Michelle Alvarado - Profile

Michelle Alvarado Salermo boasts over 14 years of rapid service in the U.S. Army, federal government, and private legal sector as she takes on the role of Associate Attorney at Tully Rinckey PLLC’s Buffalo office. With a background as a former U.S. Army Sergeant First Class, combat veteran, and ex-federal Claims Examiner for the U.S. Department of Labor, Michelle delivers purpose-driven legal guidance in federal litigation, military law, federal employment, security clearance defense, corporate law, and emerging cybersecurity and technology law. Michelle kicked off her military journey as an Ammunition Specialist (89B) and swiftly climbed the ranks, achieving a significant milestone as the first woman in the U.S. Army Reserve, 1st MSC Puerto Rico, and the 98th Division to qualify as an 11B Infantryman. During her deployment to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, she led money-drop missions managing millions in U.S. government assets, resulting in her being awarded the Joint Forces Achievement Medal. Michelle then transitioned into the role of Drill Sergeant at Fort Benning and Fort Jackson, earning recognition as Drill Sergeant of the Cycle. She played a pivotal role in training and guiding hundreds of soldiers and junior leaders, instilling values of discipline, courage, and accountability that she now applies in the legal arena. Michelle further served as a Legal Noncommissioned Officer (NCO) at the Office of the Staff Judge Advocate (OSJA) for the 1st Mission Support Command, overseeing legal operations and providing crucial legal advice to senior command on various legal issues such as UCMJ actions, administrative separations, adverse actions, congressional inquiries, FOIA requests, nonjudicial punishment, and command investigations. She also integrated military legal expertise with cutting-edge technology by spearheading the development of digital legal systems and championing the use of AI-powered legal tools to streamline and modernize command-level legal operations. In her role as a federal Claims Examiner/Adjudicator at the U.S. Department of Labor, Michelle issued binding decisions