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Michelle Schaap represents a varied client base that ranges from Fortune 500 companies to smaller, closely held businesses. She practices primarily in the areas of corporate law, construction law, technology law, commercial transactions and franchising.

Michelle represents entities in multimillion-dollar acquisitions and sales, and also counsels small enterprises in the growth and development of their businesses. She also negotiates employment agreements, separation agreements and restrictive covenants.

Michelle also devotes much of her practice to the negotiation of complex construction-related agreements, including construction management, architect and design-build agreements. Her experience includes extensive projects, including a multimillion-dollar biotech research facility, design-build agreements for various amusement rides, and working with various clients to develop form agreements for planned expansion. To complement her extensive experience in this field, Michelle recently earned her construction project management certification.

Complementary to Michelle's construction work is her experience in negotiating solar power agreements on behalf of both property owners and installers.  She also regularly handles the negotiation of software licensing and development agreements and represents application service providers (ASPs) and software developers. In addition, she counsels clients in protecting their intellectual property portfolios.

A logical outgrowth of Michelle’s corporate, construction and technology practice is her growing franchise practice that includes working with numerous franchisees, guiding them through the complexities of franchise documents and helping small businesses explore franchising as a means to grow their enterprises.

Michelle’s representative transactions include:

• Acquisition by employees of a division of a publicly traded entity ($1.9 million)
• Sale of a software developer to a major technology rollup entity ($60 million)
• Negotiation of a construction management agreement for a major retail center ($250 million)
• Negotiation of a construction agreement for a performing arts center ($35 million)
• Negotiation of an agreement for fabrication and installation of major amusement rides ($35 million)
• Negotiation of non-disclosure and non-circumvention agreements
• Negotiation of leasing and power purchase agreements for solar power facilities
• Negotiation of the sale of an independent Web site to a major publishing house ($3 million)
• Licensing agreements
• Development of construction-related form agreements for a real estate developer
• Web site development and hosting agreements
• Negotiation of a power purchase agreement for one of the largest installations in New Jersey
• Preparation of form power purchase agreements and related leases for photovoltaic solar energy system installers

In 2011, Michelle was named by NJBIZ as one of New Jersey's "Best 50 Women in Business."

Prior to joining the firm, Michelle served as general attorney to Toys “R” Us, Inc. from 1991 to 1996. She also worked in Japan for several years as a foreign associate with the Tokyo-based firm of Hamada & Matsumoto (now Mori, Hamada & Matsumoto).

Michelle is a graduate of Rutgers University School of Law and received her B.A., cum laude, from Cornell University. She has an AV® rating from Martindale-Hubbell.