Seasoned Advocate Known for Resolving High-Stakes Litigation and Delivering Results for Injury Victims and Businesses
Michael J. Jones is Co-Chair of Mandelbaum Barrett PC’s Personal Injury Practice Group and Partner in the Litigation, and Real Estate Practice Groups. His practice focuses on personal injury and wrongful death, commercial and corporate litigation, estate litigation, and residential real estate matters. Over the course of his career, Michael has built a reputation for strategic advocacy, reasoned negotiation, and unwavering commitment to achieving results for his clients.
Michael is highly respected for his reasoned approach to dispute resolution and settlement negotiation, and for providing practical advice to clients throughout the litigation process. He has served as a Special Master/Mediator in the Stamford Superior Court. His litigation client base includes individuals, as well as large and small businesses and financial institutions. In addition, he has been instrumental in building the firm’s Connecticut Personal Injury/Wrongful Death practice into one of the premier tort recovery groups in the Tri-State area.
Michael’s residential real estate practice encompasses all aspects of real estate transactions from contract through closing, for buyers and sellers throughout Connecticut and New York. He acts as General Counsel to the Greenwich Association of Realtors.
He is active in the community and has been a member of the Advisory Board for, and General Counsel to, the Greenwich Concours d’Elegance and a past member of the Board of the Town of Greenwich Parks and Recreation Foundation. He has done volunteer work for the United Way and a member of the Colgate University President’s Club and the Colgate Football Maroon Council. He is also a member of the mentor/mentee program for the Colgate University Varsity Football Team.
Media Appearances
Mr. Jones has appeared as a legal commentator on various national television programs and outlets, including Fox News, NBC News, NBC’s Today Show, MSNBC Live, CNN’s OutFront with Erin Burnett, and locally on News 12 Connecticut and NBC 30 Hartford News.
Practice Highlights
Michael was lead counsel on behalf of the family of the late George Smith, in the renowned case involving the honeymooner’s disappearance from a Royal Caribbean cruise ship in 2005.
In June, 2012 Greenwich Magazine featured a cover story entitled “Mystery At Sea” about the Smith case. The story noted in part that Mr. Jones has for “six years…pursued the Smith case with a cop’s tenacity—a tenacity no doubt bequeathed by his late father, a New York City police detective stationed at Fort Apache, the legendary South Bronx precinct. “I’ve made it my mission to push this case to the point where George’s killer is indicted and convicted,” says Jones.”
The Greenwich Magazine article was featured on a billboard in Times Square in May, 2012:
On January 6, 2012, Mr. Jones appeared on NBC’s Dateline, an hour long show about Mr. Smith’s disappearance and also on NBC’s Today Show with Matt Lauer. CBS News – 48 Hours featured an hour long update of the George Smith case in a special which aired on July 5, 2014. A good portion of the 48 Hours show focused on Mr. Jones’ attempts to obtain justice for Mr. Smith. The shows have aired periodically since that time.
On a more recent note, from 2021 through 2025, Michael has been a member of the bi-partisan team of attorneys representing The Honorable Donald J. Trump, President of the United States, in connection with First Amendment cases against Twitter, Facebook and Google. Michael is one of a handful of attorneys who drafted the Complaint which was filed against the tech giants in their attempts to stifle the free speech of Conservatives in conjunction with the Biden Administration. All three cases settled in 2025.
