Justia Legal Services & Lawyers Directory

Michael was born in Manhasset, New York and grew up on Long Island outside of New York City. He graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 1991 with a Bachelors of Business Administration in Finance along with a Bachelors of Arts in History. During his breaks from Notre Dame, Michael worked for a specialist firm on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. He attended Valparaiso University School of Law, graduating with multiple honors in 1994. Michael passed the Bar in 1994 and has been a practicing attorney since then. In 2005, he graduated from the University of Florida School of Law with an LL.M. in Taxation. He is licensed to practice in all state courts in the state of Florida, the Middle District of Florida, the United States Supreme Court and the United States Tax Court.

Michael is a past president of The Florida Bar Young Lawyers Division (the youngest ever) and also served on the Florida Bar Board of Governors and its executive committee (2003-2005). Michael previously represented the 6th Judicial Circuit of the Florida Bar Young Lawyers Division Board of Governors (1998-2003) before being elected the Boards President. He has served on the Florida Bar Continuing Legal Education Committee, Florida Bar Student Education Student Admission Committee, FL Bar Long Range Planning Committee and the FL Law Related Education Committee.

Michael presently serves on the FL Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism and the FL Bars Committee on Professionalism along with the Voluntary Bar Committee of the FL Bar. He was recently appointed to the Florida Bar Standing Committee on Advertising. He is on the Board of Directors of the Florida Bar Foundation which oversees the Floridas Interest on Trust Accounts (IOTA) program and funds programs which help to expand and improve representation and advocacy on behalf of low-income persons in civil legal matters and improve the fair and effective administration of justice.

Michael is a Past President of the Clearwater Bar Association (2002-2003) where he was its youngest president ever along with being past president of the Clearwater Bar Association Young Lawyers Division (1996-1998). In addition, he is a 2002 graduate of Leadership Pinellas, 2002 Tampa Bay Reviews 40 Under 40 for the Tampa Bay area, and a 2003 graduate of the Pinellas County Sheriff Community Policing Institute. Michael was previously the Senior Associate at the law firm of McFarland, Gould, Lyons, Sullivan and Hogan, P.A. (1997-2004-Clearwater, FL) and was head of the firms workers compensation and labor departments. His practice areas included workers compensation, personal injury, labor, probate, estate planning and commercial litigation. He was a tax associate at the law firm of Abel, Band, Chartered (2005-2006-Sarasota, FL) in the Business & Corporate Counseling Group and Personal Services & Planning Group. While in Sarasota, he served on the Board of Directors for the American Cancer Societys Sarasota Unit and was on the Board of Directors for the Notre Dame Club of Greater Sarasota.

Michael returned to the Tampa Bay area and took a position as Vice President and Senior Tax & Charitable Strategist for Raymond James Trust in their Private Wealth Management Family Office where he served as the primary point of contact for clients, overseeing the planning investment process and estate planning strategies while bringing the numerous resources of Raymond James to clients. He also works extensively with charitable organizations on tax issues along with compliance issues and was the departments chief tax and charitable giving expert. Michael went on to become a senior associate with the oldest law firm in St. Petersburg, Fisher & Sauls and Robbins Equitas. He practiced in the area of tax, contract law, estate planning, probate, business/corporate consulting, civil litigation and tax controversy work.

Presently, he is managing and running his own law firm where is Managing Partner for M. Faehner, Esq., LLC where he practices in the areas of tax, contract law, estate and trust planning, probate, charitable giving, trustee services, business/corporate consulting, civil litigation and tax controversy work.

Currently, he sits on the Board of Directors for Leadership Pinellas, Community Law Program and St. Anthonys Hospital Foundation. He presently is volunteering on several committees for the Suncoast YMCA, Catholic Charities, Pinellas Education Foundation, The Hospice of the Florida Suncoast, RCS, Morton Plant Foundation, All Childrens Hospital and Academy Prep in Tampa. He also volunteers his time to give talks on assorted tax and charitable issues to the community.

Michael is a member of the Clearwater Bar Association and the St. Petersburg Bar Association. He was also the recipient of the 2005 FL Law Related Education Association Attorney of the Year and received a special FL Supreme Court Special Citation for his work with Hurricane Disaster Relief. As a result of his work with the Florida Hurricanes in 2004, he was labeled in the legal community as the Master of Disaster. He also served as a charitable consultant during Hurricane Katrina relief for several of the states that were impacted.

In Michaels spare time, he serves as an adjunct professor at St. Petersburg College in their four-year Bachelors Paralegal Studies Program. He is presently on his second time serving as the President of the University of Notre Dame Club for the Greater Tampa Bay Area.