About Michael

Experienced and pragmatic employment law and business guidance

Michael Paa provides practical advice and guidance on employment and general business matters to mitigate risk and accomplish client objectives. As a former in-house attorney at a publicly traded multinational corporation, a regional hospitality group and a privately held corporation, he understands the complexities and business objectives of critical legal decisions. He regularly advises clients on employment law compliance, business operations and strategizes with clients to resolve conflicts and issues arising in the workplace. Michael advises on a variety of matters, including:

  • Federal, state and local employment law compliance
  • Reductions in force
  • EEOC and DFEH matters
  • Internal investigations
  • General business matters

As someone who understands the intersection between legal and commercial needs, Michael provides timely, practical and business-oriented solutions. He has worked both in-house and externally with diverse clients, including startups, publicly traded multinational corporations, governmental entities, private equity portfolio companies and regional hospitality groups to provide practical solutions to some of the most complex matters.

Experience in Action

  • Assists clients with employment matters, including hiring, background checks, workplace disputes, employee relations matters, labor issues, disability accommodations, complicated leave matters and internal investigations.
  • Investigates and advocates on behalf of clients in response to attorney demand letters, agency investigations and public records disclosure requests.
  • Advises clients on all aspects of employment separations, such as individual separations and larger reductions in force, including WARN compliance, adverse impact analysis and document drafting.
  • Crafts bespoke policies and procedures, employee handbooks, contracts, retention agreements, separation agreements, employment agreements and critical communications.
  • Provides advice and guidance regarding merger and acquisition (M&A) employment matters.
  • Advises business clients regarding general matters.

Successes

  • Successfully mediated employment disputes at the EEOC, California DFEH, Australia’s Fair Work Commission and Singapore’s Employment Claims Tribunal.
  • Coordinated union anti-organizing efforts.
  • Lead attorney for work-place investigations involving senior level executives.

Professional Recognitions

  • San Diego Business Journal "Top 100 Leaders in Law" (2022)

News & Insights

Education

Bar Admissions

Court Admissions

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