Professional Experience

Robert (“Bob”) P. Cooper has practiced law for more than 40 years helping family-owned businesses of all sizes with their business, real estate, and estate planning legal needs. He grew up in New Jersey, graduated from Hope College in 1972 with an Economics major, magna cum laude, and Penn State Dickinson School of Law in 1975, magna cum laude. He has practiced in Grand Rapids his entire career, working with many family-owned businesses as their “in-house” counsel and now he is a part of the Hilger Hammond firm in the same capacity.

“Of counsel” means that while Bob does not participate in the firm’s business operating decisions, he is available to assist firm clients in his practice areas. At an age when many lawyers have scaled back their practices or retired altogether, Bob plans to remain active and passionate in helping satisfy client legal service needs.

Bob’s only hobby is the pursuit of the game invented by the Scots, which was described by Robin Williams as trying to hit a small ball at your feet with a curved stick into a gopher hole located hundreds of yards away in an area guarded by trees, bushes, sand pits, and ponds. Each try at hitting the ball is named a “stroke,” which is an apt description of the health risk for players frustrated by this game. Mindful of where this game was invented, there is a direct correlation between the 18 holes in a round of golf and the number of shots in a fifth of Scotch.

Contact:

Roy Vizcarra, Paralegal:

  • Business Law
  • Real Estate Law
  • Estate Planning

Admitted to practice

  • State Bar of Michigan
  • U.S. District Court, Western District of Michigan
  • Phi Beta Kappa; Allan Kinney Award for Economics

Professional Affiliations

  • American Bar Association
  • State Bar of Michigan
  • Grand Rapids Bar Association

Publications

  • “Big Question in the Estate Planning Future”; Hilger Hammond Construction Law Blog, November 2021
  • Hope College, B.A., Economics, magna cum laude, 1972
  • Dickinson School of Law (Penn State), J.D., magna cum laude, 1975