Sanford Michelman advises boards, executives, and founders through litigation and regulatory threats involving legal, financial, and reputational risk. He is a trusted partner to business leaders navigating complex disputes, government scrutiny, and challenges with far-reaching implications.
With a practice that spans financial services, insurance, private equity, and advertising, among other sectors, Sanford is known for delivering results in matters where institutional stakes are high. His recent work includes neutralizing multibillion-dollar exposure faced by a brand-name insurer following an aggressive regulatory enforcement action; defending a prominent business leader in litigation surrounding his high-profile separation from a major talent agency; challenging a federal agency’s attempt to restrict access to a national lending system for community-focused financial institutions; and pursuing hundreds of millions in arbitration tied to investment failures by a global financial firm.
Sanford’s perspective is shaped by decades of leadership at the intersection of law, policy, and business. In 2016, he was elected to the board of directors of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and went on to serve as Chair of the Bank’s Audit and Risk Management Committee until the conclusion of his term in 2022. Earlier in his career, he worked on behalf of a U.S. Senator in connection with a highprofile investigation of a life insurance company and the confirmation process of a U.S. Supreme Court nominee. He was later appointed by the Governor of California to the State Athletic Commission, where he was elected Vice-Chairman and then Chairman. Today, as co-founder and chairman of Michelman & Robinson, he continues to lead from the front—guiding the firm’s international expansion, cultivating a high-performance culture, and delivering strategic counsel to clients confronting their most consequential challenges.
A perennial Top 100 Lawyer and one of the Los Angeles Business Journal’s 500 most influential people in L.A., Sanford is also an entrepreneur and boardroom leader. He founded and is Chairman of FlyHouse, a private aviation company powered by dynamic proprietary pricing technology. Sanford is also Chairman of the Board of Acceleration Community of Companies, a cutting-edge marketing and media collective. He sits on the board of Cascade Mountain Spring Water as well. Across every endeavor, Sanford brings a forward-looking mindset and a drive to help clients seize advantage in moments that define businesses.
Sanford Michelman advises boards, executives, and founders through litigation and regulatory threats involving legal, financial, and reputational risk. He is a trusted partner to business leaders navigating complex disputes, government scrutiny, and challenges with far-reaching implications.
With a practice that spans financial services, insurance, private equity, and advertising, among other sectors, Sanford is known for delivering results in matters where institutional stakes are high. His recent work includes neutralizing multibillion-dollar exposure faced by a brand-name insurer following an aggressive regulatory enforcement action; defending a prominent business leader in litigation surrounding his high-profile separation from a major talent agency; challenging a federal agency’s attempt to restrict access to a national lending system for community-focused financial institutions; and pursuing hundreds of millions in arbitration tied to investment failures by a global financial firm.
Sanford’s perspective is shaped by decades of leadership at the intersection of law, policy, and business. In 2016, he was elected to the board of directors of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and went on to serve as Chair of the Bank’s Audit and Risk Management Committee until the conclusion of his term in 2022. Earlier in his career, he worked on behalf of a U.S. Senator in connection with a highprofile investigation of a life insurance company and the confirmation process of a U.S. Supreme Court nominee. He was later appointed by the Governor of California to the State Athletic Commission, where he was elected Vice-Chairman and then Chairman. Today, as co-founder and chairman of Michelman & Robinson, he continues to lead from the front—guiding the firm’s international expansion, cultivating a high-performance culture, and delivering strategic counsel to clients confronting their most consequential challenges.
A perennial Top 100 Lawyer and one of the Los Angeles Business Journal’s 500 most influential people in L.A., Sanford is also an entrepreneur and boardroom leader. He founded and is Chairman of FlyHouse, a private aviation company powered by dynamic proprietary pricing technology. Sanford is also Chairman of the Board of Acceleration Community of Companies, a cutting-edge marketing and media collective. He sits on the board of Cascade Mountain Spring Water as well. Across every endeavor, Sanford brings a forward-looking mindset and a drive to help clients seize advantage in moments that define businesses.
Aviation
Financial Services
Insurance
Class Action & Complex Litigation
Labor & Employment
Regulatory & Administrative Law