Buchalter is pleased to announce that Michele On-ja Choe has joined the firm’s Denver office as a Partner and member of the Labor and Employment Practice Group.
“We are thrilled to welcome Michele to our team,” said Adam Bass, President and Chief Executive Officer of Buchalter. “Her depth of experience in managing complex, multi-jurisdictional litigation and her relentless dedication to client advocacy make her an asset to our expanding presence in Denver.”
Choe is a highly decorated employment litigator with over 20 years of experience defending clients ranging from small businesses to those in the Fortune 50. She has been recognized annually by 5280 Magazine, Best Lawyers, and Super Lawyers, including being named a Top 100 Lawyer in Colorado and Top 50 Women lawyer in Colorado. She focuses her practice on the management side of employment litigation. She has tried multiple cases to verdict in multiple jurisdictions; argued appeals successfully; managed global strategy in single-plaintiff litigations, multidistrict litigations, and mass, class, and collective actions with local counsel across multiple jurisdictions; and managed complex eDiscovery, including productions exceeding 1 million documents and productions to Attorneys General.
“I’m thrilled to join Buchalter and collaborate with its nationally renowned Labor and Employment team,” said Choe. “The firm’s strong culture and depth of resources provide an exceptional platform to support clients facing sophisticated, multi-jurisdictional workplace and litigation matters.”
During her career, Choe defended a healthcare client in a one-week, multimillion-dollar wrongful termination trial in Colorado and won an extraordinary pre-trial motion that resulted in the exclusion of the plaintiff’s future damages. In November 2023, she won an arbitration on summary judgment on behalf of a Fortune-50 commercial client in litigation involving contract and misclassification claims. She has assisted multiple clients by winning game-changing Rule 702 and other pretrial motions that caused opponents to relent, and by winning and defending clients at trial and on appeal. As part of her regular practice, Choe provides general employment advice and counseling, especially during employee separations in the context of litigation threats.
“Michele’s practice compliments the existing services we offer to businesses in Denver,” said Robert Hinckley, Managing Partner of Buchalter’s Denver office. “Her commitment to clients aligns perfectly with Buchalter’s values and adds additional depth to our Denver-based Labor and Employment practice.”
While her primary focus remains on management-side labor and employment defense, Ms. Choe also brings robust experience in complex commercial and tort litigation. Her versatile background includes handling trade secret claims, contract disputes, medical malpractice, complex personal injury, and product liability mass torts.
