Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight, a national public interest and civil rights law firm, has announced that Michelle Wasserman has joined the firm as a partner in its San Diego office. Wasserman will represent employees, executives, and whistleblowers in complex employment litigation, relator representation and whistleblower retaliation matters, ERISA matters, and other high-stakes civil litigation, drawing on more than fifteen years of experience as a federal prosecutor, trial lawyer, and corporate investigations counsel.
Wasserman joins Sanford Heisler after serving as Executive Counsel in Global Investigations at GE Vernova, where she advised senior executives on sensitive domestic and international matters, led complex internal investigations, and counseled business leaders on ethics, compliance, and regulatory issues. Her work included directing investigations involving significant legal and business risks.
Prior to GE Vernova, Wasserman spent almost fourteen years as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of California, where she investigated and prosecuted complex white collar criminal matters, including procurement fraud, public corruption, healthcare fraud, financial crimes, and False Claims Act cases. She tried fifteen cases to verdict, including twelve jury trials, authored thirteen appellate briefs, and argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. She also served as the office’s Procurement Fraud Coordinator, leading multi-agency investigations involving the FBI, IRS Criminal Investigation, and numerous Offices of Inspector General.
“Michelle has spent her career uncovering fraud, holding wrongdoers accountable, and trying complex cases before judges and juries,” said David Sanford, Chairman of Sanford Heisler. “Those skills translate seamlessly to our work representing employees and whistleblowers in some of the nation’s most significant workplace and False Claims Act litigation. Her judgment, trial experience, and commitment to justice make her an outstanding addition to our partnership.”
At Sanford Heisler, Wasserman will represent clients in matters involving employment discrimination, harassment, retaliation, whistleblower claims, wage and hour disputes, executive employment issues, ERISA class actions and False Claims Act litigation. With her experience investigating fraud and corporate misconduct from both the government and in-house perspectives, she brings unique insight into complex workplace and whistleblower matters.
“I have long admired Sanford Heisler’s willingness to take on groundbreaking cases that protect workers’ rights, expose corporate wrongdoing, and create meaningful change,” Wasserman said. “The firm’s reputation for excellence in employment and whistleblower litigation, its collaborative culture, and its commitment to public interest advocacy make it an ideal place to continue my career. I am excited to join such an accomplished team and to advocate for clients facing some of the most difficult challenges of their professional lives.”
Earlier in her career, Wasserman practiced at Cooley LLP, where she represented clients in complex commercial litigation involving false advertising, unfair competition, intellectual property, and securities matters. She also served as a law clerk to the Honorable Bruce D. Black of the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico.
She has taught trial advocacy at the Department of Justice’s National Advocacy Center and has trained federal agents, prosecutors, and graduate students on trial practice, witness preparation, fraud investigations, and complex litigation.
Wasserman earned her J.D. from Harvard Law School, where she was a Chayes International Public Service Fellow, and received her B.S., summa cum laude, from the University of California, San Diego. She is fluent in Spanish and conversant in Brazilian Portuguese.
Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight is a public interest and civil rights law firm with offices nationwide, focusing on employment discrimination, whistleblower and qui tam matters, sexual violence and victims’ rights, executive representation, and complex civil rights litigation. The firm’s lawyers have recovered more than $5 billion for clients through verdicts and settlements.
