Paul F. Novak

Senior Attorney
Phone: (517) 318-3034
Fax: (517) 318-3099
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Areas of Practice
Administrative Law
Antitrust
Class Action Litigation
Commercial Litigation
Education & Municipal
Environmental Law
Government Policy & Practice
Healthcare Industry
Pharmaceutical Industry

Bar Admissions
Admitted to practice in United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, United States District Courts for the Eastern District and Western District of Michigan and all Michigan state courts

Education
J.D. Emory University School of Law, 1986
M.A. in Economics, Michigan State University, 1983
B.A., Michigan State University, 1983

Memberships
American Bar Association
State Bar of Michigan
Ingham County Bar Association

Paul F. Novak joined the firm in 2006 after practicing for sixteen years in the public sector both as an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Michigan and as the City Attorney of Lansing.  His practice emphasizes the areas of antitrust, health care, public utility, municipal, and complex commercial litigation. Mr. Novak is a Senior Attorney in the Administrative Practice Group in the Lansing office of Clark Hill and an adjunct member of the firm’s Litigation, Education and Municipal Law and Government Relations Practice Groups.

Antitrust and Complex Commercial Litigation.  Mr. Novak provides legal counsel to a number of clients on antitrust compliance and litigation issues as well as complex civil litigation issues generally.  Mr. Novak was the Assistant Attorney General in Charge of the State’s Special Litigation Division which handled antitrust enforcement, securities fraud and public utility regulation work. 

In his prior work at the Michigan Attorney General’s office, Mr. Novak was a national leader in multistate litigation involving pricing practices in the pharmaceuticals industry.  He served as lead counsel on behalf of all fifty state attorneys general in the In re Cardizem CD Antitrust Litigation, MDL No. 1278.  He represented the State of Michigan’s Medicaid program and other state purchasing entities in multiple national antitrust and drug pricing cases.  He was lead counsel for the State of Michigan in a kidney dialysis monopolization case brought against Gambro Healthcare, and also represented Michigan in antitrust trials in the computer software industry including the multistate enforcement efforts in New York et al v Microsoft and United States et al v Oracle Corporation. He participated in multiple reviews and negotiations of divestiture proposals in various Clayton Act merger cases.

Municipal Law.  Mr. Novak is the former City Attorney of Lansing and continues to serve a number of local government clients as well as entities who have interests before local governmental bodies.  He has repeatedly been involved in municipal litigation matters at the administrative agency, trial court and appellate litigation stage and has also worked on a host of municipal economic development projects. He also consults regularly with a variety of municipal clients on governance, budgeting, conflict of interest and retirement issues. Mr. Novak has represented elected officials and boards in a variety of legal matters and has trial and appellate litigation experience representing the State House of Representatives’ House Oversight and Ethics Committee, numerous state legislators, local school boards and other governmental entities.  He is a frequent lecturer and published author on Michigan Open Meetings Act and Freedom of Information Act issues.

Public Utility Regulation.  Mr. Novak serves a number of telecommunications, energy and municipal clients in administrative, judicial and arbitration litigation involving public utility issues. In his prior work, Mr. Novak supervised the Michigan Attorney General’s consumer advocacy efforts involving the electricity, natural gas and telecommunications industries before the Michigan Public Service Commission.  He was lead counsel for the State of Michigan in the abandoned nuclear power plant cost recovery proceedings and general rate cases involving CMS Energy Company and other public utilities.

Environmental Law.  Mr. Novak also represents a number of clients on environmental regulatory compliance and governmental relations matters.  He formerly represented the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality on hazardous waste and air permitting issues and continues to consult on regulatory compliance strategies for private entities and local government economic development offices.

Memberships, Lecturing and Community Service.  Mr. Novak is the Chair of the State Bar Association of Michigan’s Antitrust, Franchising and Trade Regulation Section and is a contributing editor of the American Bar Association’s Antitrust and Health Care Newsletter. He also was awarded the Frank J. Kelley Excellence in Trial Advocacy Award for his former work in antitrust enforcement. He has lectured on antitrust issues in the pharmaceuticals and insurance industries for the Practicing Law Institute.  He served as past chair of the National Association of Attorneys General Midwest Antitrust Enforcement Task Force, and as a member of the National Association of Attorneys General Airlines Industry Working Group and Prescription Drug Pricing Task Force. 

Mr. Novak also served as an elected Lansing City Councilmember from 1994 to 1997 and a past board member of the City of Lansing’s Economic Development Corporation, the City of Lansing Human Relations and Community Advisory Board, the Lansing Building Authority and the Tri-County Regional Planning Commission for Ingham, Eaton and Clinton Counties.  He also sits on the St. Vincent Catholic Charities Board.