Kim Michael

Background

About Kim Michael

I have spent the vast majority of my legal career focusing on all aspects of employment law and litigation. I advise and handle disputes for a wide array of clients including disputes involving compensation, restrictive covenants, trade secrets, severance pay, discrimination, retaliation, harassment, whistleblowing, and defamation. I have extensive experience drafting and negotiating employment and separation/settlement agreements and also handle general commercial and contract disputes. I represent individual clients in the financial services, media, advertising, publishing, fashion, insurance, apparel, and other industries at "C", senior, mid- and junior levels. My experience also includes representing institutional clients, such as broker-dealers, a data/analytics company, an investment management/strategic advisory company, a specialty life insurance finance company, a not-for-profit medical research company, an institutional commodities brokerage firm, a home warranty company, an executive search firm, and an accounting firm. I handle actions in federal and state courts and agencies, including appeals, and before the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), the American Arbitration Association and JAMS. I have also participated in numerous mediations. My noteworthy matters include: An award from the of over $23.3 million for a former portfolio manager of a large asset management firm based upon a finding that the firm had no cause to terminate our client. A FINRA award for two former employees of BNP Paribas Securities Corp. of nearly $7 million (representing bonus and deferred compensation and costs) plus interest, following 43 days of hearings spanning nearly two years. This was reported to be the largest FINRA intra-industry award to an employee in 2017. A FINRA award of over $2.2 million for a former Leveraged Finance executive at a global investment bank whose deferred compensation was wrongfully withheld for allegedly failing to provide required “retirement” notice and allegedly engaging in “competitive activity” by joining a specialized private equity firm. Successfully defeating an appeal in the New York State Appellate Division, First Department by Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss and Winklevoss Capital Management, resulting in affirmance of dismissal of claims for alleged defamation against our client. A seven-figure settlement of claims brought by a former employee of an international investment bank for, among other things, unpaid deferred compensation. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.