"I have known Mike for greater than 30 years—great labor attorney, accomplished speaker, creative strategist, proven corporate and association leadership experience, tireless worker. In short—none better."

"Michael’s philosophy is to practice preventive HR. He firmly believes it’s easier and less costly to keep us out of trouble than to get us out of trouble."

"Over the course of 16 years, I have introduced more than 500 speakers to my CEO members—a tough, demanding audience. Few have brought the value, passion, and sense of purpose Michael delivers. He has helped many of my members avoid costly mistakes that would have led to the expensive distraction of litigation."

Michael J. Lotito has been serving the legal and human resource needs of companies across the U.S. for nearly 30 years. He is a partner at Jackson Lewis, a law firm that specializes in preventive labor, employment immigration, and benefits law, representing management since its founding in 1958. The firm has 375 lawyers working in 20 offices throughout the country.

Following graduation from Villanova University and then Villanova Law School in 1974, Michael has devoted his entire professional career to representing management interests in employment law. He has worked tirelessly to counsel management on understanding and adhering to the law and in resolving employment issues quickly and fairly. Listed in Who’s Who in American Law, Michael is a member of the California and American Bar Associations and has been elected as a fellow to the American Bar Association. He is a Board member of Sterling Testing Systems, a nationwide pre-employment screening company based in New York.

In the human resources field, Michael has received lifetime SPHR certification. He chaired the 170,000-member Society for Human Resource Management in 2000. Earlier he was chairman of SHRM’s National Legislative Affairs Committee and served on its Employee and Labor Relations Committee. In these and other capacities he has influenced important legislation including the Americans with Disabilities Act. He has testified before the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives as well as the EEOC. He was recently honored as Human Resources Alumnus of the 20^th Century by the Villanova Graduate Program in Human Resources.

Michael has co-authored several books on the ADA including The Americans with Disabilities Act: A Comprehensive Guide to Title I; What Managers & Supervisors Need to Know About the ADA; and Making the ADA Work for You (2^nd ed.). With his partner Lynn Outwater, he has also co-authored a book on privacy titled Minding Your Business: Legal Issues and Practical Answers for Managing Workplace Privacy.

A top-rated speaker and presenter, Michael has keynoted many conferences in the U.S., Canada, and other countries including South Africa, Taiwan, and Germany. He regularly appears before the management and supervisory personnel of Jackson Lewis clients to discuss various topics including sexual harassment, labor union activity, implementation of the ADA, and the intricacies of employees being excused from regular attendance. SHRM selected him as the legal presenter for its nationwide ADA program, and he is a regular presenter at SHRM’s annual conference. Most recently he was honored as a member of TEC 200, a designation that places him among the top 1% of all TEC presenters.

Michael has appeared on PBS’s NewsHour with Jim Lehrer" and Fox TV’s "The Schneider Report," and he can frequently be heard on National Public Radio. He has been quoted in the New York Times and the Walls Street Journal, and his remarks on a variety of employment law topics have also appeared in Forbes, BusinessWeek, Washington Post, Boston Globe, USA Today, Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Sacramento Bee, National Law Journal, Nation’s Business, Harvard Business Review, and other major publications.

As he travels 150,000 miles a year helping companies around the world resolve issues, Michael’s primary home is a seat on American Airlines. However, he always looks forward to returning to his wife Luanne, daughter Kelly, and their Yorkshire terrier Abby Lane in the San Francisco Bay Area.