Mr. Fruchey is an Associate Principal at the firm. His practice focuses on environmental, toxic tort, mass tort and products liability litigation, permitting and compliance with environmental regulations, and defending against alleged violations of environmental regulations. He also has experience defending against personal injury lawsuits, class action lawsuits relating to alleged nuisance odors and defending lawsuits under Michigan’s Ski Area Safety Act.
Before joining Foley, Baron, Metzger & Juip, PLLC, Mr. Fruchey worked as an associate attorney at a boutique environmental law firm where his practice involved assisting clients in their efforts to obtain environmental permits, resolving permit violations, and litigating denied permits under Michigan’s Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act (NREPA). He also gained considerable experience in matters involving land use and real property law.
Before law school, Ben worked as an environmental consultant for Conestoga-Rovers & Associates, Inc. (“CRA”). While there, he worked on matters involving CERCLA, RCRA and TSCA, and has extensive experience conducting soil and groundwater sampling in accordance with the appropriate operational memos under NREPA, including Parts 213 and 201, among others. His consulting experience in this area helps him advise clients on the appropriate scope of work needed to accomplish investigative goals. As a geoscientist at ConocoPhillips in Houston, TX, he gained experience in oil and gas exploration and production.
Ben is a member of the State Bar of Michigan, and serves on the Council for its Environmental Law Section. He is also a member of the Michigan Association of Environmental Professionals (MAEP) and the Fowlerville Business Association. In addition, he was the former chairperson of the Portland Zoning Board of Appeals. During law school he interned for Justice Elizabeth Weaver of the Michigan Supreme Court.
Co-author and presenter, "A Legal Perspective on PFOS/PFAS Contamination Issues” (July 2018)
Presentation to Environmental Law Section of the State Bar of Michigan (SBM)Co-author, "A Tragedy On Tap: Making Sense of the Insurance Claims and Litigation Facing Flint and Its Water Crisis," Claims Management Magazine, Issue 5, Volume 5 (May 2016)
Co-author and presenter, “Frack & Fiction” (June 2013)
Presentation to American Safety Indemnity Co., Atlanta, GA relating to fracking and litigationCo-presenter, “Fractually Speaking” (December 2011)
Presentation to Great West Casualty Group relating to trucking industry exposure to hydraulic fracturing claims (simulcast to 3 offices across the country from home office)Co-author, "Archean Crustal Growth by Lateral Accretion of Juvenile Supracrustal Belts in the South-Central Wyoming Province," Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences. Vol 43, 1526-1533, (2006)
Co-author, "Right-Lateral Oblique Slip Movements Followed by Post-Ottawan (1050-1020 Ma) Orogenic Collapse Along the Carthage-Colton Shear Zone: Data from the Dana Hill Metagabbro Body, Adirondack Mountains, New York," Geological Society of America, Memoirs 197, 357 - 378, (2004)
"Archean Supracrustal Sequences of Contrasting Origin: The Archean History of the Barlow Gap Area, Northern Granite Mountains, Wyoming," Master’s Thesis, University of Wyoming, Laramie, Wyoming. 199 pages (2002)
Ben grew up in the rural town of Elsie, Michigan, a village north of Lansing, MI with a population of less than 1,000 people. It was here that he came to love the great outdoors which shaped his career. As a child his favorite pastimes were riding ATVs, fishing in the nearby rivers, and a fair share of harmless outdoor mischief. He often notes that although he grew up in a town known for its abundance of dairy herds, he has never been cow-tipping (the purported activity of sneaking up on a sleeping upright cow and pushing it over for entertainment).
While in college, his enthusiasm for the natural environment directed his education towards geology. He spent the next several years pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Geology at CMU in Mt. Pleasant, and then travelled to Wyoming earning a Master’s of Science in Geology and Hydrology. His thesis work there involved geological mapping in the Rattlesnake Hills of central Wyoming where he spent three long months, alone, with rattlesnakes, cattle, and horny toad lizards for his only company.
After several years working as a geologist in Houston, Texas (where he became engaged to his wife), Ben moved back to Michigan to be closer to family and earn his law degree. He now spends his free time teaching his two young sons (ages 6 and 3) how to play sports (and support all things green – Go Spartans), fish and enjoy the outdoors. He and his sons are working on his current personal goal – trying to convince his wife to allow a reptile into the house as a pet! (His wife put her foot down on the idea of a snake for a pet, so Ben and the boys are now rallying for a horny toad lizard or two!)
Ben is a connoisseur of craft beers. In addition to drinking beer, he often takes a stab at brewing his own recipes for family and friends. In what little free time is left, he also dabbles in carpentry, doing mainly the many home improvement projects on his “honey-do” list.
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EDUCATION
Michigan State University College of Law, JD (Magna Cum Laude), 2008
University of Wyoming, Master of Science in Geology, 2002
Central Michigan University, Bachelor of Science in Environmental Geology and Hydrology (Summa Cum Laude), 1999
PRACTICE AREAS
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A Great Read
The Complete Joy of Homebrewing – by Charlie Papazian
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Favorite Musical Artist/Song
Band of Horses and Ray LaMontagne
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Must Go-To Vacation Spot(s)
Any craft brewery
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All-Time Favorite Movie
National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation
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Pastime Pleasure?
Carpentry