Attorney and Counselor, The Private Firm
Brian D. Harrison
Trial Counsel for Commercial Disputes
Schedule a ConversationAdmitted in Michigan since 2001 · State and federal courts
He Began His Career in a Courtroom
He Learned to Try Cases Before He Learned to Settle Them
Brian D. Harrison has practiced law in Michigan since 2001. He earned his Juris Doctor magna cum laude at Thomas M. Cooley Law School, and he spent the early part of his career as an Assistant Prosecuting Attorney, where the work was not measured in drafts exchanged but in cases carried to verdict. He learned to examine a witness, to try a case in front of a jury, and to stand up when a judge asked who was ready to proceed.
That is an unusual foundation for a commercial litigator. Most lawyers who handle business disputes learned the work from the paper side, and their trial experience is theoretical. Brian came the other direction. He knew what a courtroom demanded before he ever argued about a purchase agreement, and more than two decades of commercial practice since have been built on that footing.
The difference shows up long before trial. Opposing counsel can tell whether the lawyer across the table is prepared to try the case or is looking for an exit, and that assessment sets the terms of every negotiation that follows. A demand is only as strong as the party's willingness to test it in front of a judge. Brian's clients do not have to bluff about that.
He represents businesses and individuals in complex commercial disputes in state and federal courts: contract litigation, business torts, and corporate matters. He takes the position that the file should be built for trial from the first week, whether or not it ever gets there, because a case prepared that way settles on better terms and tries better if it does not.
Settlement value is set by what the other side believes will happen at trial.
The premise he works from
Disputes, Torts, and Corporate Conflict
Counsel for Businesses in Conflict
Complex Commercial Litigation
Brian handles commercial disputes in which the amount at stake justifies a fight: breach of contract actions, disputes among owners and partners, claims involving competing businesses, and matters where a company's operations or cash flow are at risk while the case is pending. He builds the record early, moves the case rather than letting it drift, and treats discovery as the phase where cases are won rather than a formality to be endured.
Contract Litigation
Most commercial fights turn on a handful of words that two parties read differently. Brian litigates those disputes on both sides of the caption, for parties enforcing an agreement and for parties defending against a strained reading of one. He identifies the provision the case will actually turn on, then builds the evidence that makes the client's reading the more persuasive one to the court.
Business Torts and Corporate Disputes
Not every commercial injury arises from a contract. Brian handles business tort claims and corporate disputes, including matters involving misappropriation, interference with business relationships, breaches of duty owed to a company, and conflicts among the people who own or control one. These cases are frequently personal as well as financial, and they demand a lawyer who can keep the strategy disciplined when the parties cannot.
State and Federal Court Practice
Brian appears in Michigan state courts and in federal court. The two forums reward different habits, in scheduling, motion practice, and the level of specificity a judge expects, and a lawyer who works in both does not have to learn the difference at a client's expense.
Where His Work Begins
Where Clients Turn to Him
Breach of Contract Actions
Enforcement and defense of commercial agreements, including the disputes that turn on a single provision.
Owner, Partner, and Shareholder Disputes
Conflicts among the people who own or run a business, where the financial exposure and the working relationship are both at stake.
Business Torts
Claims involving misappropriation, interference with business relationships, and breaches of duty owed to a company.
Corporate and Commercial Disputes
Litigation arising from company operations, governance, and dealings between businesses.
Federal Court Litigation
Commercial matters that belong in, or end up in, federal court.
Case Assessment and Early Strategy
An honest read on exposure, cost, and the likely path of the case before the client commits to a course.
The Work Behind the Practice
Background and Experience
- Admitted to the State Bar of Michigan in 2001.
- Juris Doctor, magna cum laude, Thomas M. Cooley Law School.
- Former Assistant Prosecuting Attorney, with courtroom and trial advocacy experience earned trying cases.
- Former commercial litigation associate in private practice.
- More than two decades representing businesses and individuals in commercial disputes.
- Litigation in Michigan state courts and in federal court.
Full Scope of Practice
Practice Areas
- Commercial Litigation
- Contract Litigation
- Business Torts
- Corporate Disputes
- Trial Work and Litigation
- Federal Court Litigation
How He Works With Clients
Prepared Early, and Prepared to Try It
Brian tells clients what the case is worth and what it will cost before they are committed to it, including when the honest answer is that the fight is not worth having. Once a client decides to proceed, the file gets built for trial from the beginning: the theory of the case set early, the evidence gathered to support it, and the motions filed to narrow what the other side can argue. Clients hear from him when something changes, not only when a deadline arrives, and they are not surprised by their own case.
Beyond the Pleadings
Two Decades in Michigan Courtrooms
Prepared. Relentless. Precise.
Aggressive advocacy is a phrase every firm uses, so it is worth being concrete about what it means here. It means the case is prepared before it is threatened, the demand is one the client is willing to try, and the pressure applied is procedural rather than rhetorical.
248.781.4500
brian@thefirm.net