Medical Marijuana Mess

43rd District Court Judge Robert Turner says it is one of the worst pieces of legislation he has ever seen.  He made that assessment of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act (MMA) back in June 2009 when dismissing pot growing charges brought by the Oakland County Prosecutor against Robert Lee Redden and Torey Alison Clark.Last week, the Michigan Court of Appeals affirmed Oakland Circuit Court Judge Martha Anderson's reinstatement of the criminal charges against Redden and Clark.  Now, the accused Madison Heights couple will either have to plead or go to trial.At the time of the raid on the couple's residence, the Oakland County Sheriff seized 1.5 ounces of pot, some nominal cash, and about 21 small plants.  Three weeks prior to...

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Posted in: Abercrombie,Judge Martha Anderson,Judge Peter O'Connell,Judge Robert Turner,Lee Redden,marijuana,Mich Medical Marijuana Act,Oakland County Prosecutor,Robert criminal defense,Torey Clark

Specialized Foreclosure Courts Spring-Up in Florida

If you lost your home to foreclosure, would you know who steps into your shoes as the next owner?Uncertainty answering that question is plaguing an innovative specialized court-system in Florida designed to speed-up the foreclosure process.  The recently tallied second quarter found Florida leading the nation in the proportion of delinquent or foreclosed mortgages: 20.13%.This high mortgage failure rate is nurtured by the poor economy which has driven home values so far down, nearly half of all Floridian home-owners now owe more on their mortgages than their homes are worth.  To combat this problem, the Florida legislature recently allocated ten million dollars to implement a high-speed "foreclosure only" court system.Florida's Ninth...

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Posted in: David J. Stern,Florida,Florida Attorney General,foreclosure,Judge Belvin Perry Jr.,mortgage

Huge Claims Resolved in Davidson Estate

When you die a billionaire, your estate is often going to be heavily litigated before a certificate of completion is filed with the probate court.  Particularly when your widow (and business partner) is not the mother of your children.Another ingredient for guaranteed protracted probate litigation: last minute changes to your will.Local billionaire Bill Davidson's estate had all of these characteristics.  After his death in March 2009, Davidson's estate was estimated at well-over a billion dollars.Davidson parlayed his fortune from Guardian Industries, a glass company, into a sports empire that once included world-champions Detroit Pistons and Detroit Shock, as well as the Tampa Bay Lightning hockey team, and the Detroit Fury arena...

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Posted in: Bill Davidson,Detroit Pistons,estate planning,Karen Davidson,Oakland County Circuit Court Judge Nanci Grant,Oakland County Probate Court,probate court litigation