Michelle K. Millard
Associate
Tel:
(213) 955-9240
Email:
mmillard@willenken.comFax:
(213) 955-9250
Biography
- Bio
- Honors
- Winning Matters
- Cases
- Publications
- News
Michelle K. Millard handles complex commercial litigation involving business, intellectual property, and entertainment disputes, as well as trial work and appeals. She has served as second chair in jury trials, bench trials, and arbitrations, and has helped clients secure dismissals, summary judgment victories, trial victories, and significant monetary recoveries.
Michelle’s recent work includes helping obtain dismissal with prejudice for CBS Studios, Jodi Roth, and Yacht Money in a dispute alleging that the CBS television show Superfan was based on a proposed show previously pitched to CBS. She also represented the government of Romania and Romanian state-run film company RADEF in litigation seeking more than $2 billion in damages, which resulted in summary judgment for her clients. Her broader experience also includes advertising, aviation, clean energy, contract, and real estate disputes.
Michelle’s arts and entertainment experience is informed by her prior work as a legal fellow with the in-house legal department of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City. While there, she gained exposure to the legal and business issues facing major cultural institutions and co-authored “Going Global: A Case Study of Lincoln Center’s Legal Department” for the International In-House Counsel Journal.
Michelle earned her J.D. from Columbia Law School, where she was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar, a research assistant for the Kernochan Center for Law, Media, and the Arts, a contributor to the Columbia Journal of European Law, and Vice President of the Gastronomy Society. She also served as a judicial intern for the Honorable Wayne Johnson of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California, worked as a law clerk for the Children’s Law Center of California, and interned with the Orange County Public Defender.
Michelle is conversant in French and was honored with the Martin-Turrell Best French Essay Award while an undergraduate at UCLA, where she graduated magna cum laude.
- “Rising Star,” Super Lawyers, 2019-2023
- Accelerated Global Content LLC v. CBS Broadcasting Inc. et al. Obtained dismissal on demurrer of claims alleging that the CBS television show Superfan was based on a proposed show the plaintiff had previously pitched to CBS.
- Sukyas et al. v. Romania et al. Represented the government of Romania and Romanian state-run film company RADEF in litigation alleging that Romania’s former communist regime improperly nationalized the plaintiffs’ film production company and that RADEF was the direct successor to that company. The plaintiffs sought more than $2 billion in damages. The trial court granted summary judgment for the defendants on all claims.
- Raphael Gort et al. v. LA6721, LLC et al. Served as second chair trial counsel for a film and television advertising company and its principals in a dispute alleging that the defendants intentionally interfered with and caused the collapse of a motion graphics company, depriving the plaintiffs of millions of dollars in claimed future revenues. Following a bench trial, the court found for the defendants on all interference claims, and the defendants obtained substantial cost recovery as a result of a tendered Section 998 offer.
- Drissi Advertising, Inc. v. IO2 Technology, LLC. Obtained a seven-figure judgment for the plaintiff in a contract dispute involving advertising displays produced for the promotion of a tentpole motion picture series.
- CO|FXFOWLE Architects v. Saltzman et al. Obtained a $1.6 million judgment for CO|FXFOWLE Architects in a fee dispute against three developers of an $88 million Las Vegas real estate project.
- Kennedy v. Aero-Nasch Aviation, Inc. Assisted in drafting a summary judgment motion that secured a complete victory for the defendant manufacturer of custom jet airplane interiors and its founder. The court dismissed the suit in its entirety, rejecting claims that the defendants siphoned funds from a jointly owned custom jet engine cover business.
- Quality Investment Fund, Malta 1, Ltd. et al v. Martin Schuermann. Developed the argument and drafted the motion that obtained vacatur of a seven-figure default judgment and, ultimately, dismissal of the entire action against the defendant in a dispute brought by former investors in a clean energy venture. The court agreed that it lacked subject matter jurisdiction over claims between Malta-based funds and the defendant, a German citizen.
- “Going Global: A Case Study of Lincoln Center’s Legal Department,” International In-House Counsel Journal, co-author, April 2014
Willenken Shortlisted for 2026 Benchmark Litigation US Awards
January 8, 2026
Willenken Recognized as a Top Firm to Work For by the Los Angeles Business Journal for the Sixth Consecutive Year
November 20, 2025
Willenken Earns Best Lawyers “Best Law Firms” Ranking for Third Consecutive Year
November 6, 2025
Biography
Michelle K. Millard handles complex commercial litigation involving business, intellectual property, and entertainment disputes, as well as trial work and appeals. She has served as second chair in jury trials, bench trials, and arbitrations, and has helped clients secure dismissals, summary judgment victories, trial victories, and significant monetary recoveries.
Michelle’s recent work includes helping obtain dismissal with prejudice for CBS Studios, Jodi Roth, and Yacht Money in a dispute alleging that the CBS television show Superfan was based on a proposed show previously pitched to CBS. She also represented the government of Romania and Romanian state-run film company RADEF in litigation seeking more than $2 billion in damages, which resulted in summary judgment for her clients. Her broader experience also includes advertising, aviation, clean energy, contract, and real estate disputes.
Michelle’s arts and entertainment experience is informed by her prior work as a legal fellow with the in-house legal department of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City. While there, she gained exposure to the legal and business issues facing major cultural institutions and co-authored “Going Global: A Case Study of Lincoln Center’s Legal Department” for the International In-House Counsel Journal.
Michelle earned her J.D. from Columbia Law School, where she was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar, a research assistant for the Kernochan Center for Law, Media, and the Arts, a contributor to the Columbia Journal of European Law, and Vice President of the Gastronomy Society. She also served as a judicial intern for the Honorable Wayne Johnson of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California, worked as a law clerk for the Children’s Law Center of California, and interned with the Orange County Public Defender.
Michelle is conversant in French and was honored with the Martin-Turrell Best French Essay Award while an undergraduate at UCLA, where she graduated magna cum laude.
Honors
- “Rising Star,” Super Lawyers, 2019-2023
Winning Matters
Cases
- Accelerated Global Content LLC v. CBS Broadcasting Inc. et al. Obtained dismissal on demurrer of claims alleging that the CBS television show Superfan was based on a proposed show the plaintiff had previously pitched to CBS.
- Sukyas et al. v. Romania et al. Represented the government of Romania and Romanian state-run film company RADEF in litigation alleging that Romania’s former communist regime improperly nationalized the plaintiffs’ film production company and that RADEF was the direct successor to that company. The plaintiffs sought more than $2 billion in damages. The trial court granted summary judgment for the defendants on all claims.
- Raphael Gort et al. v. LA6721, LLC et al. Served as second chair trial counsel for a film and television advertising company and its principals in a dispute alleging that the defendants intentionally interfered with and caused the collapse of a motion graphics company, depriving the plaintiffs of millions of dollars in claimed future revenues. Following a bench trial, the court found for the defendants on all interference claims, and the defendants obtained substantial cost recovery as a result of a tendered Section 998 offer.
- Drissi Advertising, Inc. v. IO2 Technology, LLC. Obtained a seven-figure judgment for the plaintiff in a contract dispute involving advertising displays produced for the promotion of a tentpole motion picture series.
- CO|FXFOWLE Architects v. Saltzman et al. Obtained a $1.6 million judgment for CO|FXFOWLE Architects in a fee dispute against three developers of an $88 million Las Vegas real estate project.
- Kennedy v. Aero-Nasch Aviation, Inc. Assisted in drafting a summary judgment motion that secured a complete victory for the defendant manufacturer of custom jet airplane interiors and its founder. The court dismissed the suit in its entirety, rejecting claims that the defendants siphoned funds from a jointly owned custom jet engine cover business.
- Quality Investment Fund, Malta 1, Ltd. et al v. Martin Schuermann. Developed the argument and drafted the motion that obtained vacatur of a seven-figure default judgment and, ultimately, dismissal of the entire action against the defendant in a dispute brought by former investors in a clean energy venture. The court agreed that it lacked subject matter jurisdiction over claims between Malta-based funds and the defendant, a German citizen.
Publications
- “Going Global: A Case Study of Lincoln Center’s Legal Department,” International In-House Counsel Journal, co-author, April 2014
latest news about michelle
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