A renowned trial attorney for more than 30 years, Michel F. Baumeister has concentrated his practice in the field of aviation accident and complex tort litigation. Prior to his entry into private practice, Mr. Baumeister served as an Assistant District Attorney in Manhattan. During his tenure in this office, he handled dozens of major trials including several high visibility cases involving homicide, robbery and rape. Following his term as a trial attorney at the state prosecutor's office, Mr. Baumeister was appointed an Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York. While serving as a federal prosecutor, he conducted an international investigation that resulted in the first successful tax fraud indictment and verdict in the commodity futures field.
Combining his extensive trial background with more than 40 years of aviation experience as a pilot, Mr. Baumeister's career has been dedicated to helping air crash victims and their families receive proper and adequate compensation, as well as to making improvements in aviation safety. He has served as a leading member of the Plaintiffs' Steering Committees in every major airline disaster in which the firm has represented victims and their families.
An active participant in the Association of Trial Lawyers of America, the American Bar Association, the International Society of Barristers and the International Academy of Trial Lawyers, as well as the Federal Bar Council, the New York, New Jersey, and Florida Bar Associations, the National Transportation Safety Board Bar Association, the Aircraft Owners' and Pilots' Association and the Lawyer-Pilots Bar Association, Mr. Baumeister has served as Chair and Vice-Chair of these and numerous aviation related organizations. He also serves as a member of the Advisory Committee of Attorneys to the Grievance Committee of United States District Court Judges for the Southern District of New York and is an arbitrator for the International Court of Aviation and Space Arbitration.
In addition to his committee appointments, Mr. Baumeister is frequently called upon to lecture in the area of aviation litigation and other complex litigation, including the following most recent programs: “Federal Tort Reform - States and Trends,” for the Tort and Insurance Practice Section of the American Bar Association, Washington, DC, October 2003; “September 11th Report,” delivered at the American Bar Association’s Annual Aviation Litigation Seminar, New York, NY, June 2003; Trauma and Grief presentation to the Second Annual Family Assistance Foundation, Atlanta, GA, March 2003; “Expert Reliability Standards,” presented for a Seton Hall University School of Law Symposium on Expert Admissibility, Newark, NJ, February 2003; 11 September 2001 Panel Discussion at the USAIG Airline Symposium held in New York, NY in January 2003; “The Aftermath of 9/11,” a presentation for the Tort and Insurance Practice Section of the American Bar Association, Washington, DC, October 2002; “World Trade Center and the Liability Consequences of 9/11" presented to the Beaumont Garnault 5th International Aviation Conference, London, England, July 2002; Victim Compensation Fund Panel for the ABA Aviation Litigation Committee Seminar, New York, NY, June 2002; panelist in a mock mediation conducted at the Tort and Insurance Practice Section of the American Bar Association, October 2001; "The Ins and Outs of Aviation Litigation," at the Annual Meeting of the Litigation Committee of the American Bar Association, New York, NY, June, 2001; "The Aftermath of an Air Disaster: Action, Reaction and Interaction," IATA Annual Meeting, New York, NY, April, 2001; "Criminalizing Aviation Misconduct," Southern Methodist University School of Law, February, 2001; "AVCON 2000 - Legal Issues," a panel discussion highlighting issues in the field of international aviation litigation, London, England, October 2000; "Status Report on Major Air Crash Litigation" presented at the Association of Trial Lawyers of American, Aviation Law Section, Chicago, IL, July, 2000; "Challenges in the New Millennium" at the Annual Meeting of the Litigation Committee of the American Bar Association, New York, NY, June 2000; "The Future of Multidistrict Litigation" at the ABA Section of Litigation Aviation Litigation Seminar, New York, NY, June, 2000; "The Application of Current U.S. Product Liability Law to Commercial Aviation Disasters - In The End Does It Really Matter" at the Aviation Product Liability Conference sponsored by Barlow, Lyde & Gilbert, London, England, May, 2000; "From the Trial Masters: Questions and Answers on Litigation Techniques and Tactics" at the ABA Aviation Litigation Committee Annual Meeting, Seattle, WA, April 2000; Moderator, Aviation Insurance Panel at the Annual SMU Air Law Symposium, Dallas, TX, February 2000; "Effective Jury Communication" at the Federal Bar Council's Annual Meeting, Phoenix, AZ, February 2000; and a Family Member Representative at the National Transportation Safety Board/Rand Institute for Civil Justice study.
In addition to his lecture appearances, Mr. Baumeister recently co-authored “Admissibility Standards as Politics - The Imperial Gate Closers Arrive,” published in the Seton Hall Law Review, Book 4, Volume 33. His other publications include "The Impact of the Recent Second Circuit Court of Appeals Decision and the Amendment to the Death on the High Seas Act on the TWA Flight 800 Litigation," published by the Association of Trial Lawyers of America, 2000; "The Role of Expert Witnesses in Aviation Disaster Litigation" published by the Tort and Insurance Practice Section of the American Bar Association, 1998 and "The Development of Federal Common Law in Warsaw Convention Cases and Specifically Non-Pecuniary Recovery Under the Warsaw Convention's Damage Limitation" published by the Association of Trial Lawyers of America, 1995. Presently, Mr. Baumeister and his partner, Thea Capone, are writing a section of an Aviation Law case book expected to be published in 2006.
In the aftermath of an aviation mass disaster, Mr. Baumeister is routinely contacted by members of media organizations for his analysis of the incident. He has made numerous appearances on both television and radio broadcasts in the U.S. and internationally, and is frequently quoted in the print media as well.
Mr. Baumeister is the holder of a commercial pilot's license with an instrument rating for various aircraft. He received his J.D. in 1972 from Seton Hall University Law School where he was an Editor of the Law Review. In 1978, he earned an LL.M. in International Law from New York University School of Law. He is a contributing editor on aviation law for the New Jersey Law Journal, a member of the Editorial Board of the Aviation Litigation Reporter and Adjunct Professor of aviation law at Seton Hall University Law School.
