A sidebar with Richard Hillary.

Byline: Thomas Franz

Grand Rapids-based firm Miller Johnson recently announced the forming of its mental health law practice group.

The group is part of the firm's health law focus and includes attorneys from a broad selection of practices.

Richard E. Hillary II, the practice group's chair, spoke with Michigan Lawyers Weekly to discuss the new practice area.

When did Miller Johnson begin discussions about creating this practice group?

Miller Johnson has been serving a significant number of mental health organizations and behavioral health providers for decades, including several of the largest providers in Michigan. So our legal professionals have worked and collaborated in the area of behavioral health law for many years. The counseling we've provided for these clients crosses several practice areas, from litigation to employment, and probate to general business. It made perfect sense to put all of our experts together to form our mental health law practice group.

How has the increased conversation of mental health contributed to this?

Over the last five years, the media and general public have an increased awareness of mental health issues and the impact on our community. We observed an increase in referrals from attorneys and other professionals who were familiar with our work and who had clients who needed this service. The mental health community expressed relief that someone understood their needs and obligations under the Mental Health Code. Likewise, we realized we needed to formalize our group so that we could provide the same comfort and reassurance to providers about their legal obligations as they provide to their patients in therapy.

Why did the firm feel it was important to create a group focused on mental health?

Miller Johnson has a large healthcare provider practice, but the needs of mental health and behavioral health providers are both unique and oftentimes uniquely complex. The creation of this practice group is all about client service. Gathering all of our experts in mental health law together creates efficiencies for our clients and provides an internal forum for collaboration to help us better serve our clients. Providers need a resource they can rely on, specifically a trusted counselor experienced with the Mental Health Code who could give them the tools to handle difficult situations, and be available to handle legal issues.

What kinds of cases and work will the group be focused on?

Our comprehensive services fall...