Profilo
Mike Collyard is Chair of Greenberg Traurig’s Affirmative Recovery Practice. He is a battle-tested trial lawyer who has won headline-grabbing cases, including the largest jury verdict in Minnesota history – a $564 million verdict.
A trial lawyer from a national trial firm described Mike in the Star Tribune as “the best trial lawyer I have encountered in 42 years of practice…His ability to take complexity and reduce it to lay language for jurors is unmatched.” A former client called him “a rock” who is “tenacious.” A court reporter who handled one of Mike’s trials commented that Mike’s opening statement and cross-examinations were among the best she had seen in 20 years of handling federal jury trials.
Over the course of his career, Mike has successfully handled multi-billion- and multi-million-dollar cases on both sides of the “v.” On the plaintiff side, he was lead trial counsel in a month-long jury trial for a trustee involving one of the largest Ponzi schemes in U.S. history, winning a $564 million verdict. He has also represented receivers in high-stakes matters, including securing a $28 million settlement without taking a single deposition. On the defense side, Mike was lead counsel for a major financial institution in a multi-billion-dollar case that settled on the eve of trial with his client paying nothing, while other defendants paid eight figures to settle.
Mike is not afraid to take the biggest, most complex cases to a jury to seek justice for his clients. He has sued and defended some of the biggest corporations in the world. His practice spans a wide range of complex business disputes, including fraud, Ponzi schemes, breach of fiduciary duty, antitrust, breach of contract, and intellectual property. A significant part of his practice involves financial fraud litigation, where he frequently represents trustees and receivers in cases that involve tracing the flow of money, proving knowledge and intent, and presenting complex financial evidence in terms that juries can understand.
Mike takes a hands-on approach to litigation, running lean teams and remaining closely involved in every phase of a case, from early investigation through trial. He is known for developing creative strategies that simplify complex issues. Mike has deep experience handling discovery disputes, including cases involving allegations of evidence destruction. He has litigated spoliation issues at the trial level, obtained adverse inference jury instructions based on intentional destruction of documents, and successfully defended clients against spoliation allegations in federal court evidentiary hearings.
The same passion, creativity, and tenacity extend to his pro bono. In a Minnesota case of first impression, he represented a guardian ad litem at trial, achieving a favorable resolution for his client after his opening statement.
Mike is ranked in Chambers USA for Litigation: General Commercial in Minnesota and has been recognized by The National Law Journal on its “Top 100 Verdicts” and “Plaintiffs’ Attorneys Trailblazers” lists. He is listed in Best Lawyers and has been named to Lawdragon’s “500 Leading Litigators in America” and “500 Leading Plaintiff Financial Lawyers in America.” Minnesota Lawyer named him an “Attorney of the Year” and recognized him on its “Power 30: Best Litigators in Minnesota” and “Business Litigation Power List.” He has also been honored by Minnesota Monthly as a “Top Lawyer,” by Thomson Reuters as a “Stand-out Lawyer,” and by Super Lawyers on the “Minnesota Super Lawyers” list.
Mike is a member of the Commercial Receivers Association, the National Association of Federal Equity Receivers, the Turnaround Management Association, the Federal Bar Association, the American Bar Association, the American Bankruptcy Institute, the International Trademark Association, and other professional organizations. He has served on the Dean's Advisory Board at Mitchell Hamline School of Law, mentored law students at the University of St. Thomas School of Law, and served as a guest professor there. Mike regularly teaches trial skills to other lawyers through advocacy training programs and has spoken at conferences hosted by professional associations and law schools across Minnesota on topics including trial strategy, aiding and abetting liability, eDiscovery, and receivership practice.
Before joining Greenberg Traurig, Mike was a senior partner at a national trial firm, where he secured the largest jury verdict in the firm’s 87-year history. He served as Chair of the Banking & Financial Fraud Litigation Group, Chair of the eDiscovery Group, and was an elected member of the firm’s Executive Board.
Competenze
Esperienze Professionali - Attività Accademiche
- Kelley v. BMO Harris Bank, N.A.: Served as lead counsel for Douglas Kelley, the trustee of the BMO Litigation Trust in one of the largest Ponzi scheme cases in U.S. history. In November 2022, secured a $564 million jury verdict, the largest in Minnesota history.°
- John F. Kennedy Receiver for Education Corporation of America: Served as co-lead counsel for John F. Kennedy, the receiver for Education Corporation of America (ECA), a privately held company that operated for-profit colleges across the United States. The company abruptly announced its closure in late 2018, leaving thousands of students unable to complete their education. The claims brought against former officers and directors of ECA alleged that they breached their fiduciary duties of care. Helped secure a favorable $28 million settlement.°
- The People of the State of California v. U.S. Bank National Association, et al.: Served as lead counsel for U.S. Bank in a multi-billion-dollar case brought by the People of the State of California for alleged unfair competition related to foreclosed properties. The case settled on the eve of a several-month trial, after suits were filed against a dozen of the largest banks who serviced the properties at issue. The Plaintiff sought billions of dollars in alleged fines and a permanent injunction that would change the way trustees and servicers do business together. The case settled after the Plaintiff agreed to drop its request for an injunction and agreed that U.S. Bank as trustee should pay nothing.°
- MASTR Adjustable Rate Mortgages Trust 2006-OA2, et al. v. UBS Real Estate Securities, Inc.: Served as co-counsel for a securitization trustee in a mortgage-backed securities case against UBS. First-chaired a $2 billion evidentiary hearing in New York federal court involving allegations of intentional destruction of evidence. The judge found the trustee acted in good faith and denied UBS’s request for terminating sanctions in its entirety. The trustee subsequently received a settlement approaching $1 billion dollars on behalf of the trusts at issue.°
- Rubloff Development Group, Inc., et al. v. SuperValu, Inc., et al.: Represented SuperValu, Inc. in a complex antitrust and racketeering case in federal court in Illinois. Plaintiffs’ initial demand was approximately $30 million. Successfully obtained dismissal of all claims against SuperValu, after which Plaintiffs agreed to dismiss their remaining claims and settling the case for $0.°
°The above representations were handled by Mr. Collyard prior to his joining Greenberg Traurig, LLP.
- Guest Professor, University of St. Thomas Law School
Riconoscimenti e Premi
- Listed, Chambers USA Guide, Litigation: General Commercial, 2025
- Listed, Lawdragon
- “500 Leading Plaintiff Financial Lawyers in America,” 2024-2026
- “500 Leading Litigators in America,” 2024-2026
- Listed, The Best Lawyers in America, 2024-2026
- Commercial Litigation, 2024-2026
- Litigation - Banking and Finance, 2024-2026
- Litigation - Bankruptcy, 2024-2026
- Litigation - Intellectual Property, 2024-2026
- Listed, Minnesota Lawyer
- “Business Litigation Power List,” 2025
- “Power 30: Best Business Litigators in Minnesota,” 2023-2024
- “Attorneys of the Year,” 2022
- Listed, Super Lawyers magazine, Minnesota Super Lawyers, 2023-2025
- Listed, The National Law Journal
- “Top 100 Verdicts for 2022,” 2023
- “Plaintiffs’ Attorneys Trailblazers,” 2023
- Listed, Thomson Reuters, “Stand-Out Lawyers,” 2023-2024
- Member, American Bankruptcy Institute
- Member, American Bar Association (Intellectual Property Section)
- Member, American Intellectual Property Law Association
- Member, Commercial Receivers Association
- Member, Federal Bar Association
- Member, Hennepin County Bar Association
- Member, International Trademark Association
- Member, Minnesota Intellectual Property Law Association
- Member, New York Intellectual Property Law Association
- Member, National Association of Federal Equity Receivers (NAFER)
- Member, Turnaround Management Association (TMA)
- Member, Dean’s Advisory Board, Mitchell Hamline School of Law
- Member, The Sedona Conference® Working Group on Electronic Document Retention and Production (WG1)
Formazione
-
Laurea magistrale in Giurisprudenza, magna cum laude, Mitchell Hamline School of Law
- Primary Editor, Hamline Law Review
- Diploma di maturità, University of St. Thomas
- Minnesota
- New York
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
- U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit