Our Attorneys

• As senior associate attorney, Michael defended a mutual fund advisory firm against allegations that its investment advisory fees were "excessive" under federal law.  He authored a successful pretrial evidentiary motion that resulted in the case being voluntary dismissed by the plaintiffs.
• Michael prepared a successful motion to dismiss a breach of contract action against a corporation accused of failing to pay its creditors a premium upon refinancing a $430 million credit agreement.  He also authored the successful appellate brief that preserved the trial court victory.
• Michael second-chaired a jury trial in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, defending an investment firm that was accused of breaching an oral contract.  The jury returned a defendant's verdict.
• Michael second-chaired a jury trial in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, defending a chemical production company against claims that it breached a contract with its software vendor.  The case settled on very favorable terms after eleven days of testimony.
• Michael was the senior asociate on a trial team in Delaware Chancery Court, in a case that determined the rights of former corporate affiliates to continuing insurance coverage under the former corporate parent's excess liability policies.  The Court rendered a favorable judgment on liability.
• Michael prosecuted a breach of contract action against an advertiser that failed to pay for air time purchased on a well-known cable television network.
• Michael was principal author of a successful appellate brief for a publishing company that was sued by a former television executive over a failed joint venture.  The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit vacated the trial court's decision against the company.
• Michael represented a major New York investment bank in a securities fraud class action based on alleged misstatements and omissions in a stock analyst's research reports.  He authored legal memoranda that provided the basis for the dismissal of all claims against the client investment bank.

Before joining the firm, Michael was a litigator with prominent firms in New York City, including Simpson Thacher & Bartlett and Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy.  Michael graduated magna cum laude from New York University School of Law, where he was an editor of the Annual Survey of American Law and the author of an award-winning article on constitutional law.  After graduating from law school in 1996, Michael clerked for the Honorable Fortunato P. Benavides of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.  Michael is a graduate of Dartmouth College and the Columbia School of Journalism, and he worked as a newspaper reporter before attending law school.