the Police Officers Association of Michigan in 1994 and the distinguished service award from the Michigan Defense Trial Counsel in 1999, and he was named an ...

Spotlight on Demonstrations in the ICLE Partnership

By Rebekah Page-Gourley posted 12-11-2025

One thing we consistently hear from ICLE customers is that you want more demonstrations. Even if a lawyer tends to read a book chapter or listen to an MP3 of a webcast to get up to speed on a given practice topic, there is something uniquely helpful about seeing other lawyers in action. Demonstrations are a great way to fill in the gaps if you are new to an area, or you are refreshing yourself on something you haven’t had to tackle in a while. The ICLE Partnership includes dozens of helpful demonstrations, including various types of court hearings, client meetings, depositions, and mediations. The most recent addition to the collection is Evidence Demo ...

Q&A with Judge Paul F. Kraus, 20th Circuit Court (Ottawa County)

By Max Matthies posted 12-11-2025

Hon. Paul F. Kraus became Ottawa County's fifth Circuit Court Judge on January 1, 2023. Judge Kraus serves in the Family Division of the Circuit Court and his docket includes adoptions, child neglect/abuse cases, juvenile delinquency, divorce, and other domestic matters. Prior to becoming judge, he worked for the Ottawa County Prosecutor's Office, serving as a senior assistant prosecuting attorney and the family unit division director. In that capacity, he advocated for protecting children in neglect and abuse cases and handled a caseload of felony child abuse. Judge Kraus provided legal representation to the Ottawa County Department of Health and Human Services ...

Q&A with Judge Kathleen A. Feeney, Michigan Court of Appeals (Third District)

By Nicole McNair posted 11-21-2025

Judge Kathleen A. Feeney was elected to the Michigan Court of Appeals on November 8, 2022, after serving for more than 22 years on the Kent County Circuit Court and most recently as the Court’s Chief Judge Pro Tem. In 2000, Judge Feeney was the first woman appointed or elected to the Kent County Circuit Court. She graduated with high honors from Michigan State University’s Honors College and was the Outstanding Woman Law Graduate from the University of Illinois College of Law. Judge Feeney worked for Foster, Swift, Collins & Smith, and Mika, Meyers, Beckett & Jones. She received the State Bar of Michigan Outstanding Young Lawyer Award in 1995. After ...

Spotlight on New Content in the ICLE Partnership

By Rebekah Page-Gourley posted 09-23-2025

Did you know that your Partnership increases in value every week? In addition to continually updating our existing online resources, ICLE is constantly adding new content of all kinds to the Partnership, from forms and checklists to timely on-demand seminars and helpful How-to Kits. Here’s a short rundown on our content-creation process, where to find the newest practice resources, and how to get involved. Content Creation at ICLE Numerous paths lead to the creation of new Partnership resources. Here are some of the most significant ones: Formal Planning . Several times a year, ICLE lawyers meet to discuss upcoming legal developments, identify ...

Q&A with Judge Paul Stutesman, 45th Circuit Court (St. Joseph County)

By Rebekah Page-Gourley posted 09-02-2025

Hon. Paul Stutesman is a judge for the 45th Judicial Circuit for St. Joseph County, Michigan. He was appointed to the court by former Governor Jennifer Granholm in 2005. For attorneys who have never been to your court, what is your check-in process? Most civil cases are conducted on Zoom unless there are evidentiary issues. For criminal cases, we take them according to the docket. We schedule each case individually, so, for example, we don’t have 15 cases set at 9:00 a.m. When is your motion call? Are there a maximum number of motions heard during motion call? All motions should be set with our court administrator. She will need to know what the ...

Spotlight on ICLE’s “What’s New” Feature for Online Books

By Rebekah Page-Gourley posted 08-22-2025

If you’re an ICLE Partner, you probably know that the Premium Partnership includes 57 online books filled with authoritative legal analysis, hyperlinks to primary law, and downloadable forms and exhibits. You may also know that ICLE lawyers work with contributing authors to continually update these resources with changes in the law every two weeks . This means that when the Michigan Supreme Court or Michigan Court of Appeals publishes an opinion, it gets included in the discussion where applicable. When Michigan Court Rules (MCR) amendments impact a chapter, we make sure the chapter reflects those. The same goes for statutory changes, new federal law impacting ...

Q&A with Judge Andrew Kowalkowski, 44th District Court (Oakland County)

By Matthew Franson posted 08-01-2025

Hon. Andrew W. Kowalkowski was appointed judge for the 44th District Court in April 2022. Before his appointment to the bench, Judge Kowalkowski was an administrative law examiner for the Michigan Department of State, and before that, he was a general practitioner focused on criminal defense in and around Oakland County. Where can lawyers find your courtroom protocols, and what is something that lawyers often miss about them? Currently, we do not publish any prescribed courtroom protocols, although that is something we are considering for the future. My courtroom is a hybrid of in-person and Zoom. Dispositive motions, preliminary exams, trials, ...

Spotlight on ICLE Legal Updates

By Rebekah Page-Gourley posted 06-11-2025

ICLE’s Legal Updates are a great way to stay up-to-date on recent developments that matter to your practice. The collection includes short analysis of a variety of timely topics ranging from highlights of recent regulatory and statutory changes to developments in artificial intelligence. In the past year, we’ve introduced several new series of Legal Updates that we feel are particularly helpful for ICLE Partners: Monthly Caselaw Updates : This series provides summaries of each month’s Michigan Supreme Court and Michigan Court of Appeals published opinions, arranged by practice area, with links to the full opinions. While case summaries appear ...

Q&A with Judge Victoria A. Valentine, 6th Circuit Court (Oakland County)

By Lindsey DiCesare posted 06-02-2025

Hon. Victoria A. Valentine was elected to the 6th Circuit Court in 2016, and she serves on the business court. Judge Valentine is also the judicial liaison to the Oakland County Bar Association’s circuit court committee and a board member of the Michigan Supreme Court Historical Society. She is an active member of the State Bar of Michigan and has served on the Civil Procedure and Courts Committee. Prior to becoming a judge, Judge Valentine was a partner at Valentine & Associates PC. Judge Valentine has also served as president-elect of the Oakland County Bar Association and a trustee of the Oakland County Bar Foundation. For attorneys who have never ...

Q&A with Judge Jeffrey C. Nellis, 51st Circuit Court (Mason County)

By Lisa Geherin posted 05-01-2025

For attorneys who have never been to your court, what is your check-in process? For both probate and family court matters, folks should check in at the probate court window on the first floor. I start from the position that the best case scenario is for cases to be heard live. Cases get delayed when we are trying to connect people, and, in our rural area, a good connection is often a problem. Also, having everyone in the room together enhances prospects for truthfulness and lends to the formality of the proceedings. From the attorney perspective, I expect that if you file an appearance in our court that you should expect to appear live when required. ...