The Oakland County Probate Court in Michigan has a reputation that’s no secret to attorneys practicing Michigan estate and probate law.

Attorneys claim that openly criticizing any of the four judges or Oakland County Public Administrators, whether in court or in public, can lead to sanctions placed against them; or the possible removal of their license by Michigan’s Attorney Discipline Board.

Families claim there are very few Michigan attorneys who are willing to take their cases against an Oakland County Public Administrator, and that those who do charge retainers that are far out of a family’s reach.

One attorney, who has defended wards and families in front of Hallmark and O’Brien, spoke on condition of anonymity and was given the alias “Paul.”

“I knew of one client who has been through 60 separate attorneys, none of whom would help her,” he says. “I’ve heard from clients whose previous attorneys were threatened.”

While threats do not deter him from taking on Oakland County Probate Court cases, there have been consequences.

“The judges have been sanctioning me for no reason,” Paul asserts.  “I had not been sanctioned in my entire career.  I’m trying to enforce the law or the court rules.  I always have my briefs filed and they don’t care.  They don’t care about the law.  They don’t care about the facts.”

“It doesn’t matter what it is—an accounting, a petition to enter a home—it’s the same,” he adds. “I’m the one who’s going to be punished because I’m challenging the judge’s appointees, who they are going to protect no matter what. It’s so obvious to me. Their appointees can’t do anything wrong no matter how egregious it is.”

Paul recalls a case in front of O’Brien during which he demonstrated proof that Thomas Brennan Fraser had committed fraud against his client.

“Judge O’Brien said, on the record, ‘Don’t ever mention that again!” he remembers. “He didn’t say why.”

“The duty of the court is to protect the ward,” Paul concludes. “These are standards that have been codified in writing, but they are breached on a regular basis. The judges should know, for example, how many wards each public administrator has and, if they have too many, are responsible for finding somebody else. But the judges aren’t paying any attention.”

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