Services
Industries
Education
University of Michigan Law School, J.D., 1979
Michigan State University, B.A. 1967
Bar Admissions
- Michigan
Court Admissions
U.S. Court of Appeals
- Sixth Circuit
All state and federal courts in Michigan
Beverly Hall Burns has more than 30 years’ experience representing and advocating for employers, whether at the negotiating table, in hearings, in board rooms or community gatherings.
She has negotiated labor agreements with unions ranging from the Steelworkers to the American Federation of Teachers and from the Teamsters to the Service Employees International Union. For school district clients, Beverly has acquired a niche specialty in special education and has represented schools from the Individual Educational Program meetings to litigation in federal court.
Beverly has also been selected as an Encore Innovation Fellow by Encore.org, a national nonprofit organization that helps people pursue "second act" careers that benefit their communities. She is helping with efforts in both Southeastern and Western Michigan.
Representative Matters
Beverly has a track record in helping school districts create cost-saving student-teacher ratios in labor agreements. She also has assisted them in resolving special education disputes before they become costly, and in addressing student discipline and expulsion issues. She has helped her school district clients with thorny challenges related to sex offenders, sex scandals, employee theft and threats to safety.
Honors
Michigan Lawyers Weekly Hall of Fame, Class of 2024
Luella Hannan Memorial Foundation, 70 Over Seventy Award for Civic/Community Leadership, 2017
Best Lawyers in America
2014 Detroit Education Lawyer of the Year
Labor and Employment Law 2006-2011
Education Law, Employment Law-Management, and Labor Law-Management 2012-present
Michigan Super Lawyers, Labor & Employment Law 2006-present
Michigan State University, College of Communication Arts and Science Honorary Alumnus
Inforum, one of Southeast Michigan's Most Influential Women Leaders 2008
Crain's Detroit Business, Detroit's Most Influential Women March 1997
DBusiness Magazine, Top Lawyers, Labor and Employment 2011-present
Professional Activities
American Bar Association, Sections on Dispute Resolution, Labor and Employment Law, Government and Public Sector Law, and Senior Lawyers Division
State Bar of Michigan, Member, Board of Commissioners, 2006-2009; Chair, Communications Committee, 1998-1999; Member Sections on Labor and Employment Law, Health Care Law, and Public Corporation Law
Detroit Metropolitan Bar Association
Michigan Council of School Attorneys, Board of Directors
Michigan State Bar Foundation, Life and Patron Fellow
Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW), Professional Advisory Board 2011-present
Encore Innovation Fellow, 2013-2016
Civic, Cultural & Social Activities
Hannan Center and Foundation, Board of Directors; Chair, Development Committee, 2021-present
Hope Starts Here, Board of Directors, Audit Committee
Michigan Humane Society, Board of Directors 2007-2013, Chair 2011-2013
Grosse Pointe Chamber of Commerce, Public Policy Committee 2007-present; Board of Directors 2013-present
Early Childhood Investment Corporation, Executive Committee, 2012-present; Chair 2013-present
Detroit Regional Chamber of Commerce, Nominating Committee
Grosse Pointe Public Schools, Superintendent's Advisory Board 1991-1998, Grosse Pointe South High School Senate 1995-2001, Brownell Middle School Program Advisory Committee 1991-1994
Grosse Pointe Historical Society, Board of Directors 1988-1991
Michigan Metro Girl Scout Council, Board of Directors 1990-1995
Michigan State University, College of Arts and Letters, Alumni Association Board of Directors, President 2004-2006
Michigan State University, National Alumni Association, Board of Directors 2003-2006; 2010-present
Michigan Women's Foundation, Board of Trustees 2002-present, Board Chair 2004-2006
Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute, Member of Professional Advisory Committee/Post Acute Services
Detroit Economic Club, Board of Directors
Detroit Athletic Club, Member 1996-present; Board of Directors 2005-2011; DAC Foundation Michigan High School Athlete of the Year, Board of Directors, 2010-present
The Greening of Detroit, Board of Directors 1995-2002
Eleanor League, Cofounder
Grosse Pointe War Memorial, Board of Directors 1991-1997, Chair 1996-1997
American Heart Association, Executive Leadership Team Member, Go Red for Women Campaign
Pointers Sustained, Founding Member
Grosse Pointe Memorial Church, Board of Trustees, Council of Ruling Elders, Outreach Council, Parish Life Council, Stewardship Council
Junior League of Detroit, Professional Advisory Board 2011-present
Speeches
Live testimony before the Committee on Educational and Economic Opportunity, U.S. House of Representatives, Washington, D.C., on Proposed Repeal of Service Contract Act, 2/15/95
Live testimony before the Committee on Education and Labor, U.S. House of Representatives, Washington, D.C., on Proposed Civil Rights Act of 1991, 2/27/91
"A New Era of Discrimination Unfolds"
"How to Comply with New Handicapper Protection Laws"
"Developing and Implementing Effective Policies against Sexual and Racial Harassment"
"Public Disclosure of Public Employees' Performance Appraisals"
"Family and Medical Leave Act: Implementation and Implications"
"School Reform and School Finance Reform"
"The Weapons Expulsion Law: War in the Schools?"
"Living with the New FMLA Regulations"
"Special Education Issues for the '90s"
Publications
"Aging Boomers Are Ready For Their Encore," Bridge Michigan, April 10, 2014
"Second Acts for the Greater Good," Links: Professional Resources for Michigan Nonprofits (Michigan Nonprofit Association newsletter), Spring 2014
"Pet Project--Area attorney spearheads Michigan Humane Society, Legal News, August 25, 2011
"Key employment law issues for companies in 2010," (co-author), Professional Insight, Financier Worldwide, April 2010
"Education," (contributing author), A Treatise on Michigan Public Education Law (Matthew Bender & Co, 2006)
"A Practice Guide to Title IX in Athletics: Law, Principles and Practices," (Editor), 2nd edition, National Association of College and University Attorneys, 2000
"Local Government Law and Practice in Michigan," contributing author of chapter on labor issues), two-volume treatise, (Michigan Municipal League, Michigan Association of Municipal Attorneys, 1999)
"Union Violence: The Record and the Response by Courts, Legislatures, and the NLRB," (contributing author), Revised Edition, George Mason University Press, John M. Olin Institute for Employment Practice and Policy, 1999
"Educating the Disabled Student: Legal Considerations," paper for Tenth Annual School Law Seminar, Stetson University College of Law, October 1994
"Incorporating ADR into a Law Firm Practice," Michigan Bar Journal, October 1993
"Current Developments in Employment Litigation," Employee Relations Law Journal, Winter 1990-1991
"Prevailing Wage Legislation," Industrial Research Unit, Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, 1986 (major contribution to analysis of Federal Service Contract Act wage provisions)
"The Service Contract Act of 1965: Time to Revise or Repeal," Villanova Law Review, 1984
"NLRB Cases: A History of Violence Repeated," Industrial Research Unit, Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, 1983
"Violence in the School Workplace: A Reality in the '90s"; "School Reform Legislation"; "Sexual Harassment in the Schools"; and other topics, in various issues The Report Card of educational risk liability
