Michael T. Heyrich is the Director for Outside Counsel Strategy and Governance at The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation, where he also serves as in-house counsel. Before joining BNY Mellon in 2016, he was Associate General Counsel at Citigroup Inc, plus Assistant Secretary for Citigroup Inc., Citicorp, and Citibank, N.A. and, earlier, a senior associate at Skadden Arps.
Through his career, Mr. Heyrich has actively litigated, supervised, monitored, set strategy and coordinated high-risk disputes, litigation, arbitration and regulatory and criminal investigations for diversified global financial services holding companies, technology companies, manufacturers and health care companies. As part of his many and varied duties at Citi, he was responsible for intellectual property disputes, including allegations of patent infringement and defense of Citigroup’s global trademark portfolio, which includes the world-famous “Citi” brand. Mr. Heyrich has extensive experience in corporate legal operations and management (a field where he holds a patent) as well as reengineering.
Mr. Heyrich earned his J.D. (magna cum laude) from Seton Hall University School of Law in 1990. He clerked for Chief Judge Herman D. Michels in the Appellate Division for the Superior Court of New Jersey. He earned his B.A. in Economics from Vanderbilt University. He is on the Council of Advisors for the True Value Partnering Institute. He is a member of the Board of Directors of Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts, a preeminent legal aid organization providing pro bono legal representation to artists, designers and nonprofit arts and cultural organizations.