Quarterly Compass 4/1/2026
Welcome back to “The Quarterly Compass,” the email newsletter of True North Legal Group. This resource is designed for entrepreneurs, small business owners, executives, and business-minded professionals in Northern Michigan.
Every quarter, we’ll head in four directions. First, the “East” section (directly below) will be dedicated to legal updates from TNLG that may be relevant to your venture. Then head “South,” where we’ll highlight a local business or entrepreneur doing great things in Northern Michigan. Out “West,” you’ll find information about future events or developments that may soon impact you, your business, or your employees. Finally, True “North” will include a short, actionable insight for personal or business growth.
No matter your bearing, we hope you’ll find “The Quarterly Compass” to be a helpful resource along the way.
Artificial Intelligence Moving Faster Than the Rules
Emerging legal signals shaping how Northern Michigan businesses operate next
Artificial intelligence is no longer a future consideration for most businesses — it’s already embedded in daily operations.
From customer communication and workflow management to internal decision-making, AI tools are being adopted quickly, often without formal policies or clear guardrails. And for now, the legal framework governing that use remains unsettled.
In March 2026, the White House released a national AI legislative framework aimed at creating a unified federal approach. The message was clear: avoid a fragmented patchwork of state laws, prioritize innovation, and allow standards to develop before imposing broad regulation. In the near term, that means businesses are operating with increasing reliance on AI — but without clear, consistent rules defining how it should be used.
Michigan reflects that same tension. There is no comprehensive state law governing AI in business operations today. But activity is increasing. State regulators have already signaled that existing laws — particularly around discrimination and consumer protection — apply fully to AI-driven decisions. And new proposals, including legislation addressing employee monitoring and automated decision tools, suggest more direct regulation may be coming.
Why this matters: The absence of clear rules doesn’t reduce risk — it shifts it.
Without defined standards, businesses are left to operate under existing legal frameworks that were never designed for AI, but still apply to its outcomes. When an automated system influences how employees are managed, how customers are treated, or how decisions are made, those outcomes must still be consistent, explainable, and defensible.
And when they aren’t, “the system did it” is not a defense.
A simple check for 2026: If one of your core AI-run processes were challenged — by an employee, a customer, or a regulator — could you clearly explain how that decision was made, step by step?
What smart owners are doing now: They’re identifying where AI is embedded in their operations, documenting how key decisions are made, and ensuring that automation supports — rather than replaces — accountable processes.
AI will continue to evolve. But the businesses that navigate it well won’t be the ones waiting for clearer rules. They’ll be the ones operating as if those rules already exist.
Paper Birch: Reimagining a Third Place
When I was first introduced to Paper Birch, it came through a conversation with Angelique Nossa and Kyle Norman — the founders of Nossa Norman, a Traverse City–based design studio focused on creating thoughtful, community-driven spaces. Their work spans everything from restaurants and residential projects to hospitality and workplace design, all grounded in a clear belief: spaces shape how people connect.
Alongside creative partner Sean O’Brien of SLWNSTDY, whose career has taken him through agencies like Wieden+Kennedy and into work with brands like Nike and Levi’s, the group brought a shared focus on design, experience, and community into the idea.
I’ve since had the opportunity to be involved as legal counsel and as part of the broader group supporting the project.
As you may have recently read in The Ticker, Paper Birch submitted as a proposal to reimagine the historic Con Foster (Bijou Theatre) Building. Earlier this week, we learned that our proposal would be directly reviewed by the City Manager and included on a City Commission agenda in April.
Learn more about the project in the following Q&A with co-founders Angelique and Kyle:
Q: What inspired the idea for Paper Birch?
The idea grew from a simple belief. Community wellness thrives when people have welcoming places to gather. The vision for Paper Birch is to be a “third place” environment where people can slow down, reconnect, and share conversation — a restorative setting for adults of all ages.
Re-imagining the historic Con Foster Building presents a unique opportunity to reflect the City’s broader goals. A community wellness center here could support community wellness, activate public space, advance sustainability, strengthen local economic vitality, and preserve an important historic civic structure.
Q: What kind of experience do you hope people have when they walk through the doors for the first time?
We want people to feel an immediate sense of calm and welcome. Warm wood, natural light, the quiet rhythm of sauna and water — a space to pause, reflect, and connect. Guests would move through soaking pools and saunas at their own pace, with space to rest and breathe. The atmosphere would evolve throughout the day — quiet and reflective in the morning, more social in the evening — becoming part of a weekly rhythm.
Paper Birch would offer accessible 90-minute sessions open to members and the public. The goal is not exclusivity, but community — a place where conversation happens naturally and friendships can form.
Q: If Paper Birch succeeds in the way you envision, what impact do you hope it has on the community?
Paper Birch becomes a small but meaningful part of Traverse City’s civic life — a place to gather, decompress, and reconnect. Through a public-private partnership, the City would retain ownership of the Con Foster Building while Paper Birch funds restoration, maintains the structure, and operates the space for public benefit. The project is expected to create 7 to 10 local jobs while reinvesting in the community.
Ultimately, we hope it strengthens everyday relationships — a place where people leave feeling healthier, more relaxed, and more connected.
If this kind of space resonates with you, consider sharing your perspective with City leadership as the process moves forward
When Software Sets Your Prices, Is It Still Your Decision?
Pricing used to be a purely internal decision. Increasingly, regulators are looking at how that decision is formed. Recent antitrust cases — including the Department of Justice’s action against pricing software used by landlords — focus on whether businesses are relying on shared, nonpublic data or common platforms that lead competitors to align pricing. The concern isn’t just explicit coordination. It’s whether businesses are still making independent decisions. When pricing tools aggregate competitor data or recommend rates across a market, the result can look less like competition and more like coordination — even without any direct agreement.
For small businesses, the takeaway is practical. Be cautious about how you use pricing technology, benchmarking tools, and shared industry data — especially anything that relies on current competitor information or pushes “optimal” pricing based on market-wide inputs. These tools can create efficiency, but they also reduce independence. Make sure your pricing decisions can be explained based on your own costs, strategy, and judgment — not simply what a system suggests or what others are doing. The closer your process mirrors your competitors, the harder it becomes to defend it as your own.
Leading When It Counts
Later this month, in collaboration with Leadership Lunch Club, I’ll be moderating a panel of veteran CEOs titled Leadership Under Fire—and here’s the takeaway before you even walk in: pressure doesn’t create leaders, it exposes the systems (or lack of them) behind their decisions.
The best operators don’t rise to the moment—they fall back on preparation, clarity, and discipline. If you’re building something, ask yourself now: what’s my decision-making framework when things go sideways?
I’d love to see you at Leadership Lunch Club on April 16. Register Here
Thank you for reading “The Quarterly Compass,” the email newsletter of True North Legal Group designed to help small business owners, entrepreneurs, executives, and business-minded professionals in Northern Michigan.