Flint's fight to the finish; GM was trying to KO Honda and Toyota. It wound up in a courtroom with Flint and Saginaw - General Motors Corp

Washington Monthly, Sept, 1988 by Roger Kerson

If GM wins, it will almost certainly lead either to higher taxes for other taxpayers or fewer services-or both. City assessors and the public interest groups that have backed them in their fight against GM say the rise in taxes for a typical homeowner could range from $85 a year in Warren to $363 in Pontiac.

Because of the long delays-which the localities say are caused mostly by GM's refusal to provide them with needed information about the disputed properties-only one case has been heard so far. GM dropped one of the appeals, and nine cities or townships have voluntarily agreed to reduce GM's taxes in order to avoid costly legal battles. That leaves nine communities still fighting GM in court. The Comstock case, first on the list for trial, began on June 13 and is still being argued before the Michigan Tax Tribunal.

Fighting GM in court can be a very expensive proposition. City officials in Flint expect to spend between $3 and $4 million to defend their case. The city of Warren will spend more than $2 million, and tiny Comstock Township has already spent more dian $1 million. Genessee Township has put its legal preparations on hold, hoping that the issues in the case will be resolved by the Comstock and Flint trials "It would cost us $2 million to defend against GM," says William Ayre, the supervisor of Genessee Township. "So either way we lose." Town elders say the first court bathe between GM and its tax-levy ing foes made David and Goliath look evenly matched. "At least David had a slingshot," Ayre has quipped,

"You have a responsibility to be correct in your assessment," counters J. David Hudgens, GM's spokesman. "When someone challenges you, it isn't kosher to say you can't afford to defend it. You've made the assessment, and you'd better be prepared."

In the first case that went to trial, Delta Township, which houses a GM warehouse, was not well prepared, and GM won more than $1 million in back taxes. GM's victory came after a withering crossexamination by Shapiro that completely destroyed the credibility of Delta's single expert witness, an appraiser named Donald Treadwell Jr.

The court record is almost painful to read. As soon as he took the witness stand, Treadwell admitted to a number of mathematical errors in his appraisal report, and it was all downhill from there. Shapiro ran circles around the hapless Treadwell, punching so many holes in his logic and arithmetic that his report was rendered utterly useless. In its September 1986 decision, the Tax Tribunal described Treadwell as "misinformed" and "hopelessly confused '"

"I like to think," Shapiro says, "that I had something to do with that."

During the hearing, Leo Goldstein, the attorney hired by Delta Township, complained about GM's legal firepower. "I look over there and I see half a dozen experts standing around," he told the judges. "llook over here and I haven't got anyone even covering my backside."

In looking for a legal champion, GM chose well. Shapiro is an attorney at Honigman, Miller, Schwartz, and Cohn, a partnership with more than 90 attorneys and offices in Detroit, Lansing, West Palm Beach, and Boca Raton. It is widely viewed as one of the most influential firms in Michigan, with a switch-hitting capability that extends into both political parties. Jason Honigman, the 83-year-old founder of the firm, is a leading Republican fundraiser George S. Romney, son of Michigan's forner GOP governor, is a partner. They keep Democrats in their bullpen, too. Avern Cohn was an important fundraiser for Michigan Democrats before he was appointed to the federal bench by Jimmy Carter in 1979.