Michael T. Heenan

Mr. Heenan represents companies in litigation before the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission and the United States Courts of Appeals. He assists companies, managers and witnesses in government investigations, including accident investigations and special investigations initiated by the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) to determine whether individual managers or supervisors are to be prosecuted criminally or civilly. He also responds to complaints of discrimination filed under the Federal Mine Safety Act. He conducts investigations underground and on the surface in support of company administrative, management and litigation needs. He has been involved in many precedential cases, while at the same time successfully negotiating many non-litigation solutions to cases and investigations with the U.S. Department of Labor and the U.S. Department of Justice.

Michael Heenan has represented companies in enforcement actions initiated by the Interior Department, the Treasury Department, the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). He advises and assists equipment manufacturers with petitions for approval and certification of equipment, and with government investigations related to compliance and conformity of equipment when it is certified by MSHA and the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) for mine use. He helps mine operators and independent service and construction contractors with daily compliance, audits and preventative measures. He advises and assists gold mines and a wide variety of other metal mines and processing plants, along with cement plants and other non-metal operations regarding legal and procedural issues that arise during government inspections and investigations. He represents mine operators, construction materials companies and contractors in informal and formal contests of federal enforcement actions. He also represents employers in connection with various state enforcement and adjudicatory proceedings related to mine safety and health.