Plunkett Cooney appellate attorney, Courtney A. Lavender, was recently selected as a member of the 2026 class of Fellows by the Lawyers for Civil Justice (LCJ).

The LCJ executive committee voted to include Lavender in the three-year program aimed at civil litigation rule reform, which is overseen by LCJ’s Diversity and Young Lawyers Committee.

Since 1987, LCJ has promoted excellence and fairness in the civil justice system by working to meet the needs of its corporate and defense counsel members and by confronting the challenges of business litigation. LCJ Fellows are rising defense bar leaders who bring outstanding credentials, diverse backgrounds and fresh perspectives to LCJ’s civil litigation rules advocacy program. 

A member of Plunkett Cooney's Appellate Law Practice Group, Lavender focuses her practice primarily in the area of appellate law with expertise in first- and third-party motor vehicle negligence, commercial litigation, governmental law and insurance coverage disputes. She also has litigation experience defending No-Fault and third-party claims, as well as premises liability, pet liability and defamation matters.

Lavender received her law degree, cum laude, from Wayne State University Law School in 2021. While there, she served as an extern at the school’s Office of General Counsel. Following

law school, she worked as a research attorney at the Michigan Court of Appeals. Lavender received her undergraduate degree in 2017 from the University of Michigan. 

Plunkett Cooney is one of only a few Midwest law firms with a dedicated team of appellate attorneys. The members of the Appellate Law Practice Group are responsible for numerous cases decided by state and federal appellate courts, including all Michigan appellate courts, the Ohio Supreme Court, the Indiana appellate courts, the California Court of Appeals, and numerous federal circuit courts of appeal.

Plunkett Cooney appellate attorneys are routinely retained to handle cutting edge appeals involving issues of first impression or to seek reversal of large adverse judgments. They have also prepared numerous amicus curiae briefs on behalf of firm clients for filing in state and federal courts.  

Established in 1913, Plunkett Cooney is a leading provider of business law and litigation services to clients in the private and public sectors. The firm employs attorneys in eight Michigan cities, Chicago, Illinois; Columbus, Ohio; and Indianapolis, Indiana.

Plunkett Cooney has received the highest rating (AV) awarded by Martindale-Hubbell, a leading peer review service, as well as recognition by Best Lawyers as one of the nation’s leading law firms. 

For more information about Courtney Lavender joining the LCJ Fellows program, contact John Cornwell of the firm’s Practice Development Department at (248) 901-4008; jcornwell@plunkettcooney.com.

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