Michael is an experienced, emotionally intelligent and strategic Partner. He provides pragmatic, commercial and results-driven advice to a wide range of local and national clients on the whole spectrum of human resources and employment law.
At all times Michael works in absolute partnership with his HR and senior management client teams. He is a 'go-to' trusted adviser and gets the job done. He has significant experience in respect of complex and sensitive senior and/or group exits, redundancies and restructures; difficult absence and performance issues; whistleblowing matters; the gig economy, and also in relation to HR related data protection (including extensive data subject access requests). He also sites with the National Employment Team's IR35, Data Protection and Financial Services sub-groups.
Michael also has a particular interest in defending Employment Tribunal claims of all types and managing client relationships for varying size employers. He has received continued instruction from a client within the tyre and vehicle service industry for in excess of 15 years.
Work of note includes:
- leading a Shoosmiths team in advising the Board of Trustees of a major charity client on a multi-faceted and extremely sensitive instruction since June 2021 to date, which is primarily concerned with employment law and charity law and regulation, although the core team involved defamation and data protection specialist colleagues. This work has necessitated regular contact and constructive engagement with the Charity Commission;
- the successful defence in the Employment Tribunal to a complaint of unfair dismissal brought against a client in the service industry (Michael conducts his own advocacy in the Employment Tribunal and has successfully represented a number of clients at Preliminary Hearings and full Tribunal Hearings);
- the beneficial conclusion to lengthy settlement negotiations on behalf of a client who was defending claims of automatic unfair dismissal, whistleblowing and breach of contract;
- the successful conclusion and defence to claims of race discrimination and breaches of the Agency Workers Regulations 2010 following a multi-day hearing; and
- dealing with litigation within both the Employment Tribunal and the High Court in response to claims of constructive unfair dismissal and breaches of post termination restrictions.
Michael is the head of the firm's Nottingham office and responsible for its contribution to, and profile within, the local business community. Additionally, he chairs the firm's LGBT+ Staff Network, PROUD, which launched in February 2019.
Michael qualified as a solicitor in 2006 and joined Shoosmiths in May 2013 and was promoted to Partner in May 2019.