Michael M. Giel

Michael M. Giel

Associate

Areas of Practice

Mr. Giel focuses primarily in the areas of complex commercial litigation, business litigation, real estate litigation, and appellate practice.

Education and Employment Background

Mr. Giel received his Bachelor of Arts degree, cum laude, in 2002 from the University of South Florida. He earned his Juris Doctorate degree in 2005 from the University of Chicago Law School, where he was a member of the Chicago Journal of International Law. After graduation, he clerked for the Honorable Emerson R. Thompson Jr. of Florida’s Fifth District Court of Appeal in Daytona Beach, Florida.

Before joining Volpe, Bajalia, Wickes, Rogerson & Wachs, Mr. Giel was an associate with the Jacksonville office of McGuireWoods LLP, where he practiced complex commercial litigation and appellate law. Prior to attending the University of Chicago and the University of South Florida, he served from 1996 to 2000 as a machine gunner in the U.S. Marine Corps, in which his final rank was sergeant.

Professional Recognition

  • Selected for inclusion as a Rising Star in Florida Super Lawyers 2010 and 2011

Publications

  • Key Considerations for Litigating Class Action Waivers within Arbitration Agreements, Part II, CONFLICT MANAGEMENT, Summer 2009
  • Key Considerations for Litigating Class Action Waivers within Arbitration Agreements, CONFLICT MANAGEMENT, Winter 2009
  • Accounting for Accountants' Breaches of Fiduciary Duty in Motions to Dismiss or for Summary Judgment, ABA BUSINESS TORTS JOURNAL, Summer 2007
  • Litigating Lost Profits for New Businesses, ABA COMMERCIAL & BUSINESS LITIGATION NEWSLETTER, Spring 2007
  • Co-author, Course Outline, Recent Developments in Commercial Litigation, Civil Trial Certification Review Course, February 2008
  • “Practically Capable of Maritime Transport”: Semantics and the Definition of “Vessel” after Stewart v. Dutra Construction Co., ABA ADMIRALTY & MARITIME LAW COMMITTEE NEWSLETTER, Spring 2007
  • Co-author, Fifteen Common Mistakes in Appellate Briefs, THE RECORD: JOURNAL OF APPELLATE PRACTICE SECTION, Winter/Spring 2007; Reprinted, ABA TIPS APPELLATE ADVOCACY COMMITTEE NEWSLETTER, Summer 2007
  • Avoiding Fundamentally Erroneous Jury Instructions: Pointers for Counsel in Criminal Trials and Appeals, FLORIDA BAR JOURNAL, July/August 2007
  • Young Lawyers Focus: Making the Most of Your Appellate Clerkship, ABA APPELLATE PRACTICE JOURNAL, Spring 2007
  • Apprendi in Florida: Jury Findings on Sentencing Factors and Elements, THE RECORD: JOURNAL OF FLORIDA'S APPELLATE PRACTICE SECTION, Fall 2006

Professional Affiliations

  • American Bar Association
    • Co-chair, Young Lawyers Subcommittee, Appellate Practice Committee, Section of Litigation, 2011-Present, 2008-2009
    • Member, Bar Liaison Subcommittee, Appellate Practice Committee, Section of Litigation, 2010-2011
    • Editorial Board Member, Commercial and Business Litigation Committee Newsletter, Section of Litigation, 2008-2009
    • Newsletter Assistant Editor, 11th Circuit Reporter, Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Section, Appellate Advocacy Committee, 2006-2007
  • Florida Bar
    • Fellow of the Florida Bar Foundation, 2010-Present
    • Editorial Board Member, Florida Bar News/Florida Bar Journal, 2008-2011
    • Assistant Editor, The Record, Appellate Practice Section, 2008
    • Assistant Editor, The Journal: Case Law Update 2008, Business Law Section
  • Jacksonville Bar Association
    • Appellate Law Committee
  • Inns of Court
    • Associate Member, Chester Bedell Inn of Court, 2008-2009
    • Associate Member, Dunn-Blount Inn of Court, 2006-2007

Civic Affiliations

  • Gator Bowl Committee, Class of 2008
    • Sales Team Captain, 2010, 2011
  • IMPACT Jax
  • University of Chicago Law School Alumni Admissions Committee
  • University of South Florida Alumni Association
    • ACT Committee, 2007-2009
    • Jacksonville Chapter Leadership Team, 2007-2010
    • Tampa Chapter Secretary, 2006-2007

Bar Admissions

  • U.S. Supreme Court, 2009
  • Florida Bar, 2005
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, 2005
  • U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida, 2005
  • U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida, 2006
  • U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, 2006

Speaking Engagements

  • Moderator, Professionalism Presentation and Panel Discussion, Practice Before the Fifth District Court of Appeal Continuing Legal Education Seminar, Altamonte Springs, Florida, March 2010
  • Avoiding Fundamentally Erroneous Jury Instructions, Orange County State Attorney's Office, Orlando, Florida, April 2008