Biography
Michael practices labor and employment law, advising a broad range of public and private sector employers in the fields of health care, forest products, manufacturing, retail, municipal government, transportation and communications.
Michael advises on hiring and employee retention policies, personnel policies, discipline and termination issues, wage and hour issues, collective bargaining agreements and compliance with employment discrimination and civil rights laws.
He is a former Maine Assistant Attorney General and worked in the Criminal Division. In that position, he served as Chief Counsel to the State Department of Public Safety and also prosecuted white-collar crimes.
Michael was born in Portland and graduated cum laude from Harvard University. In 1978, he graduated from the University of Maine School of Law, where he was a member of the Law Review. He joined Preti Flaherty in 1980 and served as Managing Partner from 1991-1992 and is former Chair of of the firm's Employment Law Group.
Professional Activities
- Maine State Bar Association
- Labor and Employment Law section
- American Bar Association
- Labor and Employment Law section
- For the College of Labor and Employment Attorneys
- Member, 1st Circuit Credentials Committee
Honors & Recognition
- Recognized in Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business
- Listed in Best Lawyers in America for Employment Law (Management), Labor Law (Management) and Litigation (Labor and Employment)
- 2019 and 2023 Lawyer of the Year, Labor Law - Management (Portland, ME)
- Recognized by New England Super Lawyers
- Recognized as a Labor & Employment Star in Benchmark's Labor & Employment Guide
- Rated AV® Preeminent™ by Martindale Hubbell
- Elected as Fellow, The College of Labor and Employment Lawyers
Civic and Charitable Activities
- Chair, Personnel Committee, Congregation Bet Ha'am
- Allocations Committee, Jewish Community Alliance
- Former Board Member and Advisory Board Member, Portland Stage Company
- Founding Member, Second Generation of Maine, an organization of children of Holocaust survivors
- Former Trustee, Board of Trustees, Congregation Bet Ha'am
- Coach, Cape Elizabeth Little League (six seasons)
- Past-President, Holocaust Human Rights Center of Maine
- Past-President, Portland Players Community Theatre
Presentations and Publications
- Written and lectured extensively before management audiences at programs presented by the Council on Education in Management, the National Business Institute, the Maine Human Resource Management Association, and other organizations
- Participated as a presenter at the 1st Annual Labor & Employment Conference sponsored by the Labor & Employment Relations Association of Maine (LERA) in Portland. Michael was a co-presenter with a union attorney on the subject of interviewing and investigation techniques
- Selected by the Maine Human Rights Commission to serve as a presenter on defense practice issues before the Commission at the MHRC's first Fair Employment Practice Seminar