Michael spent much of his last two decades in practice around his clients’ kitchen tables and in their living rooms, learning about their families and talking about their hopes for the future. His practice is designed around families and family-owned businesses, counseling members on the orderly and cost-efficient transition of wealth between generations. These are sensitive topics and families are not going to trust the specifics of how to allocate their wealth or achieve their desired legacies without a trusted relationship with their adviser. That’s why he meets clients when and where they’re able, often on nights or weekends.

Michael regularly counsels individuals and professional fiduciaries on meeting the demands of their offices – whether acting as trustee, probate executor, guardian, or a business co-owner – efficiently and professionally. Many times, fiduciaries owe duties to parties who may have different interests, and his decades of experience help him advise fiduciary clients on balancing those interests. Though the facts faced by fiduciaries are often complex and multi-layered, his preferred solutions are pragmatic and non-adversarial. If an adversarial situation proves unavoidable, Michael’s fiduciary litigation team has many decades of experience achieving the client’s needs in court. He understands how succession plans are designed so he knows how to put such plans into motion when a transition becomes necessary. 

In addition to his clients, Michael regularly works with their advisers, including CPAs and asset managers, to help coordinate everyone’s efforts and maximize the client’s benefits and protection.

Bar Admissions

Ohio

Education

• Capital University School of Law (J.D., 2002)
  • Moot Court Competition, finalist
  • National Mock Trial Team
  • Student Bar Association, vice president
  • Honor Code Committee, co-chair
• Ohio University (B.S., 1998)

• Ohio Rising Stars^® 
• Top 25 Estate Probate and Elder Law Blogs of 2011 by LexisNexis
• Top Lawyers by Columbus CEO magazine

• Columbus Bar Association 
  • Board of Governors (2017 - 2018)
  • Sustaining member
  • Estate & Gift Tax Committee
  • Probate Law Committee, past chairperson (2013 - 2014)
• Ohio State Bar Association
• Ohio State Bar Foundation, fellow (2017)
• Central Ohio Association for Justice, president (2017 - 2018)
• Franklin County Probate Court, alum
• Leadership Columbus, Class of 2008