She is a commercial and insurance litigation partner at Сox & Palmer in Halifax
The Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society (NSBS) has welcomed Michelle Kelly – a Halifax-based partner at Сox & Palmer who practises in the areas of complex commercial litigation and insurance defence – as its 2025–26 president.
Сox & Palmer congratulated Kelly in a news release. “Michelle’s appointment is a testament to her commitment to the legal profession and her dedication to justice and service in Nova Scotia,” the firm said. “Her leadership, integrity, and thoughtful advocacy have long made her a respected voice in our legal community.”
As the regulator of the province’s legal profession, the NSBS aims to uphold and safeguard the public interest in legal practice and ensure that Nova Scotian lawyers provide competent and ethical legal services that meet the legal profession’s standards.
“We are so proud to celebrate this well-deserved recognition and look forward to the positive impact Michelle will make in this important role,” the firm said in a LinkedIn post.
Kelly’s biography on Сox & Palmer’s website provides more information on her background.
Bilingual in English and French, Kelly earned her BA from Queen’s University and her law degree from the University of New Brunswick. She joined Сox & Palmer in 2003.
Her practice at the firm also covers commercial real estate and development, energy and natural resources, construction, construction litigation, and crisis management, apart from commercial and insurance litigation.
Kelly has handled contractual and property disputes, claims alleging fraud and breach of fiduciary duty, and expropriation cases, in which she has assisted both the expropriating authority and the landowner. She has appeared before all provincial court levels and dealt with mediations and commercial arbitrations.
At Cox & Palmer, Kelly has been a member of the Halifax executive committee and co-chair of the regional equity, diversity, and inclusion committee. She has also served as first vice president and co-chair of the gender equity committee for the NSBS and chair of the Coalition of Provincial and Territorial Advisory Councils on the Status of Women.
She obtained a Queen’s Counsel (later King’s Counsel) designation in 2021.
In 2023, Canadian Lawyer named her one of the Top 25 Most Influential Lawyers in the changemakers category. She has also been listed in the Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory in the areas of personal injury, commercial insurance litigation, product liability litigation, and corporate commercial litigation.
