Aaron Burrell

Practice Areas

Aaron Burrell is a business lawyer who focuses his practice in the areas of complex commercial litigation, appellate law, labor and employment law, and minority business enterprises.

As a member of the firm’s litigation practice, he has prevailed in numerous complex, commercial-litigation cases in a number of state and federal trial courts and courts of appeals. As a member of the firm’s labor and employment practice, he has successfully defended clients in a wide range of discrimination and unfair-labor-practice claims in state and federal courts and administrative agencies, and he has counseled clients on all aspects of the employment relationship, including hiring; discipline; diversity, equity, and inclusion matters; and the creation and enforcement of employment agreements. Aaron has further advised entertainment and minority business enterprise clients on a wide array of corporate matters.

Professional Memberships

Vice Chair, Board of Directors, Cooley Law School, 2024; SOLACE Board of Commissioners, Member, 2021; ABA Commission on Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Profession; Member, Oakland County Bar Association (OCBA) Board of Directors, 2016-2027; State Bar of Michigan, Commissioner, State Bar of Michigan Board of Commissioners, Officer, State Bar of Michigan Representative Assembly, Former Co-Chair of the Equal Access Initiative; Collaborative Bar Leadership Academy, Inaugural Class; Western Michigan University Cooley Law School, Board Member; D. Augustus Straker Bar Association, Past President, Board of Directors, Vice President, D. Augustus Straker Bar Foundation; National Bar Association, Past Affiliate Representative, Board of Governors; Oakland County Bar Association, Director, Board of Directors, Fellow, Oakland County Bar Foundation, Member of OCBA Diversity Committee, Associate Member of OCBA Inns of Court; Detroit Bar Association; Federal Bar Association, Eastern District of Michigan; Wolverine Bar Association; American Bar Association, Fellow, American Bar Foundation

Publications

Presenter, “Professionalism Under Pressure: Interpersonal Communication and Strategies for Lawyers,” State Bar of Michigan Young Lawyers Section Summit, March 2026; Presenter, “Great Lakes Legal Conference,” State Bar of Michigan, June 2025; Presenter, Pathway Scholars Student Meeting, Michigan State University College of Law, June 2025; Author, “Start the Clock: The Case for Including Contractual Limitations Periods in Employment Agreements,” Dickinson Wright HR Blog, April 2025; Author, "Can an Expert Define and Determine What Constitutes Discrimination?,” Dickinson Wright HR Blog, November 2024 ; Featured, “Dickinson Wright: Staying the Course in the Face of SFFA,” Most Influential Lawyers, Savoy Magazine; Co-Author, "The Michigan Supreme Court Expands Public Policy Causes of Action for Retaliatory Discharge,” Dickinson Wright HR Blog, August 2024; Co-Presenter, “Your Toolbox for Running Effective Meetings,” Great Lakes Legal Conference 2024, State Bar of Michigan, June 2024; Presenter, “Preparing for Productive Mediations,” Great Lakes Legal Conference 2024, State Bar of Michigan, June 2024; Co-Presenter, “2024 Employment Law Year in Review,” Employment Law Committee’s, Oakland County Bar Association, June 2024; Author, "The difficulty of Defining a Disability-Anxiety", Dickinson Wright HR Blog, March 2024; Panelist, “How I Got From There to Here,” Youth Law Conference, Oakland County Bar Association, November 2023; Presenter, "Foundations Week Access to Justice Day", Michigan State University, August 2023; Presenter, “New Lawyer Boot Camp,” Detroit Bar Association, July 2023; Speaker, “Motions for Summary Disposition,” Great Lakes Legal Conference, State Bar of Michigan, June 2023; Speaker, “Toolbox for Running Effective Meetings,” Great Lakes Legal Conference, State Bar of Michigan, June 2023; Panelist, "Taking DEI in the Legal Profession to New Heights," Michigan Lawyers Weekly Webinar, April 2023

Education

Awards