For more than 30 years, Ray Morrow has enjoyed providing guidance, advice, support and, when necessary, aggressive advocacy for his clients. He specializes in litigation, trial work and dispute resolution, but believes that litigation avoidance is often the most beneficial option for the people and businesses who seek his counsel. Therefore, Mr. Morrow works with his clients to anticipate problems before they arise, and, if problems have developed, to carefully evaluate all options before deciding on a course of action. When litigation is the best choice or is otherwise unavoidable, Mr. Morrow’s knowledge and experience have resulted in great successes for his clients before juries, judges, and arbitrators, and in negotiation of favorable settlements.
Mr. Morrow’s background in the law has been diverse and extensive. He has been lead trial counsel for both plaintiffs and defendants in a wide array of civil and criminal cases ranging from complex construction disputes, representing owners, contractors, architects, and suppliers to cases arising under the Federal securities laws; from employment discrimination cases to criminal defense; from real estate, municipal and zoning disputes to corporate and business entity break-ups; from shareholder oppression actions to insurance litigation; from trade secret misappropriation, fiduciary duty, non-compete agreement violations and intellectual property disputes to breaches of contract; from traffic to probate and estate disputes; from successful enforcement of deed restrictions in the Michigan Supreme Court to representation of a major television network on libel, slander and First Amendment issues. Mr. Morrow has been passionately “all in” for his clients for his entire legal career, and has handled all manner of cases at the trial level, on appeal and in both state and federal courts.
Education
J.D., Wayne State University Law School, Detroit, MI
B.A., University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
Bar and Court Admissions
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan (1969)
U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan (1986)
U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals (1985)
U.S. Court of Appeals, Federal Circuit (1994)
United States Supreme Court (1979)
Memberships
Former Hearing Panel Chairperson, Michigan Attorney Discipline Board (1987 – present)
Former American Arbitration Association, Arbitrator, Panel of Neutrals (1980 – present)
Case Evaluator for Oakland County court
Formally Trained and Active Mediator (Michigan Court Rule 2.411)
State Bar of Michigan
Oakland County Bar Association
Society of Former Special Agents of the FBI
Raymond Morrow has regularly been listed in the national Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory with an “AV” peer review rating, the highest rating given to attorneys, recognizing both legal ability and ethical standards.
Mr. Morrow has regularly been listed in Michigan Super Lawyers magazine, which features the top 5% of attorneys in Michigan, in the specialty of Business Litigation.
He was also designated a “Leading Lawyer” in Commercial Litigation (a distinction granted to the top 1% of attorneys in Michigan).
Professional Background Prior to Kemp Klein Law Firm:
Special Agent, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Washington D.C., Portland, OR and San Francisco, CA (1969-1972). Investigated and testified at trial regarding violations of federal criminal statutes within the jurisdiction of the FBI.
Senior Trial Attorney, Oakland County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, Pontiac, MI (1972-1976). Handled numerous criminal prosecutions on behalf of the State of Michigan, including certain highly publicized cases involving first degree murder and other capital offenses.
Bloomfield Estates Improvement Association, Inc. v. City of Birmingham, MI, 479 Mich. 206, 737 N.W. 2d 670 (2007); Ancient deed restrictions applicable to properties within a subdivision represented by Mr. Morrow were validated and enforced by the Michigan Supreme Court in order to prevent the City of Birmingham, Mi. from a continuing deed restriction violation on a lot owned by the city within the subdivision, and despite claims by city that the restrictions had been waived