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1. 1. Brennan wants to return access, civility to high court - 09/28/02

   www.detnews.com/2002/politics/ - [Cached]

   Published on: 10/3/2002   Last Visited: 10/3/2002

   Personal: Married to Leta Brennan; two children.
   
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   ...
   "We just want an even playing field for people to come in and settle a grievance," says Brennan, a candidate for the court. Now, he says, the state's highest court won't even let some types of cases on the playing field. Though the race for the Supreme Court is nonpartisan, political parties nominate the candidates. The Democratic Party selected Brennan, a 49-year-old attorney who lives in Rochester Hills, and Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Maggie Drake of Detroit as its Supreme Court candidates.
   ...
   Brennan, a general practitioner whose law office is in the Macomb County community of Sterling Heights, has been a Michigan-licensed attorney since 1979, the year he graduated from the Detroit College of Law. He served as Fraser city attorney from 1983 until 1999, when the city council fired him after he prosecuted the then-mayor's son on a drunken-driving charge. He has also served as outside legal counsel for the state, as a special assistant attorney general assigned to the Michigan Department of Transportation for 18 years. In 2000, Brennan ran for a seat on the state Court of Appeals but lost to Jessica Cooper, 43 percent to 57 percent.
   ...
   Brennan says he couldn't get past Cooper's name recognition in that race. "I had a good reputation. I had a good rating from the Oakland County Bar Association. But it just wasn't enough," he says. "This other judge just had a higher profile." In recent years, the Supreme Court, where Republican nominees outnumber Democratic nominees 5-2, has become too partisan and too eager to dispatch with legal precedent, Brennan says. The court has "no balance" and is "just about always divided," with the Republican-nominated justices generally ruling in favor of insurance companies and other big businesses, he says. "I think the majority rules too narrowly, which has the effect of denying a lot of people access to the courts," he says. "The majority has also overruled a lot of long-standing cases, a lot of precedent." Brennan also thinks that Democratic-nominated justices are more frequently being personally attacked by their GOP-nominated counterparts. "When (the court's) civility is being emphasized by the State Bar of Michigan and by local bar associations, it's just completely inappropriate to have Supreme Court justices acting the way they do," he says. The Supreme Court election of two years ago featured months of costly and sometimes vicious politicking. In its wake, the Republicans held onto their 5-2 majority. This campaign has been less harsh, and Brennan says he has enjoyed the experience. "I love meeting people. I like talking about issues, listening to their concerns. It's just a great experience," he says. Brennan has never been a judge but has served as a case evaluator -- a mediator who tries to settle cases -- in Macomb, Oakland and Wayne counties. He has also been an arbitrator for the Michigan Employment Relations Commission. He points to his experience in both criminal and civil law and in prosecution and defense as strengths he would bring to the court. He also wants citizens to feel more in touch with the court. "I want people to feel like they're connected, that there's no alienation," Brennan says. "That's part of the reason I do this. I want people to have faith in the judiciary and not to be cynical."

2. 2. Brennan wants to return access, civility to high court - 9/28/02

   www.detnews.com/2002/politics/ - [Cached]

   Published on: 9/28/2002   Last Visited: 9/28/2002

   Personal: Married to Leta Brennan; two children.
   
   Comment on this story
   
   Send this story to a friend
   
   Get Home Delivery
   
   ...
   "We just want an even playing field for people to come in and settle a grievance," says Brennan, a candidate for the court. Now, he says, the state's highest court won't even let some types of cases on the playing field. Though the race for the Supreme Court is nonpartisan, political parties nominate the candidates. The Democratic Party selected Brennan, a 49-year-old attorney who lives in Rochester Hills, and Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Maggie Drake of Detroit as its Supreme Court candidates.
   ...
   Brennan, a general practitioner whose law office is in the Macomb County community of Sterling Heights, has been a Michigan-licensed attorney since 1979, the year he graduated from the Detroit College of Law. He served as Fraser city attorney from 1983 until 1999, when the city council fired him after he prosecuted the then-mayor's son on a drunken-driving charge. He has also served as outside legal counsel for the state, as a special assistant attorney general assigned to the Michigan Department of Transportation for 18 years. In 2000, Brennan ran for a seat on the state Court of Appeals but lost to Jessica Cooper, 43 percent to 57 percent.
   ...
   Brennan says he couldn't get past Cooper's name recognition in that race. "I had a good reputation. I had a good rating from the Oakland County Bar Association. But it just wasn't enough," he says. "This other judge just had a higher profile." In recent years, the Supreme Court, where Republican nominees outnumber Democratic nominees 5-2, has become too partisan and too eager to dispatch with legal precedent, Brennan says. The court has "no balance" and is "just about always divided," with the Republican-nominated justices generally ruling in favor of insurance companies and other big businesses, he says. "I think the majority rules too narrowly, which has the effect of denying a lot of people access to the courts," he says. "The majority has also overruled a lot of long-standing cases, a lot of precedent." Brennan also thinks that Democratic-nominated justices are more frequently being personally attacked by their GOP-nominated counterparts. "When (the court's) civility is being emphasized by the State Bar of Michigan and by local bar associations, it's just completely inappropriate to have Supreme Court justices acting the way they do," he says. The Supreme Court election of two years ago featured months of costly and sometimes vicious politicking. In its wake, the Republicans held onto their 5-2 majority. This campaign has been less harsh, and Brennan says he has enjoyed the experience. "I love meeting people. I like talking about issues, listening to their concerns. It's just a great experience," he says. Brennan has never been a judge but has served as a case evaluator -- a mediator who tries to settle cases -- in Macomb, Oakland and Wayne counties. He has also been an arbitrator for the Michigan Employment Relations Commission. He points to his experience in both criminal and civil law and in prosecution and defense as strengths he would bring to the court. He also wants citizens to feel more in touch with the court. "I want people to feel like they're connected, that there's no alienation," Brennan says. "That's part of the reason I do this. I want people to have faith in the judiciary and not to be cynical."

3. 3. Brennan wants to return access, civility to high court - 09/28/02

   www.detnews.com/2002/politics/ - [Cached]

   Published on: 9/29/2002   Last Visited: 9/29/2002

   Personal: Married to Leta Brennan; two children.
   
   Comment on this story
   
   Send this story to a friend
   
   Get Home Delivery
   
   ...
   "We just want an even playing field for people to come in and settle a grievance," says Brennan, a candidate for the court. Now, he says, the state's highest court won't even let some types of cases on the playing field. Though the race for the Supreme Court is nonpartisan, political parties nominate the candidates. The Democratic Party selected Brennan, a 49-year-old attorney who lives in Rochester Hills, and Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Maggie Drake of Detroit as its Supreme Court candidates.
   ...
   Brennan, a general practitioner whose law office is in the Macomb County community of Sterling Heights, has been a Michigan-licensed attorney since 1979, the year he graduated from the Detroit College of Law. He served as Fraser city attorney from 1983 until 1999, when the city council fired him after he prosecuted the then-mayor's son on a drunken-driving charge. He has also served as outside legal counsel for the state, as a special assistant attorney general assigned to the Michigan Department of Transportation for 18 years. In 2000, Brennan ran for a seat on the state Court of Appeals but lost to Jessica Cooper, 43 percent to 57 percent.
   ...
   Brennan says he couldn't get past Cooper's name recognition in that race. "I had a good reputation. I had a good rating from the Oakland County Bar Association. But it just wasn't enough," he says. "This other judge just had a higher profile." In recent years, the Supreme Court, where Republican nominees outnumber Democratic nominees 5-2, has become too partisan and too eager to dispatch with legal precedent, Brennan says. The court has "no balance" and is "just about always divided," with the Republican-nominated justices generally ruling in favor of insurance companies and other big businesses, he says. "I think the majority rules too narrowly, which has the effect of denying a lot of people access to the courts," he says. "The majority has also overruled a lot of long-standing cases, a lot of precedent." Brennan also thinks that Democratic-nominated justices are more frequently being personally attacked by their GOP-nominated counterparts. "When (the court's) civility is being emphasized by the State Bar of Michigan and by local bar associations, it's just completely inappropriate to have Supreme Court justices acting the way they do," he says. The Supreme Court election of two years ago featured months of costly and sometimes vicious politicking. In its wake, the Republicans held onto their 5-2 majority. This campaign has been less harsh, and Brennan says he has enjoyed the experience. "I love meeting people. I like talking about issues, listening to their concerns. It's just a great experience," he says. Brennan has never been a judge but has served as a case evaluator -- a mediator who tries to settle cases -- in Macomb, Oakland and Wayne counties. He has also been an arbitrator for the Michigan Employment Relations Commission. He points to his experience in both criminal and civil law and in prosecution and defense as strengths he would bring to the court. He also wants citizens to feel more in touch with the court. "I want people to feel like they're connected, that there's no alienation," Brennan says. "That's part of the reason I do this. I want people to have faith in the judiciary and not to be cynical."