McDermott Will & Schulte, a global law firm

Michelle has specific experience handling cases involving federal and state antitrust and unfair competition law matters, as well as a range of general complex litigation and investigation matters in the health, high-tech and manufacturing sectors. She has served as both plaintiff and defense counsel, with a focus on litigation between competitors and along the supply chain. Michelle regularly defends clients against civil investigations by the US Department of Justice (DOJ), the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the California Attorney General’s Office. She helps her clients compete intensely by guiding and defending competitive strategies through and around litigation and investigations.

Michelle is the West Coast lead for the Firm’s antitrust and unfair competition practice, which is ranked “Global Elite” as one of the top 25 competition practices in the world by Global Competition Review. She has been recognized by Legal 500 US and Benchmark Litigation as excelling in antitrust and unfair competition litigation.

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• Won summary judgment, affirmed by the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit of monopolization and tying claims for payor contracting strategy brought by outpatient surgery center against hospital system
• Won motion to dismiss, affirmed by the US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, on a post-merger antitrust challenge to interlocking directors under Clayton Act §8 by private plaintiffs against a health system and its entire board of directors, who were each named individually
• Convinced the DOJ to close its investigation into an alleged price-fixing and capacity reducing conspiracy in plastics products manufacturing industry
• Defeated a class certification on impact and damages of proposed direct purchaser class after taking the lead for the joint defense group in In re Steel Antitrust Litigation, which was the largest class action in the country when it was filed, claiming damages in excess of $17 billion for alleged price-fixing and coordinated capacity restrictions. Defeated indirect purchaser class complaint at motion to dismiss, affirmed by the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
• Achieved a walkaway settlement from nationwide price-fixing conspiracy claims in the cardboard manufacturing industry
• Achieved a favorable settlement for a health system based on an antitrust counterclaim in a case brought by pharmaceutical company
• Aided a third-party complainant in providing testimony to the FTC regarding exclusion from routing and eligibility markets
• Defended a third party and executives in a California Attorney General’s antitrust investigation into craft brewery distribution system
• Defending a physician management services company against allegations that restrictive covenants and exclusive contracting strategies violate California unfair competition and antitrust laws
• Mediating and arbitrating claims against a former joint venture partner for monopolization based on an exclusive contracting strategy covering development of outpatient surgery centers
• Advising a health system on its response to a California Attorney General’s investigation into artificial intelligence algorithms
• Defending a client in an investigation by the California Attorney General into alleged violations of California unfair competition and antitrust laws for a group boycott
• Defending a client in a California Attorney General’s investigation alleging underpayments to a department of the state
• Arbitrating claims that a client’s subcontract and overall contracting strategy violate Sherman Act Section 1

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