Thomas M. Sullivan - Detroit, MI

A substantial portion of Mr. Sullivan's time is spent acting in the capacity of general counsel for clients who do not have lawyers on staff. In that function, he regularly negotiates and drafts contracts, provides counsel with respect to business, employment, real estate and insurance matters, leases, corporate governance, succession planning, bank and private financing, business "start-ups", business workouts, executive compensation, employment contracts, mergers and acquisitions and litigation matters.

Mr. Sullivan offers a unique perspective and experience to both his profit and nonprofit business clients. Since 1978, he has been associated with Vista Maria, a nonprofit agency caring for troubled young women between the ages of 11 and 18, first as an Advisory Board Member, then as a Director, and finally as its President for four years, he continues to serve as a member of the Advisory Board and its Finance Committee. In 1998, he was elected to the Board of Directors of Boys Hope-Girls Hope Detroit, a nonprofit agency providing housing and educational opportunities to youth; he is also a member of its Finance and Program Committees. He is a member of the Detroit Athletic Club and from 1994 through 2000, he served as a Director of the Club and was also the Club's Secretary for two years. These experiences, together with those gained during more than 35 years of practicing law, gives him a special understanding of the unique missions and visions which are the heart of the operations of each of his profit and nonprofit corporate clients. They also provide him a strong foundation upon which to offer counsel on not only legal issues but also to offer perspective on the other difficult issues his clients encounter.

Mr. Sullivan is a member of the American Bar Association and the Michigan Bar Association, where he served as a Council Member of the Business Law Section from 1983 through 1989, and as a Council Member of the Law Practice Management Section and Chair of its Lawyer and Staff Compensation Committee from 1991 through 1996. He taught corporate reorganizations as well as federal and state securities regulations for 9 years as an Adjunct Professor of Law at the University of Detroit-Mercy Law School, and in 2006 and he was selected as one of Michigan's Super Lawyers. He is also a member of Bayview Yacht Club and served as Chair of its Legal Committee.