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Counsel to a diverse group of employers in the tax and ERISA aspects of welfare benefit plans, including Section 125 plans, COBRA compliance, consumer directed health plans, retiree medical plans, VEBAs and wellness plans. Counsel to numerous plan sponsors in the design, administration and qualification of qualified retirement plans, with an emphasis on 401(k) plans. Counsel to companies and compensation committees on the tax, ERISA, and securities law aspects of executive compensation programs, such as supplemental executive retirement plans, stock option plans, restricted stock plans, and non-qualified deferred compensation plans, including Code Section 409A compliance. Extensive experience in correcting qualification failures under the IRS Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System. Counsel to over 75 credit unions in connection with the negotiation and preparation of deferred compensation plans for key executives. National expert on fringe benefit plans, including dependent care assistance programs, educational assistance programs, and Section 132 fringe benefits. Substantial experience in counseling clients on compliance with HIPAA privacy rules. Counsel to privately and publicly held companies in a variety of industries on the organization of corporations and LLCs, preparation of basic corporate minutes, stock and asset acquisitions and divestitures, and review of proxy statements, including under the SEC's extensive executive compensation disclosure rules. Counsel to publicly held corporations on Sarbanes-Oxley Act compliance matters, including the establishment of policies and procedures for SEC Forms 3, 4, and 5 two-business day reporting and compensation committee governance. REPRESENTATIVE CLIENTS ACO, Inc. Carhartt, Inc. Community Shores Bank Dura Automotive Systems, Inc. H&R Block Financial Advisors, Inc. Magna International, Inc. Mercantile Bank of Michigan Ross Controls Sogeti USA L.L.C. Yellow Pages Association AREAS OF PRACTICE EMPHASIS Corporate Corporate Governance Employee Benefits Real Estate Securities ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Selected for inclusion in Michigan Super Lawyers (2008) PROFESSIONAL INVOLVEMENT State Bar of Michigan, Sections of Business Law and Taxation American Bar Association, Sections of Business Law and Taxation; member of the Employee Benefits Committee, Cafeteria Plans and Flexible Benefits Subcommittee Oakland County Bar Association; Chairman, Employee Benefits Committee (2008-2009) PUBLICATIONS AND PRESENTATIONS Employee Fringe Benefits, co-author, BNA Tax Management Portfolio 394-4th Co-author of a chapter titled "Employment Agreements, Policies, and Compensation" in the 2001 ICLE publication "A Practical Guide to E Business Law" Frequent lecturer on employee benefit plans, including at an Oakland County Bar Association seminar in December 2007 on "Separation Pay Plans under Code Section 409A: Drafting and Design Considerations" EDUCATION Alma College, B.A. 1978 (summa cum laude) Western Michigan University, M.S.L. 1979 (with highest honors) The University of Texas at Austin, J.D. 1986 (with honors) Order of the Coif.
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