Michelle Wallin

Michelle Wallin

Partner

Employee Benefits and Compensation

Represents Technology and Growth Clients

Michelle represents a broad range of public and private technology and growth companies in executive compensation and employee benefit arrangement matters.
Transactional Experience

Michelle works with employers to manage the transition of employees and their benefits during and after a merger or acquisition.

Michelle Wallin is a partner in Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati's employee benefits and compensation practice. Michelle represents a wide range of public and private technology and growth companies with respect to executive compensation and employee benefit arrangement matters. Her practice focuses on the design and implementation of equity compensation plans, employment and severance agreements, and cash compensation arrangements, as well as on the corresponding tax, accounting, securities law, and day-to-day operational issues that can arise in connection with such arrangements. Michelle also is actively involved in the firm's transactional practice, working with employers to manage the transition of employees and their benefits during and after a merger or acquisition.

Experience

Education

J.D., Harvard Law School, 2000
B.A., State University of New York, Binghamton, 1994

Admissions

State Bar of California

Credentials

Education

J.D., Harvard Law School, 2000
B.A., State University of New York, Binghamton, 1994

Admissions

State Bar of California

Select Publications

Co-author, “USA” chapter, Corporate Tax 2020, Eighth Edition, Global Legal Insights, 2020

Insights

Select Publications

Co-author, “USA” chapter, Corporate Tax 2020, Eighth Edition, Global Legal Insights, 2020

Employee Benefits and Compensation

Recent Insights

Client Highlights

On June 11, 2024, Madhive, a NYC-based technology company for local Connected Television advertising (“CTV”), acquired Frequence, Inc., a Mountain View, CA-based provider of omnichannel ad sales enablement and workflow software for local media companies and agencies. The amount of the deal was not disclosed. Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati advised Frequence on the transaction.

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Alerts

Companies frequently grant tax-advantaged incentive stock options (ISOs) or sponsor a tax-advantaged employee stock purchase plan (an ESPP) to provide tax-advantaged equity incentives to employees that are U.S. taxpayers. One aspect of the tax-advantaged nature of these programs is that the economic benefit transferred to employees in connection with a purchase of stock is generally not reportable as employment-based income in the year the stock is purchased, and is therefore excluded from employee Form W-2s.

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Recent Events

Affiliated Programs

LaunchBio’s NextGen VC Forum is the premiere event for mid-level venture capital associates to expand their skills and expertise while growing their network. Attendees benefit from curated education sessions from industry leaders to supplement existing expertise. Networking is essential in sourcing deals and one of the primary roles for associates, we’ve built it into the program for participants to be able to walk away with new life science and biotech contacts. The half-day forum created with Wilson Sonsini includes a networking lunch, three one-hour sessions, and a happy hour. View the event flyer here.

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WSGR Events

To help our publicly held clients' in-house counsel, stock plan administrators, human resources and finance personnel, and any others involved in stock plan administration understand and manage their employee equity programs, we are hosting a seminar that will provide practical tips and materials on sound stock plan administration practices and equity compensation issues. This program will provide an overview of the fundamentals of equity compensation and a more detailed discussion of the legal issues involved in stock administration and compliance.

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