Meet Liisa Speaker

 

Liisa Speaker:

Member and Founder Speaker Law Firm, PLLC | (517) 482-8933 | lspeaker@speakerlaw.com

 

Since graduating from The University of Texas School of Law, one of the nation’s top law schools, Liisa Speaker has become well known for her excellent written and oral advocacy. Her appellate skills have helped clients obtain victories in appeals ranging from custody disputes to no-fault automobile insurance litigation to real property case and to probate appeals. Since , Liisa has focused her appellate practice on family law, adoption and child welfare cases.

She achieved the status of fellow in the American Academy of Matrimonial Attorneys, an elite group of family law attorneys and serves as the Chair-Elect for the State Bar of Michigan Family Law Section.

Liisa's mission is to improve the landscape of Michigan family law by changing standards of appointment and election for family law judges, instituting dedicated family law courts and convincing judges to follow the law.

Liisa also published her first book in 2021, “Kids Caught In The Middle: How Families Are Harmed When Judges Don’t Follow The Law”. Learn more here!

Liisa has represented clients in the federal appellate courts (the United States Supreme Court, the Fifth, and Sixth Circuits) as well as the appellate courts of Michigan and Texas. She has been recognized by her peers for her appellate advocacy, receiving the 2009 Distinguished Brief Award, presented by the Cooley Law Review from among the briefs submitted to Michigan Supreme Court in the prior year. The award honored her writing efforts for the amicus curiae brief she submitted in the USF&G v Michigan Catastrophic Claims Association case in the Michigan Supreme Court.

Liisa drafted and submitted amicus briefs on behalf of organizations such as the Family Law Section for the State Bar of Michigan, the Family Defense Attorneys of Michigan, the Appellate Practice Section for the State Bar of Michigan, the Michigan District Judges Association. the Coalition Protecting Auto No-Fault, the Michigan Association for Justice, and Brain Injury Association of Michigan. These briefs aided the Court in drafting opinions or orders that had profound impacts on the law in Allard v Allard, Estes v Titus; USF&G v MCCA, Rowland v Washtenaw County Road Commission, Beaver v Barton Malow, U of M Regents v Titan Insurance, and McCormick v Carrier, to name a few.

She has also obtained favorable rulings for her clients, resulting in many published opinions. For example, in In re Keast she obtained a victory in a published opinion in the Michigan Court of Appeals in an adoption case which is now one of the most frequently cited cases in Adoption Law. In Rose v Rose, Ms. Speaker's efforts led to a published opinion addressing whether a party who waived his right to modification of spousal support can obtain relief from judgment. In Glaubius v Glaubius, the Court of Appeals held that a couple's divorce judgement did not bar the mother from later seeking a revocation of her ex-husband's paternity. In Lieberman v Orr she convinced the Court of Appeals to overturn a trial judges so called parenting time decision because the new parenting time schedule actually changed custody. In In re MGR, she helped prospective adoptive parents finalize an adoption after years of litigation, multiple appeals and Supreme Court oral argument. She has achieved great success in obtaining the rarely-granted peremptory reversals for clients in the Michigan Supreme Court and the Court of Appeals. In Romans v Michigan DHS she obtained a reversal from 6th Circuit of trial court's grant of summary judgment on an employee's Family Medical Leave Act claim.

Through her written and oral advocacy, Ms. Speaker has demonstrated a passion for developing an appellate practice that gives her clients a voice, while contributing to the legal community. She is a council member and the current treasurer for the State Bar of Michigan Family Law Section, as well as a fellow of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (AAML). She was also previously appointed by the Michigan Supreme Court to two four-year terms on the Court Reporter and Recorder Board of Review. Liisa lives in Lansing with her husband, two daughters, a dog and a turtle.

 

Published Decisions:

In re OO Claudio-Perez, ___ Mich App ­­­___ (2024).

Andary v USAA Casualty Insurance Company, 343 Mich App 1; 996 NW2d 784 (2023).

Baby Boy Doe (On Remand), 344 Mich. App. 82, 998 N.W.2d 733 (2022).

Baby Boy Doe, 509 Mich 1056; 975 NW2d 486 (2022), reversing 338 Mich App 571 (2021).

Kostreva v Kostreva, 337 Mich App 648; 976 NW2d 889 (2021).

People v Parrott, 335 Mich App 648; 968 NW2d 548 (2021).

In re Jankowski, 335 Mich App 273; 966 NW2d 460 (2020).

Bofysil v Bofysil, 332 Mich App 232; 956 NW2d 544 (2020).

Martin v Martin, 331 Mich App 224; 952 NW2d 530 (2020).

In re LMB, 504 Mich 869; 928 NW2d 181 (2019).

Pennington v Pennington, 329 Mich App 562; 944 NW2d 131 (2019).

In re AGD, 327 Mich App 332; 933 NW2d 751 (2019).

In re Blakeman, Minors, 326 Mich App 318; 926 NW2d 326 (2018).

In re MGR, 323 Mich App 279; 916 NW2d 662 (2018) and 504 Mich 852 (2019).

In re Miller Minors, 322 Mich App 497; 912 NW2d 872 (2018).

O’Leary v O’Leary, 321 Mich App 647; 909 NW2d 518 (2017).

In re MJG, 320 Mich App 310; 906 NW2d 815 (2017).

In re JSP/In re BPG, 320 Mich App 338; 906 NW2d 228 (2017).

Geering v King, 320 Mich App 182; 906 NW2d 214 (2017).

Elahham v Al Jabban, 319 Mich App 112; 899 NW2d 768 (2017).

Allard v Allard, 318 Mich App 853; 899 NW2d 420 (2017) (Amicus curiae).

Lieberman v Orr, 319 Mich App 68; 900 NW2d 130 (2017).

Yachcik v Yachcik, 319 Mich App 24; 900 NW2d 113 (2017).

Estate of Tyler Maki v Coen, 318 Mich App 532; 899 NW2d 111 (2017).

Bowling v McCarrick, 318 Mich App 568; 899 NW2d 808 (2017).

Sheet Metal Employers Industry Promotion Fund v Absolut Balancing Co. et al., 830 F. 3d 358 (6th 2016 [Mich.])

In re Deng, Minors, 314 Mich App 615; 887 NW2d 445 (2016).

Madson v Jaso, 317 Mich App 52; 893 NW2d 132 (2016) (Vacated by Supreme Court).

In re Bittner, 312 Mich App 227; 879 NW2d 269 (2015).

Maier v Maier, 211 Mich App 218; 874 NW2d 725 (2015).

Richards v Richards, 310 Mich App 683; 874 NW2d 704 (2015).

Hunter v Sisco, 497 Mich 45; 860 NW2d 67 (2014) (Amicus curiae).

Glaubius v Glaubius, 306 Mich App 157; 855 NW2d 221 (2014).

Mercantile Bank Mortgage Company LLC v NCPCP/BRYS Centre LLC, 305 Mich App 215; 852 NW2d 210 (2014) (Oral Argument Only).

W.H. Bearce Trust v Estate of Rosemary Futrell, 303 Mich App 28; 840 NW2d 775 (2013).

Burris v Kam Transport Inc, 301 Mich App 482; 836 NW2d 727 (2013).

Berrien v United States, 711 F.3d 654 (6th Cir 2013 [Mich.]).

Romans v Michigan Department of Human Services, 668 F3d 826 (6th Cir. 2012 [Mich.]).

People v Gomez, 295 Mich App 411; 820 NW2d 217 (2012).

Joseph v Auto Club Ins Ass’n, 491 Mich 200; 815 NW2d 412 (2012) (Amicus curiae).

Augustine v Allstate (After Remand), 292 Mich App 408; 807 NW2d 77 (2011).

Krohn v Home-Owners Ins Co, 490 Mich 145; 801 NW2d 281 (2011) (Amicus curiae).

University of Michigan Regents v Titan Insurance Co, 487 Mich 289; 791 NW2d 897 (2010) (Amicus curiae).

McCormick v Carrier, 478 Mich 180; 770 NW2d 359 (2010) (Amicus curiae).

Rose v Rose, 289 Mich App 45; 795 NW2d 611 (2010).

United States Fidelity Ins & Guar Co v Mich Catastrophic Claims Ass’n, 484 Mich 1; 773 NW2d 243 (2009).

Estes v Titus, 481 Mich 573; 751 NW2d 493 (2008) (Amicus curiae).

In the Matter of Alyssa and Amber Keast, Minors, 278 Mich App 415; 750 NW2d 643 (2008).

In the Matter of Steven Zimmerman, Minor, 277 Mich App 470; 746 NW2d 306 (2008), rev’d in part 480 Mich 1143 (2008).

Mackinac Chapter of Sierra Club v. Michigan DEQ, 277 Mich App 531; 747 NW2d321 (2008).

Rowland v Washtenaw County Rd Comm’n, 477 Mich 197; 731 NW2d 41 (2007) (Amicus curiae).

United States v. Stuart, 507 F.3d 391(6th Cir. 2007 [Mich.]).

Palasota v. Haggar Clothing Co., 342 F.3d 569 (5th Cir. 2003 [Tex.]).

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