Get 'Straight Talk' on Bullying Monday at Ferndale Library

Interested in learning more about the new bullying legislation in Michigan and how it effects your kids?

Local attorney Lisa Schmidt will present at 7 p.m. Monday at the .

This is the first in a four-part series of Straight Talk programs Schmidt will offer focusing on various legal topics of importance to the community. The talks are free and open to the public.

The event on Monday will focus on the “Matt's Safe School Law,” which was signed into law Dec. 6 and is named after Michigan high school student Matt Epling who committed suicide after enduring assaultive hazing rituals at the start of his ninth grade year, Schmidt said.

“Anti-bullying is a very important topic that has been much in the news lately because the Michigan legislature just passed the first statewide anti-bullying legislation," she said. "Local school districts and communities are in the process of instituting anti-bullying policies to comply with the law right now, so it is important for the public to know what the law is and what they can do to protect their sons and daughters from bullying in the schools."

Schmidt is a trial lawyer whose firm Schmidt Law Services PLLC, which recently opened in Ferndale, focuses on criminal defense, family law and civil rights issues. Schmidt said she did extensive work on subject of bullying while attending Thomas M. Cooley Law School and has contributed to a textbook addressing the amendment rights of students in public schools.

Her talk on Monday does not constitute legal advice. For more information on the event, visit www.schmidtlawservices.com.

More 'Straight Talks on the Law'

Future "Straight Talks on the Law" are scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Ferndale library on these dates:

• Feb. 27: Anatomy of a Criminal Case
• April 23: Medical Marijuana
• May 21: Child Custody