Scott A. Petz is a Member in Dickinson Wright's Troy office. Mr. Petz focuses his practice in the areas of commercial and business litigation, class and collective actions, labor litigation, consumer protection, and condemnation and land use. Mr. Petz regularly litigates high stakes and complex matters, and consults on non-litigation matters. During his career, Mr. Petz has received a number of acknowledgements such as: (1) Selected for America’s Top 100 Bet-the-Company Litigators® for Michigan; (2) Selected for America’s Top 100 High Stakes Litigators® for Michigan; (3) Listed in The Best Lawyers in America©; (4) Selected to the Benchmark Litigation “40 & Under Hotlist”; and (5) Selected to Michigan Super Lawyers List. Mr. Petz is active as a thought leader in the legal community (e.g. Co-authored the Civil Discovery Guidebook published by the State Bar of Michigan, Advisor on the Electronic Discovery Reference Model’s (EDRM) Global Advisory Council). Mr. Petz is also a proud graduate of the Leadership Oakland XXIX class, and Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of AmericaTM.
Education & Credentials
Education
The John Marshall Law School
J.D., 2007- Order of John Marshall
- Law Review
- Associate Editor Recent Decisions, Morrissey Scholars
- Recipient of the Fred F. Herzog Scholarship
- Recipient of the Louis L. Biro Scholarship
- magna cum laude
Kalamazoo College
B.A., 2003- Major in Economics and Business with Honors
- Monroe Award of Excellence in Economics and Business
- Curtin University, Perth, Western Australia - Student Abroad
- cum laude
Bar Admission
Acknowledgements
- Selected for Benchmark Litigation United States Future Star, 2025
- Selected for America’s Top 100 High Stakes Litigators® for Michigan, 2018-2024
- Selected for America's Top 100 Bet-the-Company Litigators® for Michigan, 2019-2023
- Selected for Benchmark Litigation "40 & Under Hotlist," 2018-2021
- Recognized in The Best Lawyers in America©
- Commercial Litigation, 2018-2025
- Litigation - Banking and Finance, 2022-2025
- Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions - Defendants, 2023-2025
- Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of AmericaTM, 2020-Present
- Listed in Michigan Super Lawyers, 2019-Present
- Listed in Michigan Super Lawyers Rising Stars, 2013-2018
- Recipient of the Detroit Metropolitan Bar Association Barrister Section's 2013 "One to Watch" award
Representative Clients
- Ally Financial, Inc.
- Citizens Bank, N.A.
- George W. Kuhn Drainage District
- Oakland County Water Resources Commission
- Road Commission for Oakland County
- Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
Prominent Assignments
Lead counsel for bank in matter involving statutory and common law claims wherein plaintiffs sought $1 million in damages. Successfully obtained dismissal on motion.
Lead counsel for financial institution, an officer of the financial institution, and a former officer of the financial institution in matter wherein plaintiff sought over $800 million in damages. Successfully obtained dismissal on motion.
Lead defense counsel for a Fortune 500 company in a bench trial, which resulted in the dismissal of plaintiff’s claims and an award of sanctions against plaintiff.
Member of arbitration team, which obtained a $43 million award on behalf of clients.
Member of litigation team in federal court matter, which obtained over $151 million resolution on behalf of clients.
Obtained a peremptory reversal on behalf of a financial institution from the Michigan Supreme Court in a case in which the Michigan Court of Appeals imposed requirements for commencing a foreclosure by advertisement that went beyond the language of the governing statute.
Prevailed on behalf of a Fortune 500 company in obtaining relief from stay to recover collateral.
Prevailed on behalf of financial institution in opposing plaintiffs' motion for a preliminary injunction and obtaining summary disposition on plaintiffs' claims.
Represented a Fortune 500 tier one automotive supplier as a member of an arbitration team in a multi-million dollar dispute.
Represented non-profit drug and alcohol rehabilitation center in federal court as member of litigation team that negotiated a favorable settlement consisting of monetary damages and the right to develop property.
Trial counsel for condemning authority in a partial taking matter, which the condemning authority settled for less than ten percent of the amount being sought from it on the fourth day of the jury trial.
Professional Involvement
- American Bar Association
- Detroit Bar Association
- Eastern District of Michigan Bar Association
- Oakland County Bar Association
- Phi Alpha Delta - Law Fraternity, International
Experience
- Dickinson Wright PLLC, Summer Associate, 2006
- Judicial Extern, Honorable Richard J. Elrod, Circuit Court for Cook County, IL, Fall 2006
Publications/Presentations
Publications
- Civil Discovery: The Guidebook to the New Civil Discovery Rules, 2019, Co-Author
- Predictive Coding: Where Are We Now?, Michigan Defense Quarterly, Volume 33, No. 1 - 2016, Co-Author
- Attorney-Client Privilege Protections and Employer-Provided Technology: When Does the Employee’s “Expectation of Privacy” End and When Do You, as Counsel, Have an Obligation to Warn the Client?, Michigan Defense Quarterly, Volume 31, No. 3, January 2015, Co-Author
- Adverse Inference: The "Culpable" Element, Michigan Defense Quarterly, Volume 31, No. 1, July 2014, Co-Author
- Retailer Beware: A Retailer’s Guide to The Michigan Shopping Reform and Modernization Act, Michigan Defense Quarterly, Volume 30, No. 3, February 2014, Co-Author
- Predictive Coding: The ESI Tool of the Future?, Federal Litigation Section of the Federal Bar Association's SideBAR, Winter 2013, Co-Author
- Predictive Coding: The ESI Tool of the Future?, Michigan Defense Quarterly, Volume 29, No. 1, July 2012, Co-Author
- “Squatters'’’ Rights in Detroit: A Legal Analysis, Community Legal Resources, Legal Lines, Legal Issues for Nonprofits, 2011, Co-Author
- The Supremacy Clause and its Effect on a State's Ability to Maintain Control Over the Practice of Law Within its Borders: A Casenote on Surrick v. Killion, The Professional Lawyer, Volume 17, Issue 1, 2006
Presentations
- Handling Stormwater Issues in a Time of Historic Rain Events—A Maelstrom of Competing Legal, Regulatory & Funding Issues, State Bar of Michigan Government Law Section, February 11, 2022, Panelist
- Are You Ready for Civil Practice in Michigan in 2020?, All You Need to Know About the New Rules, Third Circuit Court/Detroit Bar Association Bench-Bar Luncheon, December 11, 2019, Speaker
- Are You Ready for Civil Practice in Michigan in 2020, Presentation for OCBA Municipal Law Committee, October 23, 2019, Speaker
- ACEDS Detroit 4th Annual eDiscovery Symposium/Midwest Regional Conference, September 27, 2019, Opening Remarks
- ACEDS Detroit 3rd Annual eDiscovery Symposium/Inaugural Midwest Regional Conference, October 26, 2018, Opening Remarks
- Deposition Skills, Dickinson Wright Litigation Associate Training, March 14, 2018, Presenter
- eDiscovery and Ethical Considerations for Social Media, Driven, Inc. eDiscovery Speaker Series, October 26, 2017, Speaker
- ACEDS Detroit 2nd Annual eDiscovery Symposium, September 21, 2017, Opening Remarks
- ACEDS Detroit 1st Annual eDiscovery Symposium, September 22, 2016, Panelist
- Non-Compensable Items in Eminent Domain, IRWA – Michigan Chapter 7, November 4, 2015, Presenter
- Overall Case Strategy and Planning, Dickinson Wright Litigation Associate Training, September 16, 2015, Presenter
- Decade of Discovery, ACEDS – Detroit Chapter, July 16, 2015, Panelist
- E-Discovery Model Order Seminar, Eastern District of Michigan Chapter of the Federal Bar Association, February 10, 2015, Panelist
- eDiscovery Case Law Update, Race to Excellence, SBM/ALSP Annual Day of Education, May 3, 2013, Presenter
- Community Legal Resources’ Vacant Property Education Seminar regarding Squatters, October 6, 2011, Panelist
- E-Discovery, Dickinson Wright PLLC Litigation Associate Training, February 16, 2011, Presenter
- Current Issues in Electronic Discovery in Michigan and Federal Courts, Dickinson Wright PLLC Commercial Litigation Group, June 2009, Presenter