About Michael

Michael is the Practice Team Leader for the Maddocks Employment & Workplace team in Victoria.

Michael provides practical, commercial and strategic advice for a range of private and public sector clients on industrial relations matters, enterprise agreements and bargaining, equal opportunity and discrimination, contracts of employment, disciplinary proceedings, restraints of trade, transfers of business, unfair dismissal claims and general protections matters.

Michael is an experienced and highly-regarded solicitor advocate, and has successfully appeared on behalf of clients before the Federal Court, the Fair Work Commission, the Magistrates' Court of Victoria, the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal and disciplinary appeals boards.

Experience

• Enterprise agreements and bargaining

  Advising and acting for a range of private and public sector clients in relation to enterprise agreements and bargaining, including appearing as advocate in good faith bargaining disputes, scope orders, drafting agreements, acting in a successful application to suspend protected industrial action, drafting agreements, bargaining strategy and approval application matters.

• Industrial disputes

  Advising and acting in a range of industrial disputes, with experience in raising successful jurisdictional objections and working with clients to develop robust disputation strategy. Particular experience in appearing before the Fair Work Commission including appearing as advocate in ASU v Brimbank City Council [2020] FWC 3160 in relation to flexible work arrangements and in Grey v Melbourne City Council [2017] FWC 4861 in relation to a classification dispute.

• Restructures and organisational change

  Advising and acting for a range of private and public sector clients in relation to workforce restructures, redundancies and organisational change including strategic advice regarding consultation obligations (with unions and employees), redeployment options, redundancies and transfers of business. Experience in working with clients in developing and executing communications and change strategies.

• Employment litigation

  Significant experience in a range of employment litigation matters including post-employment restraints, general protections claims – including acting and appearing in a Federal Court application for urgent injunctive relief – unfair dismissals, breach of contract and employee v contractor claims across all jurisdictions.

• Discrimination and sexual harassment

  Advising and acting for private and public sector clients in relation to discrimination and sexual harassment claims, including providing critical strategic advice to manage complex claims. Particular experience in appearing in VCAT and successfully applying for summary dismissal of frivolous and vexatious claims, including in France v Frankston City Council [2021] VCAT 333 and Phillips v Maroondah City Council [2021] VCAT 290.