Michael "Mike" Vella has over twenty years of experience in international business, intellectual property, litigation, and compliance across the United States, China, and Europe. He has served as General Counsel at two Silicon Valley technology companies and as a partner at two international law firms in the United States and China.

As General Counsel of Velodyne Lidar and Innovusion, Mike was responsible for global legal affairs at both rapidly growing technology companies. His General Counsel experience includes taking Velodyne public through a SPAC merger, serving as secretary for board meetings, establishing all policies and procedures for a public company, implementing the company's first patent program, and successfully resolving multiple high-risk intellectual property cases and class action lawsuits. Mike also helped these companies comply with U.S. sanctions laws and export regulations.

As a partner at two international law firms (Jones Day and Freshfields), Mike developed unique expertise in helping Chinese and Western companies resolve cross-border disputes and intellectual property litigation. During his decade-plus working in China, Mike was frequently listed as a "China IP Star" by Managing Intellectual Property magazine. Mike's dispute resolution experience also includes handling international arbitrations for Chinese and U.S. clients. He was recognized by The Legal 500 for obtaining a multi-million dollar award in an ICC arbitration in China. He is listed on the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre's panel of arbitrators and holds membership in the North American Branch of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb).