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Bridgeton Office
196 East Commerce Street
Bridgeton, NJ 08302
Tel: 856-497-9000
Fax: 877-445-7105
Michael's broad legal experience spans 3 decades. He and the Helmer team have successfully assisted clients with DUI, criminal defense, personal injury, immigration, commercial and litigation matters. Michael was previously General Counsel at a comprehensive New Jersey university with nearly 9,000 students, 1,800 employees, spanning 1,600 acres, and over 2.5 million square feet of facilities. In that position, he handled complex litigation and multi-million dollar commercial transactions, employment law, immigration matters, bankruptcy actions, civil rights, State and federal compliance, personal injury cases, and debt financing.
Michael's government experience includes serving in the Office of Chief Counsel to the Governor of New Jersey where he advised on matters involving higher education, banking, insurance, consumer affairs, economic development, and public finance. He was then appointed by the Governor to serve as Executive Director/CEO of the New Jersey Higher Education Student Assistance Authority overseeing over $9 billion in assets. Michael was one of the highest-ranking Asian Americans in New Jersey government. He is most proud of his work advocating for underrepresented children and families, and first-generation communities.
Michael received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Financial Management from The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. He received a Juris Doctor from the Rutgers University School of Law. After law school, Michael served as judicial clerk to the Honorable Frank M. Lario, Jr., Superior Court of New Jersey. He has been admitted to practice law in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C. Michael also obtained an MBA with a dual concentration in Finance and Management from the Rutgers University School of Business.
An active community volunteer, Michael served on the Governor’s Asian Advisory Commission, the Equal Employment Opportunity Advisory Commission, the New Jersey Asian American Commission, the Diversity Committee for the New Jersey State Bar Association, the Supreme Court of New Jersey Committee on Minority Concerns, and the District IV Ethics Committee. He was the President of the Asian Pacific American Lawyers Association of New Jersey, and was co-chair of the Legislative Committee for the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association, representing over 40,000 Asian American attorneys nationwide. He has served as Counsel to numerous Asian American organizations locally and nationally.
Michael is a Fellow of the prestigious Lead New Jersey program. He was honored as the Professional Lawyer of the Year by the New Jersey Commission on Professionalism in the Law, and is the recipient of the New Jersey State Bar Association Service to the Community Award.
