David Fry attended Michigan State University, graduating in 1971 with a degree in Business Administration. He then attended Georgetown University where he received his law degree in 1974. Mr. Fry returned to Rockford to enter private practice. In 1976, he joined the legal department at Rapistan Incorporated in Grand Rapids where he served over six years. In 1982, he joined Steelcase, Inc. and formed the company's first legal department. He led the legal activities at Steelcase for 15 years, serving as vice president, corporate secretary and chief legal officer. Mr. Fry and Mr. Blakeslee jointly founded the firm of Blakeslee & Fry, PLC in 1998. Mr. Fry is a fourth generation cottage owner on Crystal Lake, Benzie County, Michigan, and has created cottage succession plans for his clients for a number of years.

Mr. Fry is a member of the State Bar of Michigan (past elected member, Business Law Section Council) and the Grand Rapids Bar Association. He has served as an elected member of the Chief Legal Officer Council of The Conference Board, a member of the American Corporate Counsel Association and the American Society of Corporate Secretaries. He is admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of Michigan, the Federal District Court for the Western District of Michigan, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and The Supreme Court of the United States. Mr. Fry has served as a board member and president of the Rockford Area Chamber of Commerce and chairperson of the City of Rockford Economic Development Corporation.

Mr. Fry's specialty is in the field of cottage law, using his personal experience as a fourth generation cottage owner, and drawing on his estate planning, real estate and business law background. As a lawyer and authority on a variety of business, estate planning, and real estate issues, Mr. Fry has over 30 years experience in representing individuals, families and corporations on a number of legal matters related to the ownership and transfer of ownership of various properties, including LLC's. His approach to cottage planning is very consistent with that of Stuart Hollander's, and their solutions to client issues in this field are very similar.

A lifelong resident of Rockford, Michigan, Neil Blakeslee graduated from Rockford High School in 1966 and the University of Michigan in 1970. Mr. Blakeslee then joined the armed forces and served a tour of duty in Viet Nam. He returned to the Rockford area after his military service and commuted to the Thomas M. Cooley Law School in Lansing while clerking at a local law firm. He graduated from Cooley in 1981 and set up his own general practice law firm in Rockford. The practice expanded quickly and allowed Mr. Blakeslee to concentrate his efforts in the areas of real estate law, small business assistance, and estate planning. By combining legal expertise in his areas of practice with a genuine concern for problem solving, the practice has grown to include a broad and diverse base of clients.

Mr. Blakeslee has continued his family tradition of public and community service by serving on many area civic organizations and boards. This service has included the elected office as a Rockford City Council member and four terms as the Mayor of Rockford.

Mr. Blakeslee's real estate expertise includes property valuation and purchase, zoning approval, construction liens, and site condominium documentation. He is broadly experienced in small business formation and management, and the purchase and sales of businesses. His estate planning background included planning and drafting of wills and trust for people with small and medium sized estates, as well as the living and death probate activities for disabled or deceased clients.

A native of Battle Creek, Michigan, Jim Scales and his family have lived in the Rockford and Belmont area since his law school graduation. After receiving a degree in Packaging Engineering from Michigan State University in 1984, Mr. Scales attended the University of Michigan Law School where he graduated, cum laude, in 1987. He became a partner in the Grand Rapids law firm Mika, Meyers, Beckett & Jones. He also served as in-house civil counsel for Kent County. Over the years, he has represented and advised individuals, businesses, and non-profit organizations and local governments. Mr. Scales has lectured and published a variety of articles on zoning and land use issues. He has earned the highest rating (“av”) from the Martindale Hubbell Law Directory. Mr. Scales joined Neil Blakeslee and David Fry as the third partner, and the firm of Blakeslee, Fry & Scales, PLC was founded in 2000.

Mr. Scales has been actively involved in many civic and service organizations. He currently serves on the City of Rockford Planning Commission where he has held the post of chairman for the past several years. Mr. Scales' legal expertise included real estate, estate planning, construction, and property taxation. He maintains a specialty in municipal law, zoning, utilities, and related issues.