About Michelle A. Gyves

Michelle Gyves helps domestic and multinational employers navigate a wide range of employment issues with legal components to them. They include hiring and termination, compensation and benefits, restrictive covenants, workplace investigations, diversity and inclusion, and global mobility.

Keeping employers current on legal obligations

Michelle has conducted numerous multistate and multicountry audits of employment laws and practices, ensuring clients' compliance in a wide range of areas. Her experience covers data privacy, disability and leave laws, employer health and safety obligations and working time regulations, among numerous other issues.

Michelle advises employers on labor, employment and benefits issues in connection with both buy- and sell- side M&A deals and conducts deal-related benefits and human resources due diligence. She also provides advice on issues related to the intersection of technology and employment law, including compliance with applicable data privacy laws throughout the world, notably the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), for both employee and customer data.

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Practice Focus

  • Employment law and litigation
  • Workplace regulation
  • Employment benefits
  • Mergers and acquisitions (M&A)
  • Data privacy

Representative Experience

  • Conducted employment and benefits diligence, contributed to deal documents and provided other transaction-related advice in a branded hotel company’s acquisition of international luxury chain. *
  • Conducted employment and benefits diligence, contributed to deal documents and provided other transaction-related advice in connection with a leading global alternative asset manager’s acquisition of global service-based systems integrator. *
  • Conducted employment and benefits diligence, contributed to deal documents and provided other transaction-related advice in connection with a capital market company’s acquisition of provider of mental/behavioral health services.  *
  • Conducted employment and benefits diligence, contributed to deal documents and provided other transaction-related advice in connection with a worldwide distributor of medical/dental supplies’ spin-off of its veterinary business.  *
  • Advised private equity clients and their portfolio companies on various employment matters including employee separations, reductions in force, hiring and background checks, and development of employment policies.  *
  • Drafted restrictive covenant agreements for use by private equity client with its non-US workforce.  *
  • Provided daily employment law counseling to Fortune 500 professional services company on global employment matters, including hiring and terminations, restrictive covenant agreements, global mobility, and diversity programs.  *
  • Advised multinational client on rollout of workplace complaint hotline including antidiscrimination, contract and data privacy considerations.  *
  • Negotiated and drafted executive employment agreements, including for CEOs of major media company and fashion and lifestyle startup.  *
* Experience prior to Katten

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Publications

Presentations and Events

Practices
Industries
Education
  • Harvard Law School, JD, cum laude
  • The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, BA, with high distinction
Bar Admissions
  • New York
Community Involvements
  • International Law Section of the American Bar Association, International Employment Committee
  • The Hill School, trustee
Recognitions
Recognized or listed in the following:
  • The Legal 500 United States
    Next Generation Lawyer, 2019
Award Methodologies