Michelle A. Paninopoulos

Litigation Experience

Michelle's recent matters include the successful defense of class actions under a broad range of federal and state statutory privacy and consumer protection laws, including helping secure a favorable ruling opposing class certification in a privacy action against a large online consumer platform. Michelle maintains a growing practice counseling and representing franchisors in the prevention and resolution of franchise disputes. Some of her other representative matters include leading the defense against computer fraud allegations in a cross-border RICO case, as well as serving as part of a team representing a client in a major commercial arbitration between competing health care systems.

Prior Experience

Earlier in her career, Michelle litigated patent, copyright, trademark, and trade secret matters, including serving as a member of the firm's trial team in a two-week federal bench trial that resulted in a rare permanent injunction protecting the manufacturing process for a pharmaceutical product with over $2 billion in annual sales (Wyeth v. Natural Biologics). Her other matters included trademark and copyright defense for a national retailer, patent infringement defense for a major medical device manufacturer, a licensing dispute for a telecommunications equipment manufacturer, and defense of copyright claims involving architectural works.

Michelle returned to full-time practice in 2022 through the OnRamp Fellowship, a competitive re-entry program that places experienced attorneys with leading law firms and legal departments following a career hiatus. She did so with an LL.M. in Data Privacy and Cybersecurity Law in hand, having used the intervening years to position herself at the intersection of emerging technology, privacy regulation, and business litigation.

Personal Interests

Michelle enjoys spending time with her family. She is an adventurous cook and enjoys yoga and swimming. A lover of the beautiful game, she can often be found with her oldest son cheering on the Philadelphia Union.