Appeals Court Supports Decision Against Economou Ureste

Updated: 6:27 p.m.

The Michigan Court of Appeals on Friday affirmed a circuit court decision on a lawsuit which had divided the .

Township Supervisor Michele Economou Ureste and Trustee Steven Kaplan had appealed the dismissal of a lawsuit they filed, which sought ruling on four issues, most of them involving the power of the township board majority against the power of the supervisor.

In 2011, Circuit Court Judge Rudy Nichols dismissed the suit and said that any remaining issues "appear to be political in nature." Two of the issues, including including whether a police chief can only be appointed by the supervisor subject to approval of the township board and whether a trustee may refuse payment for serving at meetings, were heard in appeals court. 

Although Economou Ureste and Kaplan have paid more than $5,000 for their own legal counsel, township attorney Gary Dovre said at Monday's board meeting that to defend the suit to his firm since it was filed in 2010, as is required by law.

Since his election in 2009, Trustee Larry  pay to an unofficial . Nichols had opined that the law allows for a trustee to do that, in lieu of Economou Ureste's claim that it violates the state constitution.

Unlike the trial court, the appeals court found that the law does not allow a trustee to waive his compensation. However, while the suit was in litigation in 2011, the board retroactively resolved that Brown was entitled nothing for his service. 

"The majority of the board was in violation of the law by taking action to allow Trustee Brown not to receive his income so he could, as he has publicly stated, continue to collect his disability payments," she said.

Brown, however, was pleased by the appeals court ruling. "Much of this lawsuit has been a personal attack against me and today I feel vindicated," Brown wrote in a release. 

Another one of the issues stemmed from the decision of the township board majority to alter policy in order to allow for the township board to terminate a department head — a role previously reserved only for the supervisor — actions described by Kaplan as "the board majority working to increase power for the board majority."

After the policy was modified, then-police Chief Ronald Cronin accepted a retirement incentive and retired to avoid being fired. After candidates for the open position were interviewed, a difference of opinion between the supervisor and the majority over who should have the job forced the question of who should appoint the police chief.

Clerk Cathy Shaughnessy said of the estimated $40,000 spent on the suit, about $15,000 was paid defending the ruling in appeals court. Economou Ureste said she believes that the spending was done frivolously.

"The majority of the fees were incurred for legal opinions before the declaratory rulings were filed," Economou Ureste said. "The defendants dragged this out."

Economou Ureste said that if the Michigan Township Association would join as a friend of the court, she would appeal to the Michigan Supreme Court.