Michelle G. Lee
Partner
“Somebody has to stand when other people are sitting. Somebody has to speak when other people are quiet.”
– Bryan Stevenson
Contact Me
Michelle Lee joined the firm in 2014 to represent workers in both individual and class action cases, enforcing state and federal laws which protect workers who have been treated unfairly by their employers. Michelle specializes in a variety of employment law issues including wage theft, discrimination, retaliation, harassment, sexual assault, and trade secrets matters. Throughout her career, Michelle has successfully recovered millions of dollars in damages for her clients from some of the largest employers in California.
Michelle has tried complex cases in court and arbitration, including serving as second chair on the trial team in the landmark sex discrimination case Ellen Pao v. Kleiner Perkins that highlighted the barriers facing women in venture capital and tech industries. She has also tried cases involving breach of contract, wrongful termination, and unpaid equity claims.
Michelle has been recognized as one of the Top Women Attorneys in Northern California by San Francisco Magazine, a Super Lawyer, and one of Lawdragon’s 500 Leading Plaintiff Employment Lawyers in the United States. She is a frequent panelist and speaker about employment law issues, as well as her passion for combating bias and fostering diversity in the workplace. Michelle also serves on the Advisory Committee on Civil Jury Instructions, the group that writes the Judicial Council of California Civil Jury Instructions. She was appointed to the Committee by the Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court, along with a select group of judges and elite trial lawyers.
Before joining Rudy, Exelrod, Zieff & Lowe, Michelle was an associate at a prominent national litigation firm, where she handled a wide array of complex cases ranging from intellectual property disputes to securities lawsuits. Michelle also served as a law clerk for the Honorable William Alsup of the Northern District of California and as a law clerk at the Southern Center for Human Rights in Georgia. Michelle graduated cum laude from the University of Michigan Law School where she was an editor for the Michigan Journal of Law Reform. Michelle received her undergraduate degree in biology from Yale University.
Litigation and Negotiation:
Frequently represent employees in discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and unpaid compensation claims. Representative cases include:
- Former executive of publicly traded company in claims of gender discrimination and whistleblower retaliation for reporting violations of securities laws.
- Female technology entrepreneur who was sexually assaulted by a venture capital investor.
- Sales executive terminated in breach of his employment agreement.
- Employee terminated by electric vehicle company due to her pregnancy.
Class Action Litigation:
- Represented class of employees in claims alleging unpaid meal periods and related claims.
- Represented a class of California refinery workers who were systematically denied pay by their employer for time worked before and after they were on the clock.
Counseling:
- Regularly advise employees and executives negotiating an exit or transition.
- Judicial Council of California Civil Jury Instructions Advisory Committee – Member
- Bar Association of San Francisco Labor & Employment Section – Executive Committee Member
- Practising Law Institute, California Employment Law Conference – Co -Chair
- California Employment Lawyers Association’s Diversity Outreach Committee – Member and former Co-Chair
- Labor and Employment Section of the State Bar of California
- Supervising Attorney for the Legal Aid at Work Workers’ Rights Clinic
- National Employment Lawyers Association
- Pacific Coast Labor & Employment Law Conference, “Managing Multistate Challenges in Remote Work Environments,” April 2024.
- Bar Association of San Francisco’s Annual Labor and Employment Law Conference, “Mental health in the new workplace: disability accommodations, return to work, and the unbearable lightness of well-being,” February 2024.
- National Employment Lawyers Association Annual Convention, “Rights of the Remote Worker,” June 2023.
- Editor and Chapter Contributor, Litigation of International Employment Disputes, International Labor and Employment Laws, 2016-present.
- Chapter Author, Practicing Law Institute California Employment Law Yearbook, 2022-present.
- Valuing and Recovering lost equity as part of lost compensation damages in wrongful termination cases, Plaintiff Magazine, April 2021.
- The Nuts and Bolts of Jury Instructions: Practical tips for civil trials in California, The Daily Journal, October 22, 2020.
- Spotting and Addressing Discrimination and Bias in the Tech Sector, Practicing Law Institute, 2018.
- Overcoming Bias and Barriers to Diversity, California Employment Lawyer’s Diversity Leadership Summit, San Francisco, 2016.
- Leveling the Playing Field: Sex Discrimination and Asian Americans in the Law and Silicon Valley, AABA Civil Rights and Women’s Committees, San Francisco, 2015.
- University of Michigan Law School – J.D. cum laude
- Yale University – B.A. Biology
- Panelist, Bar Association of San Francisco’s Annual Labor and Employment Law Conference, February 2023
- Editor and Chapter Contributor, Litigation of International Employment Disputes, International Labor and Employment Laws, 2016-2021.
- Valuing and Recovering lost equity as part of lost compensation damages in wrongful termination cases, Plaintiff Magazine, April 2021.
- Chapter Author, Practicing Law Institute California Employment Law Yearbook, October 2022
- The Nuts and Bolts of Jury Instructions: Practical tips for civil trials in California, The Daily Journal, October 22, 2020.
- Spotting and Addressing Discrimination and Bias in the Tech Sector, Practicing Law Institute, 2018.
- Overcoming Bias and Barriers to Diversity, California Employment Lawyer’s Diversity Leadership Summit, San Francisco, 2016.
- Annual Employment Law Update, Bar Association of San Francisco Labor & Employment Section Annual Conference, Yosemite, 2015.
- Leveling the Playing Field: Sex Discrimination and Asian Americans in the Law and Silicon Valley, AABA Civil Rights and Women’s Committees, San Francisco, 2015.