Michal B. Shinnar - Greenbelt, MD
Attorney at Joseph, Greenwald & Laake, PA
Disability Law Lawyers in Greenbelt, MD
6404 Ivy Lane Suite 400 Greenbelt, MD 20770
Greenbelt Disability Law Lawyer
Updated: 09/25/2026
Areas of Practice
- Disability Law
- Discrimination
- Unpaid Wages/Overtime
Attorney Information
Overview
Michal Shinnar is a Senior Associate Attorney with Gilbert Employment Law, P.C. She has a long track record of vigorously advocating for the rights of employees in many sectors and stations, from executives to low wage workers, and has helped recover millions of dollars for her clients. Ms. Shinnar has successfully represented employees in sex discrimination, disability discrimination, sexual harassment, pregnancy discrimination, race discrimination, age discrimination, whistleblower retaliation, and unpaid wages cases. Her practice includes all aspects of employment law, including discrimination, disability accommodations, employment contracts, non-competes, severance agreements, and wage and hour disputes. She has been recognized by her peers through appointments to leadership positions in her bar associations, and has been repeatedly invited to speak on key employment law topics.
Ms. Shinnar serves as the co-chair of the National Employment Lawyers' Association (NELA) Disability Law Practice Group and on the board of the Metropolitan Washington Employment Lawyers' Association (MWELA). She is also a member of the Disability Rights Bar Association (DRBA), the D.C. Women's Bar Association (WBA), the D.C. Trial Lawyers’ Association (DCTLA), and the TIME’S UP Legal Defense Fund.
Prior to joining Gilbert Employment Law in 2015, Ms. Shinnar was an associate attorney at another plaintiff and union side labor and employment law firm. Before joining a litigation firm, Ms. Shinnar handled labor and immigration matters on Capitol Hill, and clerked for an Administrative Judge at the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).
Ms. Shinnar was a Stein Scholar Public Interest Law Fellow at Fordham University School of Law, where she also served on the editorial board of the Moot Court team and as an Associate Editor on a journal. She received the Donald J. Feerick Prize in Labor Law, and was an Archibald R. Murray Public Service Award recipient, summa cum laude. While in law school, Ms. Shinnar interned at the U.S. Department of Labor, the EEOC and completed a research project for the New York State Department of Labor and the New York Attorney General's Office on how these agencies could better enforce judgments received against employers who failed to pay their employees the wages they were due.
Prior to law school, Ms. Shinnar worked as the psychiatry research coordinator for a major behavioral health hospital, where she worked on clinical studies for improved pharmacological treatments for patients with schizophrenia and other severe psychotic disorders. Ms. Shinnar presented her research findings at the American Psychiatric Association's annual conference. Her background in medical research informs her work advocating for individuals with disabilities, as well as guides her work with statistical data in class action cases.
Ms. Shinnar holds a B.A. in Psychology and History from Barnard College at Columbia University, where she graduated cum laude and on the Dean's List. While in college, Ms. Shinnar served as a Peer Educator at the campus's Rape Crisis Anti-Violence Support Center, where she advocated for survivors of sexual violence and ran outreach and education trainings.
Ms. Shinnar believes in a client centric approach to cases, where plans a case strategy around the client’s personal and professional goals. She believes in being thorough, tenacious, and strategic to advocate for her clients.
Awards and Honors
Honors
- Stein Scholar, Public Interest Law Fellow, Fordham Law School
- Donald J. Feerick Prize in Labor Law, Fordham Law School
- Archibald R. Murray Public Service Award, summa cum laude, Fordham Law School
Education
Legal Education
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Fordham University School of Law,
New York,
New York
Honors: summa cum laude
Non Legal Education
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Barnard College at Columbia University
B.A.
Honors: cum laude
Current Employment Position(s)
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Senior Associate Attorney
Classes and Seminars
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Federal Bar Association & MWELA Panel at the District of Maryland on Motions Practice: Motions for Summary Judgment October 2020
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Maryland State Bar Association Annual Conference: September 2020: Topic: Invisible Disabilities. (forthcoming)
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Annual NELA Conference: July 2020 Topic: Trial Strategies for Disability Cases
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Annual NELA Conference: New Orleans, LA, June 2019. Topic: Anatomy of an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Case
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Annual MWELA Conference: Washington, D.C. Feb. 2019: Topic: Pregnancy & Family Responsibilities Discrimination
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TIME’S UP Legal Defense Fund and National Women’s Law Center Webinar: The Intersections of Disability Discrimination and Sex Harassment: Part I: An Introduction to the Issues.
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TIME’S UP Legal Defense Fund and National Women’s Law Center Webinar The Intersections of Disability Discrimination and Sex Harassment: Feb. 2019; Part II: Guidance for Litigating Attorneys. March 2019
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D.C. Women’s Bar Association, Nov. 2018. Topic: Infertility and the Workplace: Analyzing Legal Protections for Employees Experiencing Infertility.
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Jacobus tenBroek Disability Law Symposium, Baltimore MD March 2021. Topic: Essential Functions Under Title I of the ADA (forthcoming):
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Jacobus tenBroek Disability Law Symposium, Baltimore MD March 2019. Topic: Undue Burdens Under Title I of the ADA:
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Jacobus tenBroek Disability Law Symposium, Baltimore MD March 2018. Topic: Strategies for Bringing Charges at the EEOC
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Jacobus tenBroek Disability Law Symposium, Baltimore MD March 2017. Topic: Disability Accommodations for Federal Employees.
- Maryland State Bar Association Labor and Employment Law Newsletter Fall 2016. Topic: Employment Discrimination Against Survivors of Domestic Violence,
Published Works
Articles
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Representing Survivors of Sexual Assault in Maryland, Maryland State Bar Association Labor and Employment Law Newsletter, Fall 2016. (Analysis of potential employment causes of action for survivors of sexual assault who experience discrimination in the workplace under Maryland state law and applications of Fourth Circuit decisions)
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MWELA’s Discovery Tool Kit – co-author. Summary and analysis of how courts have interpreted the amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure re discovery
Bar Admissions
- Maryland
- New Jersey
- U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
- U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland
- U.S. District Court District of New Jersey
- U.S. Court of Federal Claims
Other Affiliations
- National Employment Lawyers’ Association (“NELA”) Co-Chair of Disability Law Practice Group
- Metropolitan Washington Employment Lawyers Association (“MWELA”) Board Member, Co-chair of Luncheon Seminar Committee
- Disability Rights Bar Association (“DRBA”) Member
- Women’s Bar Association of D.C. Member
- D.C. Trial Lawyers’ Association Member
- TIME’S UP Legal Defense Fund Member
Photo
Contact
6404 Ivy Lane
Suite 400
Greenbelt, MD 20770
Phone Number: 240-297-1782
Fax Number: 301-220-1214
Email: Send a message
Hours: Monday-Friday: 8:30am - 5:30pm, Saturday-Sunday: Closed
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