Michael heads up the firm's structured finance litigation practice, and is licensed and regularly practices in New York, California, and Colorado, as well as numerous federal district and bankruptcy courts.  He and his team are at the center of some of the most complex and well-publicized legal disputes in the country.

In the wake of the mortgage crisis, Michael and the firm have taken a leading role in high-profile, high-stakes residential mortgage-backed securities ("RMBS") litigation, including in matters of nationwide prominence for Lehman Brothers and American International Group. Michael also consults with other industry participants, such as hedge funds, asset managers, restructuring professionals, and data and due diligence vendors.  His experience in RMBS and related structured finance matters includes litigation of investor rights, trustee duties and liability, secondary market transactions, put-back prosecution and defense, servicing errors, mortgage and bond insurance, document exceptions, and bankruptcy claims.

Michael also takes on significant intellectual property and unfair competition cases, including bet-the-company matters.  He represents and has obtained favorable results for financial services providers, pharmaceutical and medical device companies, and others in trade secret, trademark and non-competition cases.  This work frequently involves seeking or opposing preliminary injunctions, as the case may be. This and his other intense areas of practice are favorites of Michael and fit well with his prior experience as a combat medic and eight-year stint as a Sheriff's deputy and sergeant. His many real-life experiences help him approach the stressful situations inherent in litigation with a uniquely level-headed approach.

In addition to his commercial practice, Michael has an active and rewarding pro bono practice and tries to lend a hand whenever he can.  He has won political asylum for a torture victim from Eritrea and free speech and association for a high school gay/straight alliance.

Michael was ranked in Chambers USA in 2011 and 2012.  In 2011, Law Week Colorado featured him as a "Compleat Lawyer." Colorado Super Lawyers® Magazine has recognized Michael as a Rising Star since 2010.

Michael earned his undergraduate degree in political science summa cum laude from the University of Colorado-Denver, and graduated first in his class at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law. Michael got his start as a lawyer with Arnold & Porter, and joined Reilly Pozner in 2005.

Representative Matters:

• Michael is lead counsel to the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy estate for litigation of Lehman Brothers purchase, sale, securitization, and servicing of residential mortgage loans. This representation includes prosecuting loan repurchase claims against originators who sold Lehman defective loans on the secondary market, defending the Lehman estate in its bankruptcy case in the Southern District of New York, and consulting with Lehman's restructuring professionals on issues related to Lehman's RMBS transactions.
• Michael is trial counsel to AIG and its insurance and broker-dealer subsidiaries in structured finance, intellectual property, and unfair competition litigation, and in arbitration proceedings before the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. This representation includes protecting the rights of AIG as a certificate holder in connection with a proposed $8.5 billion settlement of RMBS claims against Bank of America, currently in litigation in New York Supreme Court in Manhattan.

“To me, it's all about relationships.  You have to connect and empathize with people: your client and her business (not just her litigation), your opponent and his incentives, your team and their lives.  That's how you get results, whether over the course of a cross, a case, or a career.”