Dennis Archer is chairman and CEO of Dennis W. Archer PLLC and chairman emeritus of Dickinson Wright PLLC, a Detroit-based law firm with more than 350 attorneys. He sits on the corporate boards of Johnson Controls Inc., Compuware Corp. and Masco Corp.
Archer served two four-year terms as mayor of the city of Detroit (1994-2001) and earned national and international respect for his success in changing Detroit’s image and direction.
In 1985, Gov. James Blanchard appointed Archer an associate justice of the Michigan Supreme Court. He was elected to an eight-year term the following year. In his final year on the bench in 1990, Archer was named the most respected judge in Michigan by Michigan Lawyers Weekly.
Archer has long been active in the organized bar. He was the first person of color elected president of the American Bar Association (2003-2004) as well as the State Bar of Michigan. He has also served as president of the Wolverine Bar Association and the National Bar Association. Archer is a life member of the Fellows of The American Bar Foundation and the National Bar Association, a fellow of the International Society of Barristers, a fellow of the College of Law Office Management and life member of the Sixth Circuit Judicial Conference.
