Lorri Michel is the co-founder of Michel Gray & Rogers LLP and is widely recognized as one of the state’s leading property tax attorneys on cutting edge property tax issues. Lorri is a Texas Super Lawyer Honoree (2018-2022); a Top Woman Tax Attorney in Texas by Texas Monthly (2020-2022); an Austin Top Attorney-Taxation by Austin Monthly; and was presented one of the “3rd Annual Women in Real Estate” Awards by Connect Media. She is an invited fellow of the Austin Women Lawyers Foundation and has been honored with selection to the Texas Bar Foundation as a Life Fellow.
A passionate advocate for her clients, Lorri is deeply committed to protecting the rights of all property owners. She has extensive court room experience and recently obtained a favorable jury verdict in Bexar County where the jury reduced the appraised values by nearly 50 percent and awarded over $120,000 in attorney’s fees. Lorri also defeated the City of Austin’s unprecedented and extraordinary lawsuit against 19,000 commercial property taxpayers, protecting the “equal and uniform” requirement for taxation in Texas.
Lorri is recognized as one of the state’s leading advocates against appraisal districts’ over-reaching and growing attempts to include intangible property in the appraisal of real property. She also successfully defended the right of commercial property owners to prevent disclosure of financing appraisals in equal and uniform cases. Lorri has represented numerous types of commercial real estate, including hotels, industrial, office, multifamily, retail, water parks, special use, and landfills. While Lorri has a reputation as an experienced and passionate litigator, that reputation also drives many of her cases to settlement.
Lorri has testified before the Texas Senate Select Committee on Property Tax Reform & Relief and is a trusted subject matter expert for Texas legislators considering changes to the state’s property tax system.
Lorri graduated from The University of Texas at Austin and earned her law degree from Baylor University School of Law in 1991. She began her career as an assistant Travis County attorney before joining the law firm of Linebarger Goggan Blair & Sampson LLP, where she became a partner representing hundreds of local taxing units and appraisal districts. Thereafter in 2003, Lorri established her law firm, dedicated to the representation of property owners.
When not practicing law, Lorri is a tireless advocate for homeless pets, as one of the original founders of Austin’s No Kill movement, and she continues to work closely with elected officials and nonprofit organizations across the state to end the killing of homeless pets.
