Services
Industries
Education
University of Virginia School of Law, J.D., 2002
University of Michigan, B.A., 1997
Bar Admissions
- California
- Michigan
Court Admissions
U.S. Supreme Court
U.S. Court of Appeals
- 9th Circuit
- 6th Circuit
U.S. District Court
- Northern District of California
- Eastern District of Michigan
Wendy Richards is a skilled commercial litigator who has worked on numerous multimillion-dollar class actions and other complex matters. As the firm's Pro Bono Counsel, she heads Miller Canfield's pro bono program, which has garnered national recognition for taking on high-profile, high-impact cases and was shortlisted as one of the nation's best pro bono programs by the Chambers Diversity & Inclusion Awards: North America.
Wendy has been involved in several high-impact litigation matters, including the well-publicized Hamama v. Adducci class action, impacting over 1,400 Iraqi nationals living in the U.S., which secured an injunction to stop their removal and allow class members the time to pursue relief in immigration court.
Wendy also has extensive pro bono experience related to voting rights. In 2020, she worked with a consortium of law firms and the Stanford-MIT Healthy Elections Project to recruit lawyers to be poll workers on Election Day. She also led a nationwide effort to coordinate state-specific poll worker guides on behalf of The Brennan Center for Justice, Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights and Association of Pro Bono Counsel. She has represented the Brennan Center as amicus curiae in several election-related matters in Michigan.
In addition, to address COVID-19's devastating economic effects, Wendy established the remote COVID-19 Small Business Clinic in Detroit with Michigan Community Resources and the Lawyers for Good Government Foundation. Wendy was also instrumental in the establishment of the Road to Restoration program in conjunction with the Michigan Department of State and Attorney General's Office, providing assistance to thousands of Michiganders in their efforts to restore their driving privileges.
Representative Matters
Throughout her career, Wendy's work has focused on complex litigation including class actions, securities, and intellectual property matters. She is responsible for coordinating Miller Canfield's pro bono efforts firm-wide, which has resulted in the firm's involvement in several high-profile matters. Recently, Wendy has assisted in and led teams involving high-impact immigration litigation matters, community development projects, entrepreneurship opportunities for persons living in disadvantaged communities, as well as several other community enrichment or access to justice projects.
Some of Wendy's more recent projects have included:
- In cooperation with ACLU of Michigan and others obtained an injunction in a national habeas class action to prevent the imminent deportation of hundreds of Iraqi nationals without due process in the immigration courts. Clients are primarily Catholic, Kurdish and other religions and ethnic minorities, facing persecution, torture and possibly death if returned to Iraq. The team also successfully obtained an injunction ordering bond hearings to determine if the roughly 300 class members that have been in prolonged detention should be released.
- Lead role among 14 firms nationwide in coordinating a 50-state poll worker guide project on behalf of The Brennan Center for Justice, Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights and Association of Pro Bono Counsel. Project focuses on encouraging qualified candidates to apply for the critical job of serving as poll workers on Election Day, and provides information on application, scope of duties, and high priority state-specific issues.
- Work as co-chair to coordinate law firms nationally in connection with the Association of Pro Bono Counsel's Voting Rights Task Force. The association works with pro bono counsel from major law firms across the country to ensure access to justice. Wendy co-chairs the Voting Rights Task Force for the association, which works to support voting rights groups in their efforts to improve systems related to the democratic process.
- To address COVID-19's devastating economic effects, Wendy established the remote COVID-19 Small Business Clinic in Detroit with Michigan Community Resources and the Lawyers for Good Government Foundation. Wendy co-created and has chaired the Small Business Legal Academy Detroit, which has partnered with Detroit Start-up Week to hold clinics where would-be entrepreneurs can obtain pro bono legal assistance with common business questions and issues.
Honors
State Bar of Michigan, John W. Cummiskey Pro Bono Award, 2024
Michigan State Bar Foundation, Access to Justice Award, 2024
The Fellows of the Michigan State Bar Foundation
2021 Crain's Detroit Business Notable Women in Law
Detroit Bar Association Pro Bono Awardee, 2021
State Bar of Michigan Pro Bono Honor Roll, 2020-present
Michigan Lawyers Weekly, "Women in the Law," Class of 2018
Criminal Defense Attorneys of Michigan, Exceptional Achievement honorarium, 2018
DBusiness Magazine, Top Lawyers, Commercial Litigation, Nonprofit/Charities Law
University of Virginia School of Law, George Terrien Scholarship Recipient, Public Interest Law Association Fellowship Recipient
University of Michigan, high distinction, James B. Angell Scholar, Golden Key Honor Society
Professional Activities
Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, Board Member, Executive Committee
Law Firm Antiracism Alliance, Chair, Voting Rights Working Group
Association of Pro Bono Counsel, Co-Chair, Voting Rights Task Force
Michigan State Bar Foundation, Access to Justice Statewide Steering Committee, Working Committee
State Bar of Michigan, Implementation and Innovation Steering Committee; Delivery of Legal Services for All Standing Committee; Co-Chair, Pro Bono Workshop & Networking Meeting, 2016 & 2017
Goodwill Detroit, Ambassador Committee
Detroit Regional Chamber's Leadership Detroit, Class XXXVI
Civic, Cultural & Social Activities
New Economy Initiative Neighborhood Business Strategy Worktable
Tau Beta Association
Detroit Athletic Club
Crain's General and In-House Counsel Summit, Pro Bono Award, Panel Judge, 2014-2015; Advisory Committee, 2014-2016
Speeches
"Best Practices for Establishing Driver's License Restoration Clinics," State Bar of Michigan Justice Initiatives Committee, Spring Pro Bono Workshop, May 16, 2023
"Common Election Law Questions," Co-Presenter with Scott Eldridge, Michigan Township Association Legal Institute, April 22, 2024
"Making A Difference: Creating or Enhancing Your Pro Bono Programs," Association of Corporate Counsel Michigan, March 9, 2023
ABA Civil Rights and Social Justice Chair Chat, March 1, 2023
"The Election Minefield: What Exploded in 2020, What Was Defused in 2022 and What to Dodge in 2024," Moderator, State Bar of Michigan Government Law Section 2023 Winter Educational Seminar, February 17, 2023
"Connecting Elections to Your Profession," Wayne State University Law School Voting Rights & Election Law Society and Wayne State University Schools of Social Work and Public Health, Sept. 16, 2022
"Practicing Voting Rights Litigation in Michigan," Wayne State University Law School Voting Rights & Election Law Society, March 22, 2022
"Legal Resources for Small Businesses," Detroit Digital Inclusion Week, Oct. 19, 2021
Voter Education and Protection Panel, WEGP, January 2021
Voting Rights Panel and Voting Rights discussion session, Moderator, Law Firm Anti-Racism Alliance, Fall Summit, Oct. 2020
"Cross Examinations Fundamentals," Moderator with Thomas Cranmer, Lakeshore Legal Aid, Sept. 2020
"Helping Small Business in the Time of COVID," Practicing Law Institute, Practicing Justice Podcast, Aug. 2020
"Partners in Impact: How Non-profits + Big Law Join to Make Change," hosted by the University of Michigan School of Law Pro Bono Board, March 2019
Pro Bono Happy Hour Podcast, Pro Bono Institute, Dec. 21, 2018
"Hamama v. Adducci - What Now?", Presented by University of Michigan Middle Eastern Law Students Association, Feb. 26, 2019
"Voting Rights," Facilitator, ABA/NLADA Equal Justice Conference, May 2018
"Pro Bono and Big Law," Panelist, University of Michigan Law School, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 2017 & 2018
"Political Discourse in the Workplace," Panelist, Employment Law Section Diversity Roundtable, State Bar of Michigan Employment Law Section, Detroit, Michigan, 2017
"Rapid Response Pro Bono," Panelist, State Bar of Michigan Pro Bono Workshop, Lansing, Michigan, May 2017
"Voting Rights and Pro Bono," Panelist, ABA/NLADA Equal Justice Conference, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, May 2017
"Corporate Basics for Entrepreneurs," Ford Motor Company-New Economy Initiative Small Business Clinic, Dearborn, Michigan, Oct. 2016
Publications
Miller Canfield Election Law Guide, 2022
"What Do Poll Workers Do?", New York Magazine, The Cut, Nov. 3, 2020
"Pro Bono Attorneys Look to Fill Poll Worker Gap During Pandemic," Law360, Oct. 25, 2020
"First Responders for Democracy," Michigan Lawyers Weekly, Oct. 5, 2020
"Big Law and the Ballot; Pro Bono Fight for Mail-In Voting," Law360, Aug. 23, 2020
"Lawyers Offer Free Assistance to Underserved During Pandemic," Michigan Lawyers Weekly, May 14, 2020
"Detroit nonprofits, businesses can get free legal help regarding COVID-19," Detroit Legal News, May 8, 2020
"New legal clinic to help Detroit nonprofits, small businesses," Detroit Free Press, May 7, 2020
"Attorneys provide pro bono legal services to nonprofits on National Day of Service," Corp! Magazine, Feb. 11, 2020
"Crowdfunding Resources," contributor, Michigan Community Legal Resources, September 2015
"Crowdfunding for Non-Profits, Legal Considerations for 501(c)(3) Tax-Exempt Organizations," contributor, Michigan Community Legal Resources, September 2015
"Crowdfunding for the Entrepreneur: A Guide for Small Businesses in Michigan," contributor, Michigan Community Legal Resources, September 2015
"Crowdfunding & Local Investing: A Guide for Investors in Michigan," contributor, Michigan Community Legal Resources, September 2015
"Employment Law Manual, A Guide for Non-Profit Organizations in Michigan," co-author, Michigan Community Legal Resources, Second Ed., July 2015
