Welcome to my corner of the online world!

I'm a researcher, writer, and editor with more than 30 years' professional experience. I graduated from Notre Dame with a degree in American Studies, and went from there to the University of Michigan Law School. I've been a member of the Michigan Bar since 1976, and make my home in the Ann Arbor area.

As you might expect, most of my work involves legal issues. I specialize in tracking legislation and preparing analyses of the law on specific topics--for instance, state lemon laws and auto franchise statutes. Many of these analyses cover all 50 states. My audience usually consists of executives and professionals from fields other than law, so I have to "translate" the language of judges and lawyers into plain, comprehensible English.

My research and writing covers a broad range of topics, including "spam", "junk faxes", the auto industry, vehicle and traffic safety, regulation of professional and amateur sports, and consumer lending practices.

As the owner of a consulting business, I've provided services to a variety of organizations: trade associations representing the Big Three automakers and the international auto industry; the University of Michigan; the U.S. Department of Transportation and the Federal Trade Commission; the American Bar Association; and the State of Michigan's court system.

I am the author of ten "Point/Counterpoint" books (nine currently in print) for Chelsea House Publishers. The books deal with the pros and cons of legalizing marijuana, mandatory military service, the war on terror (updated this year), indecency in the media, tort reform, media bias, the Miranda warnings, private property rights, and prescription and non-prescription drugs. Coming up are Book Number 11 through 13: legalized gambling, global warming, and energy policy.

When I am not writing or busy with projects for clients, I travel, attend cultural events, watch college football (don't even ask about last year's Fighting Irish football season) and major league baseball (my teams are the Mets and Tigers), read as many books as I can get my hands on.

For most of my life, I've taken a keen interest in politics. In the weeks leading up to the 2004 election, the Detroit News invited me to take part in its political weblog. I've been a member of Daily Kos since 2004, and post there under the screen name Dump Terry McAuliffe, and I've contributed to MichiganLiberal.com.

Two of my favorite pleasures are visiting new places and sampling great beer. In 2001, I launched BeerFestivals.org, an online calendar of beer tasting events with dozens of beer-related feature articles. The site is on track to attract two million hits this year. For the last five years, I've been the travel editor at All About Beer magazine, and I've contributed to two reference books: the Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink and Be My Guest: Entertaining Through World History.

Which brings me to one of my favorite projects: a book called "Michigan Breweries," published by Stackpole Books. With me on the book is the world's greatest co-author--my wife, Maryanne Nasiatka. The book is now in print, and you can find out more about it at our Michigan Breweries Book website.

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you take a look around, and I invite you to come back often!