Thomas P. Casselman

Tom can be good when he wants to be. Sadly, one of Tom's biggest cases came at the end of his career and he lost it without even putting up a fight. This outcome was actually predicted by other highly respected Attorneys. At the time, I was a Trooper with the Michigan State Police and Chairman of... the BHK Child Development Board who was going through a divorce and contentious child custody battle. Four months into the child custody battle, my incorrigible 12 year old son slapped his younger brother on the back and accused me of doing it. When local law enforcement arrived, they observed no injuries, however, this ultimately led to me being charged with a misdemeanor. The case generated incredible media attention and needed to be taken to trial that I couldn't afford to lose. During pre-trial proceedings Tom had the appearance of a scared rabbit and seemed more concerned with maintaining good relations between his office and the local criminal justice system rather than providing me with 100% legal representation. Tom was out of his comfort zone on this one and visibly terrified. He aggressively pushed for a no contest plea (no admission of guilt) that I regret taking. Prior to taking the plea, I advised Tom that this would lead to the destruction of my 20-year career and that's exactly what happened. The plea destroyed my career, prevented me from ever having meaningful contact with my children again and left an indelible mark on the internet. All of this was done without even putting up a fight.

The finest most ethical man I have known. Hard working, devoted; with bulldog like tenacity he pursued my case. Honest and trustworthy; he diligently pursued depositions and I know for a fact that he lost money on my case due to unforeseen complexity, yet his work never slowed on my behalf and he nev...er came back and asked for more payment beyond what was agreed to at the start. He honestly saved my professional life, and gained me a falsely accused man in the 1980s no less-- custody of my son in a hotly contested divorce against all odds. Thank you Tom.