Michael R. Peelish

Of Counsel

Biography

Michael Peelish focuses his practice on occupational safety and health compliance. In his 25 years of operating company experience with multinational companies, Michael gained exposure to all facets of a company from the operations to the board room. Using knowledge gained as an executive leader, Michael helps clients comply with various state and federal health and safety regulations with an emphasis on OSHA and MSHA compliance. He also has an extensive background in assisting employers with other labor and employment matters including labor negotiations, discrimination investigations and defense, emergency response and crisis communications, and employee health and safety training and audits.

Using his mining engineering background, Michael assists clients with technical operational issues by deploying alternative and innovative methods of compliance, providing operational and process improvement feedback, and conducting exposure assessments under the MSHA and OSHA air contaminant standards. Deploying his deep experience and understanding of how mining, general industry, and construction work sites operate allows Michael to represent his clients in an efficient manner while providing constructive legal and operational feedback.

Court Admissions

Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals

Representative Experience

Appalachian Research Institute for Environmental Science – 2010
- Led the effort to establish ARIES at the Virginia Center for Coal and Energy Research located at Virginia Tech raising over $15 million
- Independent research conducted by major universities regarding environmental issues in the coal industry. While the funding to perform research was provided by industry companies, the companies had no input into the independent research outcomes. Over 100 peer reviewed papers were published by the researchers

International Labor Organization – May 2006
- Code of Safety and Health in Underground Coalmines
- Represented the U.S. mining industry in May 2006 in Geneva, Switzerland for a second time at the International Labor Organization meetings bringing together employers, workers and government groups to rewrite the 1985 code of safety and health for coal mines

Senate Hearings on the Sago Mine Disaster – May 2006
- Testified before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee on behalf of the Mining Industry following the Sago Mine disaster

Emergency Mine Response, 1998
- Oversaw underground coal mine recovery following a mine fire at a coal mine in Utah – three months to recover mine with over 4,500 hours of mine rescue members under apparatus without injury

International Labor Organization, Geneva Switzerland – March 1995
- Evolution of Training in the Mining Industry
- Represented the U.S. mining industry in 1995 in Geneva, Switzerland at the International Labor Organization meetings bringing together employers, workers and government groups to address the evolution of training in the mining industry that culminated in the drafting of training guidelines that are the basis of future international conventions

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Licensed In

Colorado
West Virginia

Education

J.D. West Virginia University College of Law

B.S. West Virginia University

Memberships

Colorado Bar Association, (Current)
West Virginia Bar Association, (Current)
Society of Mining Engineers, (Current)
Mining Engineering Visiting Committee, Member (2007 – 2012)
Virginia Center for Coal and Energy Research, Board Member (2010 – 2012)

Achievements

Distinguished Engineer of Mines Recipient and Lecturer, Poundstone Lecture Series, April 2007
- Delivered Poundstone Lecture and recognized as Distinguished Engineer of Mines by the Department of Mining Engineering, College of Engineering and Mineral Resources, West Virginia University

Speaking Engagements

11th Annual Environmental and Energy Issues Symposium
- Presented “Sustainability in Mining” at the symposium which addressed multiple environmental and energy issues and attended by industry executives and Congressional members (April 6, 2011)

Coaltrans Conference
- Delivered presentation regarding regulatory concerns on coal mining at the conference and published in their library (Feb 3, 2011)

Trade Association Conferences
- National Stone, Sand, and Gravel
- Essential Mineral Law
- National Wood Pallet Container Association
- Wyoming Mining Association

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