Michelle holds a BA (Law) from the University of Stellenbosch and LLB & PG Diploma in Maritime Law from the University of KwaZulu-Natal.

She practiced as an advocate specialising in labour and employment law from 2001 and joined Garlicke & Bousfield as a Director in the Employment Law Department in 2022,relocating to the Cape office in May 2024. She has extensive experience in representing a wide spectrum of interests (individual and corporate employers, employees and unions) in both the private and public sector in litigation and arbitration at the CCMA, Bargaining Councils, Labour Court, High Court and Labour Appeal Court; conducting investigations into disciplinary transgressions and incapacity on account of ill-health and poor work performance; drafting disciplinary codes and workplace policies; and chairing hearings and private arbitrations.

Michelle is also passionate about dispute resolution and conflict management, and is an accredited arbitrator and mediator serving on the panels of Conflict Dynamics, Mediation in Motion, Aequitate Mediation & Dispute Resolution Specialists, KZN Society of Mediators and the SA Medico-Legal Association. She has acted in the capacity of mediator, arbitrator and facilitator, in both the employment and civil & commercial sectors and has mediated commercial, school, corporate governance, medical negligence, personal injury, professional negligence, family, grievance and workplace disputes.

She has held the positions of Regional Manager for Probono.Org and Acting Judge in the Labour Court (pro bono project) and is currently a reports editor for Juta’s Industrial Law Journal and company secretary for Odfjell Mazibuko SA (Pty) Ltd and Odfjell Durban (Pty)Ltd.