Outside Legal Counsel Joins in Filing Second Michigan Property Rights Case at the U.S. Supreme Court

Outside Legal Counsel PLC (OLC) has joined with Pacific Legal Foundation to file another major Michigan property rights case, Howard v. Macomb County, with the U.S. Supreme Court challenging Michigan’s controversial system of destroying equity of tax-foreclosed properties.

OLC Attorney Philip L. Ellison served as trial and appellate counsel in Howard at both the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan and the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. He now join forces with the Pacific Legal Foundation (PLF) as co-counsel before the U.S. Supreme Court with the Howard challenge, continuing long-running efforts to restore full constitutional protections for Michigan property owners.

The Howard petition follows closely on the heels of the Supreme Court’s recent grant of review in Pung v. Isabella County—another Michigan property rights case in which OLC also serves as lead counsel before the nation’s highest court. Both Howard and Pung challenge the constitutionality of Michigan’s property tax foreclosures law, which OLC and PLF argue deprives former property owners of just compensation guaranteed by the Fifth Amendment.

“These cases together challenge whether Michigan and its counties can continue to destroy homeowners’ equity in their properties after taxes are paid,” said Ellison. “The government’s power to collect taxes does not include the power to confiscate what rightfully belongs to the citizen. The Constitution draws that line, and these cases ask the Supreme Court to enforce it.”

In Howard, Macomb County foreclosed on a property for unpaid taxes and kept the surplus proceeds rather than returning them to the former owner. After lower courts declined to recognize a federal remedy, OLC and PLF petitioned the Supreme Court to ensure the Takings Clause applies fully and uniformly across the states.

The Howard petition complements the pending Pung case, in which the Supreme Court will address whether Michigan’s administrative claims process can constitutionally bar a federal takings claim. Together, the two cases give the Court an opportunity to bring consistency and fairness to Michigan’s post-Tyler v. Hennepin County, 598 U.S. 631 (2023), property rights landscape.

“For years, Michigan counties have operated a system that strips families of their remaining equity after tax foreclosure,” said Ellison. “Now, with Pung granted and Howard filed, the Supreme Court has the chance to fully resolve the issue and restore justice to property owners across Michigan.”

Outside Legal Counsel PLC, based in Hemlock, Michigan, is widely recognized for its work in property rights, constitutional, and civil rights litigation. The firm’s cases have shaped state and federal precedent on government accountability, protection from illegal searches, the Takings Clause, and citizens’ rights under both the Michigan and United States Constitutions.