Assess
An honest read on exposure, cost, and the likely path before the client commits to a fight.
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 began as an Assistant Prosecuting Attorney, where the work was measured in cases carried to verdict. He learned to examine a witness, try a case before a jury, and stand ready when the court called the matter.
More than two decades of commercial litigation since have been built on that foundation. Opposing counsel can tell whether the lawyer across the table is prepared to try the case. That judgment shapes every negotiation that follows.
ForumMichigan state courts and federal court
FocusContract litigation, business torts, and corporate disputes
MethodBuild the file for trial from the first week
ObjectiveProtect operations, cash flow, and the client's long term position
Settlement value is set by what the other side believes will happen at trial.
The premise he works from
Prepared early. Prepared to try it.
A commercial case gains strength through a sequence. The theory, the record, the pressure, and the decision all have to support one another.
Build
The case theory is set early and the evidence is gathered around what must ultimately be proved.
Narrow
Discovery and motion practice reduce uncertainty and limit what the other side can credibly argue.
Resolve
The matter is negotiated from strength or carried to decision with the record already prepared.
01Complex Commercial Litigation
High value disputes involving contracts, owners, partners, competing businesses, and threats to company operations or cash flow.
02Contract Litigation
Enforcement and defense of commercial agreements, including cases that turn on a single provision and the evidence surrounding it.
03Owner, Partner, and Shareholder Disputes
Conflicts among the people who own or control a business, where financial exposure and working relationships are both at stake.
04Business Torts
Claims involving misappropriation, interference with business relationships, and breaches of duties owed to a company.
05State and Federal Court Practice
Commercial matters handled with the scheduling, motion practice, and evidentiary discipline each forum demands.
Beyond the pleadings
Prepared. Relentless. Precise.
Aggressive advocacy is only meaningful when it is concrete. 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.
Schedule a ConversationThe theory of the case is set early
Evidence is gathered for the decision maker
Clients hear when something changes
No client is surprised by their own case
Background and experience
The work behind the practice.
AdmissionState Bar of Michigan, 2001
EducationJuris Doctor, magna cum laude, Thomas M. Cooley Law School
Public ServiceFormer Assistant Prosecuting Attorney
Private PracticeFormer commercial litigation associate
ExperienceMore than two decades representing businesses and individuals
CourtsMichigan state courts and federal court