• Ann Arbor
    201 S. Division Street
    Suite 400
    Ann Arbor, MI 48104
    T 734-761-3780
  • Detroit
    1901 St. Antoine Street
    6th Floor at Ford Field
    Detroit, MI 48226
    T 313-259-7777
  • Grand Rapids
    99 Monroe Avenue NW
    Suite 300
    Grand Rapids, MI 49503
    T 616-205-4330
  • Troy
    201 W. Big Beaver Road
    Suite 500
    Troy, MI 48084
    T 248-743-6000
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competitive drive
 

Jeffrey G. Raphelson

Member,Detroit

T 313-393-7559F 313-393-7579313-393-7559

Languages
  • French
Education
  • University of Michigan Law School, J.D.
  • Kalamazoo College, B.A., cum laude 
Admissions
  • Michigan
Court Admissions
  • U.S. Ct. of Appeals, 5th Cir.
  • U.S. Ct. of Appeals, 6th Cir.
  • U.S. Ct. of Appeals, 7th Cir.
  • U.S. District Ct., S.D. Ind.
  • U.S. District Ct., E.D. Mich.
  • U.S. District Ct., W.D. Mich.
Overview

Mr. Raphelson focuses his practice on commercial litigation, particularly matters related to the automotive industry, finance and banking.

He also dedicates a substantial amount of time to general commercial cases such as contract disputes, intellectual property litigation, corporate governance and dissolution, dealer and franchise termination, and other corporate law disputes. Mr. Raphelson has deep automotive industry experience, having served in-house for two years as counsel for the seating division of Lear Corporation, a publicly traded Fortune 200 automotive supplier.

He is a former member of the State Bar of Michigan’s Ad Hoc Committee on Legislation, ex-officio chairman of the Computer Law Section Council (now the Information Technology Section) and a former member of the State Bar’s Task Force on E-Filing. He is past president of the American Constitution Society’s Michigan chapter and treasurer of the Historical Society for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. He is also a member of the Oakland County Bar Association’s Circuit Court and Business Court Committees, and he is a trustee and secretary of the Oakland County Bar Foundation.

Mr. Raphelson is listed in Chambers USA 2023 under Litigation-General Commercial, in The Best Lawyers in America 2024 under Commercial Litigation, and in Michigan Super Lawyers 2023 under Business Litigation. He is a DBusiness Magazine 2024 “Top Lawyer” for Litigation-Commercial and is AV Preeminent ® Peer Rated by Martindale-Hubbell.

Mr. Raphelson is proficient in French.

Honors, Awards, and Recognition
  • Chambers USA 2023, Litigation-General Commercial
  • The Best Lawyers in America 2016-2024, Commercial Litigation
  • Benchmark Litigation 2018, State Litigation Star
  • DBusiness Magazine “Top Lawyers” 2010, 2016, 2018-2024, Litigation-Commercial and Litigation-Intellectual Property
  • Michigan Super Lawyers 2006-2007, 2010-2023, Business Litigation
Civic, Cultural and Community Activities
  • Michigan Chapter of the American Constitution Society, Past President
  • Historical Society for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Treasurer, Board of Directors
  • Oakland County Bar Foundation, Trustee and Secretary
  • Trout Unlimited, Michigan Council Secretary, 2008
Professional Affiliations
  • State Bar of Michigan
    • Electronic Filing Task Force
    • Information Technology Law Section, Council
    • Intellectual Property Law Section
    • Litigation Section
Publications
  • Co-Author (With Gene P. Bowen and Joseph J. Shannon), “Force Majeure/Commercial Impracticability and COVID-19: Does the pandemic crisis excuse contractual performance?,” Bodman COVID-19 Response Team Update, March 2020
  • Co-Author (with Thomas Tallerico), “Demonstrative Evidence,” Michigan Bar Journal vol. 94, no. 10 (October 2015)
  • Co-Author (with Jane Derse Quasarano), “Dueling, Dickering, and Delivering, UCC Battles of the Forms in Manufacturing Contracts,” Michigan Bar Journal  vol. 93, no. 10 (October 2014)
  • “A Certain Parcell of Land Lying on this Island, Manhatans,” The Court Legacy, vol. XIV, no. 1 (February 2007)
  • “Old Laws, New Laws, and Technology: A Summary of Some Laws Affecting Use of the Internet,” 77 Michigan Bar Journal 1202 (November 1998)
  • “Is Alternative Dispute Resolution Right for Your Case?,” Michigan Lawyers Weekly (May 3, 1993)
  • Editor, Computer Law Theme Issue, Michigan Bar Journal (Oct 1988 and June 1994)
  • “Allocating the Risks of Computer Failure,” 5 Matthew Bender’s Commercial Damages Reporter 137 (July-Aug 1990)
  • “Professional Liability of Attorneys,” 39 Wayne Law Review 815 (Winter 1990) (cited in Gebhardt v. O’Rourke, 444 Mich. 535, 542 n. 6; 510 N.W.2d 900, 903 n. 6 (1994)

 

Representative Matters
Mr. Raphelson’s representative matters include:
  • Drive Logistics Ltd. v. PBP Logistics LLC, 2017 WL 4348832 (2017)
  • DAGS II, LLC v. Huntington National Bank, 865 F.3d 384 (2017)
  • DAGS II, LLC and G2BK, LLC v Huntington National Bank, et al., 2016 WL 4536328 (August 2016)
  • Butcher v Lawyers Title Insurance Co. (Ine re Butcher), 2002 U.S. App LEXIS 2806 (2002)
  • By-Lo Oil Co. v ParTech, Inc., 2001 U.S. App. LEXIS 11402 (2001)
  • Blachy v Butcher, 221 F. 3d 896 (2000)
  • By-Lo Oil Co. v ParTech, Inc., 2000 U.S. District LEXIS 577 (2000)
  • H.J. Tucker & Associates v Allied Chucker & Engineering Co., 234 Mich App. 550 ;595 NW 2d 176 (1999)
  • Jerome-Duncan, Inc. v Auto-By-Tel Marketing Corp, et al., 176 F. 3d 904 (1999)
  • Blachy v Butcher, 35 F Supp 2d 554 (1998)
  • Lak, Inc. v Deer Creek Enterprises, 976 F 2d 328 (1992)

 

Practices & Industries Education
  • University of Michigan Law School, J.D.
  • Kalamazoo College, B.A., cum laude 
Admissions
  • Michigan