Butzel Long attorney Michael J. Lavoie to receive State Bar of Michigan's Champion of Justice Award
DETROIT, Mich. – Butzel Long attorney and shareholder Michael J. Lavoie will receive the State Bar of Michigan's Champion of Justice Award during the 2008 Annual Meeting, which takes place September 17-19, 2008 in Dearborn.
The Champion of Justice Award, one of the Bar Association's most distinguished honors, is given for integrity and adherence to the highest principles and traditions of the legal profession and professional accomplishments that benefit national, state or local communities. Mr. Lavoie is one of five recipients of the award this year. The other award recipients include 8th Circuit Court Judge David A. Hoort, Mary DuFour Morrow, Joan P. Vestrand and Lorraine H. Weber.
Mr. Lavoie is a board member and officer of the Pontiac Alumni Foundation engaged in youth mentoring and related activities. As a volunteer mentor at Lincoln Middle School three years ago, Mr. Lavoie met weekly with 26 at-risk students, none of whom were expected to reach high school. He led the students – the Gettysburg Group – in African studies, museum trips, and got them involved in community service. The Alumni Foundation adopted the Gettysburg Group blueprint for the entire district and now serves more than 400 students with 85 mentors. Each of the mentors commits to meeting one hour a week with a student to help him/her develop the character and academic skills to succeed.
"The mentoring program has made a positive impact in the lives of these students," said Mr. Lavoie. "I’m very proud to be part of such an important program that encourages and challenges students."
Based in Butzel Long's Detroit office, Mr. Lavoie practices in the areas of criminal white collar defense, products liability defense, commercial, environmental, and construction litigation. Mr. Lavoie also has conducted numerous internal corporate investigations and designed and implemented a wide variety of compliance programs.
Prior to joining the firm in 1986, Mr. Lavoie was Assistant Chief of the Criminal Division of the U.S. Attorney's office.
He presently serves as President of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan Historical Society. Mr. Lavoie also is a former Peace Corps volunteer in Burkina-Faso and actively engaged in Africa development projects.
Mr. Lavoie is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame (B.A., cum laude, 1975) and the University of Detroit (J.D., cum laude, 1980). Mr. Lavoie is a resident of Birmingham.
About Butzel Long
Butzel Long was established in 1854 and is headquartered in Detroit. Butzel Long is one of America's leading law firms, with 240 attorneys and offices in Detroit, Bloomfield Hills, Lansing, Ann Arbor, and Holland, Michigan, New York City, Washington, D.C., Boca Raton and Palm Beach, Florida, as well as Alliance offices in Beijing, Shanghai, Mexico City and Monterrey. The firm represents clients from diverse industries on a regional, national and multi-national level and is the sole Michigan member of Lex Mundi, a global association of 160 independent law firms. Visit the Butzel Long website at www.butzel.com().
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Media Contact: Maribeth Farkas at Caponigro Public Relations Inc., (248) 355-3200.
