Labor, Employment and Management Relations Archives - Dawda PLC

Kristen L. Baiardi

Editor — Fri, 26 Jan 2024 02:17:10 +0000

Kristen L. Baiardi is a Senior Attorney at Dawda PLC. She primarily concentrates her practice on legal and regulatory issues affecting automobile dealers, while also representing clients in litigation, corporate, labor, and employment matters. Kristen also serves as outside counsel for several municipalities and governmental entities throughout the state of Michigan.

Kristen received her J.D. from Wayne State University Law School in 2008 and her B.A. from Boston College in 2005, majoring in English. While in law school, she served as a research assistant for corporate law professor Steven Davidoff Solomon.

Kristen is a member of the State Bar of Michigan and the Oakland County Bar Association. She is also a member of the National Association of Dealer Counsel. She is admitted to practice in all courts in the state of Michigan, the U.S. District Court-Eastern District of Michigan, U.S. District Court-Western District of Michigan, and the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Kristen is a director and vice president of the Baiardi Family Foundation, a private charitable foundation, where she is responsible for coordinating all metro Detroit-based grants. Kristen also is chair of the board of the Auburn Hills Community Foundation and a member of the House Committee at the Bloomfield Open Hunt. She is a past member of the Cranbrook Schools Board of Governors and a past president of the Cranbrook Kingswood Alumni Association.

PRACTICE AREAS

Kristen L. Baiardi

Senior Attorney

248.642.1484

kbaiardi@dawdalaw.com

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Education

Wayne State University Law School, 2008
Boston College, 2005 – B.A. in English

Bar Admissions

State Bar of Michigan
Oakland County Bar Association

Honors and Awards

Michigan Super Lawyers 2025
Named “Rising Star” by Michigan Super Lawyers 2024

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John Mucha III

Editor — Wed, 18 Aug 2021 08:20:49 +0000

John Mucha III is a Member of Dawda PLC. He concentrates his practice in the areas of general civil litigation, automotive supply chain matters, real estate matters, land use planning, and business disputes, including commercial, construction, real property, tort, and business confidential information matters.

John has considerable experience representing businesses and property owners in a broad range of matters, including general business litigation, including breach of contract disputes, automotive supply chain matters and contract negotiation, and claims involving the sale and leasing of real property. He has also litigated and successfully resolved land contamination matters as well as cases involving personal injury, property damage, and other torts. John has assisted both employers and executives with confidentiality and noncompete issues, including the drafting of various types of employment-related agreements. His litigation expertise encompasses all phases of the litigation process, from initial pleading and discovery stages to trials, appeals, and the negotiation of settlements. John also serves as a Discovery Mediator for the Oakland County (Michigan) Circuit Court.

With respect to land use, zoning, and planning matters, John has successfully guided owners, developers, and retailers through the applicable governmental approval processes. He has also successfully litigated land use disputes in both administrative hearings and in court.

John has also successfully argued cases before the Michigan Court of Appeals and the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, and he is admitted to practice in all state and federal courts in Michigan. He has served as the Chair of the State Bar of Michigan Litigation Section, the President of the Michigan Defense Trial Counsel (MDTC), and as an elected representative to the State Bar of Michigan Representative Assembly.

John earned his J.D. from the University of Michigan in 1987, where he also received a special award for writing and advocacy, and where he served as Contributing Editor of the Michigan Journal of Law Reform. He also earned a Master of Public Policy degree in 1979 and a B.A., with distinction, in 1977, from the University of Michigan. John is a frequent contributor to legal journals and publications and is also an active member of Rotary International, having served as the President of the Birmingham (Michigan) Rotary Club and having been awarded a District Governor’s citation for leading special projects.

PRACTICE AREAS

INDUSTRIES

John Mucha III

Member

Associations

State Bar of Michigan Litigation Section Past Chair
Oakland County Bar Association Member
Construction Association of Michigan, Member
State Bar of Michigan, Member of Labor & Employment Law, Real Property, Negligence Law and ADR Sections
American Bar Association Litigation, Member of Labor & Employment Law, Construction, Tort & Insurance Practice Sections
Michigan Defense Trial Counsel Secretary – Board of Directors
Defense Research Institute, Member
International Council of Shopping Centers, Member
Birmingham (Michigan) Rotary Club, Member President, 2004; Secretary and Past President, Endowment Fund
State Bar of Michigan Representative Assembly (6th Circuit), 2010-2014
Henry Ford Hospice Council of Advisors, Member

Classes/Seminars

ICSC, Roundtable Speaker 2025, “The ABCs of Appealing a Land Use Decision”
Institute for Continuing Legal Education, 2014, “Deposition Techniques and Skills” Institute for Continuing Legal Education, 2000, “The Name of the Game is Damages” National Business Institute, 2013, “Business Contracts A to Z”
National Business Institute, 2009, “Update on New Developments in Application of Rules of Evidence”
National Business Institute, 2008, “Practical Guide to Zoning and Land Use Law” University of Michigan Law School, 2014, Professional Responsibility Trainer
University of Michigan Law School, Moot Court Judge

Education

ICLE General Civil Mediation Training, 2025
The University of Michigan Law School, Ann Arbor, 1987 J.D. Law Review: University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform Contributing Editor
The University of Michigan Ford School of Public Policy, Ann Arbor, 1979 Master of Public Policy Studies
The University of Michigan College of Literature, Ann Arbor, Science and Arts, 1977 B.A. Honors: With Distinction

Bar Admissions

Michigan, 1987
U.S. District Court Eastern District of Michigan, 1987

Honors And Awards

Recipient, State Bar of Michigan, Litigation Section “Litigation Excellence Award”, 2025
Recognized by The Best Lawyers in America© – Commercial Litigation, Land Use and Zoning Law, Litigation – Real Estate, 2020–2026
One of 30 attorneys selected to the “Leaders in the Law” Class of 2018 – Michigan Lawyers Weekly
Top Lawyer: Commercial Law – DBusiness, 2020
Top Lawyer: Litigation – Construction – DBusiness, 2020
Top Lawyer: Construction Law, Land Use & Zoning, Litigation – Commercial – DBusiness, 2010, 2014, 2016-2019, 2026
Named to Michigan Super Lawyers Top 100 list – 2015–2021, 2024 Selected to Michigan Super Lawyers list – 2010-2021, 2024, 2025
Named to Michigan Business Super Lawyers Top 50 list – 2016-2018
Listed in Leading Lawyers: Commercial Litigation, Employment Law: Management, Land Use, Zoning & Condemnation Law, and Real Estate Law: Commercial – Since 2017
AV Preeminent® Peer Review Rated – LexisNexis/Martindale-Hubbell® – Since 1999
AVVO Rated Top Lawyer – since 2017

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Randal R. Cole

Editor — Tue, 17 Aug 2021 11:24:07 +0000

Randal R. Cole is a Member with Dawda PLC. Prior to receiving his law degree, Randal worked for a management consulting firm which led him into employment and labor law where he has significant experience defending employers against employment claims. His litigation includes a broad spectrum of areas including: The handling of complex cases related to land and title issues for national title companies; providing advice to Tier II and Tier III automotive clients with supplier issues, as well as initiating and defending litigation in both Michigan and other states relating to supplier and production issues; drafting and providing advice on estate plans; successfully resolving complex probate matters on behalf of both private clients and national charitable organizations; handling commercial landlord tenant disputes; filing and litigating classification of proofs of claim in bankruptcy court; initiating and defending adversary proceedings in bankruptcy court; and representing financial institutions on forbearance and collection matters.

Randal has extensive experience in both state and federal courts and has handled appellate cases in both the Michigan Court of Appeals and the Federal Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. His experience in administrative forums includes representing clients before the National Labor Relations Board, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the Michigan Department of Civil Rights, and Michigan Employment Security Agency.

He has also arbitrated private claims, both with the American Arbitration Association (JAMS) and the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service.

Randal regularly counsels clients in union and non-union facilities, on issues such as disciplinary and termination procedures; preparing employee handbooks, individual employment agreements, work rules, policies, and separation agreements; and on implementation of reduction-in-force programs. He is also experienced in collective bargaining with a number of different unions and has participated in the prevention of several organizing campaigns.

Randal earned his J.D. from the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law in 1996, and his B.A. from Kalamazoo College, in 1991, where he was a Chamberlain Fellow. He received a Germany University Fellowship for graduate work in the Federal Republic of Germany. He is admitted to practice in both the Eastern and Western Districts of Michigan, is a member of the State Bar of Michigan, Labor and Employment Law Section, and was Vice-Chairman of the Oakland County Bar Association Employment and Labor Law Committee (2001-2002). Randal has lectured for various civic groups in the Detroit Metropolitan Area and is a member of the Board of Directors of The Heidelberg Project, a non-profit organization.

PRACTICE AREAS

INDUSTRIES

Randal R. Cole

Member

Education

University of Detroit Law School, Detroit, 1996
Kalamazoo College, Kalamazoo, 1991 B.A.

Associations

American Bar Association
Oakland County Bar Association
State Bar of Michigan
Turnaround Management Association

Seminars

Sexual Harassment: Investigating Claims in the New Millennium
Troy Chamber of Commerce
Family Medical Leave Act: Policy and Administration
Troy Chamber of Commerce
Terminations from A through Z and Minimizing the L (Lawsuits) American Society of Employers Conference Employment Law Workshop

Languages

English
German

Bar Admissions

Michigan, 1996 U.S. District Court
Eastern District of Michigan, 1996 U.S. District Court
Western District of Michigan, 1996 U.S. District Court
District of South Carolina, 2003 U.S. District Court
Northern District of Illinois, 2004 U.S. Court of Appeals 6th Circuit, 2010

Awards

Michigan Super Lawyers 2025
Top Lawyer: Labor and Employment Law – DBusiness, 2026

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