Press Release
Contact:
Matt Bach
Director of Communications
Michigan Municipal League
(734) 669-6317; C: (810) 874-1073
[email protected]; www.mml.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Oct. 24, 2019
Long-Time Holland City Attorney Andrew Mulder Honored by Peers
Distinguished Municipal Attorney Award Given to Mulder by Michigan Association of Municipal Attorneys
LANSING, Michigan (October 24, 2019)—The Michigan Association of Municipal Attorneys (MAMA) has awarded the Distinguished Municipal Attorney Award to long-time Holland city attorney Andrew J. Mulder.
Mulder began his municipal legal career as deputy attorney for the City of Holland in 1976 and served as the city attorney from 1987 to 2014 and its city attorney for utility affairs from 2014 to 2018. He retired earlier this year and was given a resolution by the city in February of 2019 in “recognition and profound appreciation of distinguished service” to the community. He was given the award during MAMA’s Municipal Law Program Annual Meeting in Lansing, Oct. 17.
“I am deeply honored to receive this award and be recognized by my peers,” Mulder said at the annual meeting. “I cannot understate the importance of networking and connecting with other municipal attorneys—many of whom are in this room today. It is through these invaluable connections with my peers that I am able to stand before you today and accept this honor.”
Mulder has represented municipalities and local units of government throughout Michigan in a variety of complex litigation matters, including annexation and detachment proceedings, State Boundary Commission proceedings as well as providing guidance in areas of taxing authority and collection. Mulder’s contributions to the West Michigan area included providing valued legal assistance to the Board of Public Works, public transportation authority, library authorities, and the West Michigan Airport Authority. Most notably he is known for his exceptional writing ability, said attorneys Ronald J. VanderVeen and Vincent L. Duckworth, who nominated Mulder for the honor.
“One observation worth repeating is Andy’s recognition for having writing skills that are unequaled and an ability to comprehend and break down extremely complex concepts for the betterment of the City of Holland,” according to Mulder’s nomination letter.
His powerful writing and oral argument skills were successfully employed in Holland’s defense of an attempted multijurisdictional detachment effort by adjacent townships, which was soundly rejected by the Michigan Supreme Court in 2005. Mulder has represented municipalities in various litigation and tax appeal matters in which he advocated on behalf of municipal clients. He has successfully argued cases before the Michigan Court of Appeals and Supreme Court.
Mulder has served on the MAMA Board of Directors as past president and member and served on the Michigan Municipal League’s Legal Defense Fund Board of Directors. His legal research and writing abilities were also regularly called upon in drafting amicus curie briefs on behalf of the League, including the successful defense of local authority to regulate and ban billboards.
Mulder was admitted to the MAMA’s Academy of Municipal Attorneys in 2012 and also served as a regular contributor to the MAMA legal education, providing thorough case law updates and delicious “Mulder Morsels” lovingly made by his wife, Lois.
The Distinguished Municipal Attorney Award is given for outstanding contributions to the practice of municipal law on behalf of cities and villages throughout Michigan and acknowledges the highest level of professional accomplishment while also serving their colleagues through professional organizations such as MAMA and the International Municipal Lawyers Association. View past recipients here: http://www.mama-online.org/awards.
Download photos of Mulder receiving the award from this album on flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/michigancommunities/albums/72157711479858282.
About the Michigan Association of Municipal Attorneys: The Michigan Association of Municipal Attorneys (MAMA) is a chartered section of the Michigan Municipal League, which is a Michigan nonprofit corporation. MAMA was established in 1935 as an affiliated organization of the League. The Association is governed by a Board of Directors elected by the member municipal attorneys. Membership consists of every city and village attorney who represents a member of the Michigan Municipal League, their deputies and assistants, and League staff members duly admitted to practice law in the state of Michigan. Any attorney admitted to practice law in Michigan who has a substantial interest in municipal law may become an associate member upon application and approval by the Board of Directors. Any student enrolled in a recognized law school may be a law student member upon application and approval by the Board of Directors.
For more information, contact Matt Bach, director of communications, at [email protected] or 810-874-1073.
About the League: Michigan Municipal League is dedicated to making Michigan’s communities better by thoughtfully innovating programs, energetically connecting ideas and people, actively serving members with resources and services, and passionately inspiring positive change for Michigan’s greatest centers of potential: its communities. The League advocates on behalf of its member communities in Lansing, Washington, D.C., and the courts; provides educational opportunities for elected and appointed municipal officials; and assists municipal leaders in administering services to their communities through League programs and services. Learn more at mml.org.