Mike regularly represents clients throughout central Maryland in a broad range of business and construction matters, including contract claims, fraud, and business torts, creditor rights litigation, estate disputes, and construction claims.

Clients often retain Mike before suit is filed to evaluate potential outcomes and mitigate any possible risk. He has represented majority and minority business owners in business breakups, individuals in estate and fiduciary litigation, and contractors and subcontractors in mechanics liens, bond claims and bid protests.

Throughout any engagement, Mike strives to implement the best strategy to meet the client’s goals given its current situation. Sometimes this means aggressive litigation, sometimes not.

When litigation becomes necessary, Mike has substantial first-chair trial and appellate (both state and federal) experience, with one client noting that Mike’s “preparation for the trials was outstanding,” and that “[d]uring one of the cross examinations he actually caught a witness in a lie by referring to an obscure invoice ... during the testimony. It was a critical point in the trial and completely discredited a crucial witness.”

Mike has filed and defended temporary restraining orders and preliminary injunctions in restrictive covenant and trade secret cases for both employers and employees (and in other cases), and constantly strives to think “outside the box” to minimize clients’ time away from business and maximize the outcome. 

Clients value Mike’s pragmatic approach and creative solutions, which are often utilized before resorting to litigation.

Prior Engagements

While the following represents a sample of past engagements, please be aware that each case is different and that the past record is not an assurance of favorable results in future engagements.

Representative Trials

· Represented commercial landlord at trial for collection of unpaid rent. After four days of trial, obtained a verdict in favor of the landlord (including a partial award for its attorneys’ fees). Successfully collected entire amount of judgment.

· Represented sales agent at trial seeking unpaid commissions. After trial, the Court awarded the sales agent her commissions and attorneys’ fees.

· Obtained defense verdict after multi-day trial in claim brought by commercial landlord seeking over $100,000 of alleged pass through expenses and associated costs.

· Represented commercial property owner at trial against claims for lost profits and diminution of the value of real property. Obtained favorable verdict after opposing party sought approximately $250,000.

Representative Appeals

· Represented personal representative of a decedent’s estate in defense of an action challenging the will filed by daughter of the decedent. After an unfavorable ruling by the trial court, appealed and argued the issue before the Maryland Court of Special Appeals, which reversed the trial court and ruled in favor of my client.

· Successfully argued before the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit an issue concerning lien rights. The Court of Appeals reversed the trial court and ruled in favor of my client.

· Argued criminal appeals before the Maryland Court of Special Appeals as part of the University of Baltimore Appellate Clinic. Obtained reversals of improper convictions.

· Argued issue of first impression before the Maryland Court of Special Appeals concerning the standards by which a court evaluates a governmental termination for convenience.

Other Matters

· Retained and served as an expert in construction litigation. Client on whose behalf I was retained received a favorable settlement.

· Obtained the dismissal of a contract claim (for over $250,000) the morning of trial after discovering the proverbial “smoking gun” document. Was able to recover the bulk of my client’s attorneys’ fees.

· Filed bid protest (within extremely tight deadlines) on behalf of contractor that was denied award of state contract. The procurement officer sustained the protest and awarded my client/contractor the contract as submitted, which was valued at over $1,500,000.

· Successfully defended client’s valuable and established domain name (from which it obtained a significant amount of its business) against competing claimant. Working on a very short timeframe, briefed case before the World Intellectual Property Organization, which ruled in my client’s favor.

· Successfully negotiated buyout of minority member of a mortgage company without the need to file a lawsuit. After protracted negotiations, client received approximately twice the initial buyout amount.

· Successfully negotiated resolution of acrimonious lawsuit concerning buyout of minority member of medical practice.

· In a non-competition and trade secrets case, successfully obtained a temporary restraining order against my client’s prior employee in a case involving proprietary trade secrets and private information.

· In another non-competition case, successfully defended, after an evidentiary hearing, a former employee against the former employer’s attempts to obtain a temporary restraining order, which would have caused the employee to immediately lose her new job.

· Assisted business owners in obtaining and enforcing judgment of over $600,000 after opposing party failed to pay remaining money owed for the purchase of clients’ business.

· Assisted several small businesses in the assignment of the businesses’ assets to a trustee for distribution to creditors.

Peer Recognition

Selected for inclusion in Maryland Super Lawyers, 2020, 2021 & 2022 - Business Litigation

News & Perspectives