973.376.0909 x1130
mshapiro@bmk-law.com
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Areas of Practice
- Litigation and Dispute Resolution
- Appellate Practice
Education
- The Dickinson School of Law, J.D., cum laude
- Senior Editor, Dickinson Law Review
- University of London, Faculty of Laws
- Drew University, B.A. with Specialized Honors in Philosophy, summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa
Bar and Court Admissions
- New Jersey
- Pennsylvania
- U.S. District Court, District of New Jersey
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania
MICHELE-LEE SHAPIRO
Senior Counsel
Michele-Lee Shapiro is an experienced litigator representing clients in a broad range of civil matters including contracts, trusts and estates, real estate, construction, and insurance coverage litigation. She also has extensive experience in appellate practice.
Before joining BMK, Michele-Lee served as an Assistant Prosecutor in the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office within the Appellate Section, handling appeals and various aspects of criminal cases. Her appellate experience began early in her career during her clerkship with The Hon. Herman D. Michels, then Presiding Judge for Administration of the Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division.
Upon the completion of her clerkship, Michele-Lee became a litigator at Sills Cummis & Gross in Newark, New Jersey, focusing her practice on diverse commercial litigation and white collar criminal defense. She has also served as an Adjunct Professor of Legal Research and Writing at Seton Hall Law School in Newark, New Jersey.
Having been intricately involved in a family business in the performing arts area for many years, Michele-Lee understands the operations and challenges of small businesses, including their need for highly effective, cost-efficient counsel.
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Representative Cases
- Represented physicians’ practice group through successful appellate outcome in connection with dispute concerning an employment agreement and insurance coverage.
- Represented commercial real estate brokerage firm in connection with an array of disputes involving brokers, developers, and third parties.
- Represented clients in complex trusts and estates litigation including action to appoint Substituted Executor and Trustee, and action to resolve distribution of trust proceeds.
- Represented clients in prosecution and defense of claims under New Jersey’s Consumer Fraud Act.
- Represented international logistics corporations in connection with conversion, theft, and related claims, as well as freight and shipping disputes.
- Represented homeowners regarding claims stemming from substandard contractor workmanship and deceptive lead generation services.
- Represented pharmaceutical company in connection with multiple complex litigation issues.
- As a Bergen County Assistant Prosecutor, represented the State of New Jersey in numerous criminal appellate matters.
- In association with the American Civil Liberties Union, Michele-Lee was co-counsel on a federal Section 1983 litigation that addressed civil rights, Fourth Amendment, and qualified immunity issues in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, which, after a Third Circuit decision, compelled substantial changes to the drug interdiction protocols used by law enforcement officers in the State of Pennsylvania.
- By special arrangement with the Barrister’s Chambers of the Honourable Society of the Middle Temple in London, England, Michele-Lee assisted with the representation of defendants in criminal cases.
Publications
- “Preserving the Sixth Amendment Rights of the Deaf Criminal Defendant,” 97 Dick.L.R. 191 (1992).
- Retribution and the Death Penalty, Drew University, Special Collection (Thesis), OCLC 22444239 (1990).
Community Activities
Among her many community service activities, Michele-Lee works extensively with her high school alma mater, Mount Saint Dominic Academy in Caldwell, New Jersey, where she is an ardent supporter of the school’s arts programs. She also advocates for, and volunteers to provide support to, mothers and their newborns through national, statewide, and local organizations. Michele-Lee enjoys mentoring law students and attorneys in the early stages of their careers.
Professional Associations
- New Jersey Bar Association
- Women Lawyers in Bergen