Michelle has practiced the US, the UK, and now Australia. Michelle’s experience means she is highly sought after by leading companies to advise on their domestic and international insurance programs, and their corporate and liability exposures.

Michelle has substantial experience in alternative dispute resolution, including substantial multi-party arbitrations and mediations.  Michelle also teaches courses in negotiation.

1. acting for Lend Lease and Bovis Lend Lease in the World Trade Centre clean-up litigation in New York, where over 18,000 plaintiffs sued the City of New York and several prime contractors for respiratory diseases alleged to have resulted from the WTC clean-up operations. The litigation is reported to be the largest US mass tort claim. Michelle played a key role in driving a resolution strategy which has seen 96% of the plaintiffs opt into a settlement and historic legislation become law in the US, such that Bovis Lend Lease’s exposure is effectively limited to available insurance
2. advising and representing the Non-Executive Directors of ABC Learning following the collapse of this company in relation to an investigation by ASIC
3. advising and representing the Non-Executive Directors and certain officers of Babcock & Brown in the various regulatory and public examinations by the liquidator of Babcock & Brown into this prominent corporate collapse
4. representing Ensham Resources in relation to its insurance recovery claim in the Federal Court, following the devastating floods in northern Queensland in January 2008. This insurance claim is said by others to be the largest single pending claim in the commercial insurance market, and
5. representing a global broker in relation to a contentious claim, which was settled without litigation.

Michelle has acted as a solicitor advocate before the Supreme Court of New South Wales, the High Court in England and as an advocate before the State and Federal Courts of Massachusetts and New Hampshire, US.
In addition to complex dispute resolution, Michelle specialises in insurance and reinsurance, acting for both corporate insureds, and select insurers and reinsurers.  Michelle represented insurers for several years in multi-party coverage disputes in the US, and then in London. 

Since coming to Freehills in 2004, Michelle has acted increasingly on behalf of corporate insureds.  Michelle’s areas of expertise encompasses all aspects of corporate insurance from coverage disputes to advice in non-contentious matters, including:

• complex litigation between the array of parties involved in contracts of insurance
• insurance policy advice to key clients, including Lend Lease, Babcock & Brown and United
• advising and consulting with corporate insureds and their insurance brokers in negotiations with their insurers on policy wordings, and
• advising on insurance issues in large corporate transactions.

Michelle is admitted in New South Wales, the State and Federal Courts of Massachusetts, and is qualified as a Solicitor Advocate in England and Wales.     

Michelle was awarded a ‘Best Lawyer International’ award in both Litigation and Insurance for 2011. Michelle was ranked in Band 2 for Insurance Individuals by Chambers Global in 2009, 2010 and 2011, and recognised by The Legal 500 Asia Pacific in Insurance and Dispute Resolution. Michelle was also specifically identified by PLC Which Lawyer? 2010, for Insurance – Contentious.    

In February 2011, Michelle was a guest lecturer at Stanford Law School on the topic of complex litigation and mass torts.