Michelle Tullio featured on Close Up Radio as she reflects on injury law, women in the courtroom

Attorney Michelle M. Tullio of Gonzalez, Tullio & Blache was featured in Close Up Radio’s Empowering Women Series, where she discussed her career in personal injury law, landmark public-records work, and emerging liability issues around autonomous vehicles. The interview highlights how she sees legal advocacy as both accountability for injured clients and a broader fight for transparency and fairness.

Why it matters: - Michelle M. Tullio has spent more than 32 years representing injured people and their families in New Jersey. - Her perspective reflects a broader shift in personal injury law, where cases now reach into public records disputes, land-use matters and autonomous vehicle liability. - The interview also underscores the continuing push for women attorneys to advance in a profession that was long dominated by men.

What happened: - Close Up Radio featured Michelle Tullio, Esq. of Gonzalez, Tullio & Blache in a two-part interview for its Empowering Women Series. - The interviews aired on Wednesday, Oct. 7 at 1 p.m. Eastern with Jim Masters and on Wednesday, Oct. 14 at 1 p.m. Eastern with Doug Llewelyn. - Tullio is a co-founder of Gonzalez, Tullio & Blache, LLC, a Perth Amboy, New Jersey-based personal injury and workers’ compensation law firm. - Tullio has practiced law for more than 32 years. - Tullio graduated from Seton Hall Law School. - Tullio began her legal career as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Edwin R. Alley in Union County. - Tullio later worked on the defense side of civil litigation before building a plaintiff-focused practice.

The details: - Tullio said insurance companies often see a claim number or diagnosis, while she sees a person whose life has changed. - Tullio said her defense-side background helps her prepare plaintiff cases because she understands how insurance companies and opposing counsel investigate and argue claims. - In 2010, Tullio argued Asbury Park Press v. County of Monmouth before the New Jersey Supreme Court. - The court ruling required Monmouth County to disclose settlement terms rather than keep them confidential. - Tullio tied that case to the Open Public Records Act and said taxpayers have a right to know where public money goes. - In 2013, Edison Township appointed Tullio as its first female planning board attorney. - Tullio brought 10 years of experience representing developers in land use and zoning matters to that role. - Tullio said her zoning background strengthened her cross-examination approach by sharpening her document review and issue spotting. - Tullio is tracking autonomous vehicles as a new product-liability issue. - Tullio said an injured passenger in a defective self-driving system case would likely need to sue the company, not a human driver. - Tullio said proposed New Jersey legislation would require autonomous vehicle testers to carry at least $5 million in liability insurance. - Tullio said serious injuries can affect a person’s ability to work, care for children or aging parents, and maintain financial stability. - Tullio said compensation is only part of the job, alongside accountability, dignity and helping clients rebuild.

Between the lines: - Tullio’s career path shows how defense experience can become a tactical advantage for plaintiffs’ counsel. - Her Supreme Court argument and public-records comments suggest she sees personal injury work as part legal advocacy and part government transparency. - Her focus on autonomous vehicles signals that product-liability disputes are moving toward software, manufacturers and insurers, not just individual drivers. - Her comments about gender bias reflect a legal culture that has improved but still requires women to prove credibility case by case. - Her advice to younger lawyers centers on preparation, not volume: “You do not have to be the loudest person in the room to be the strongest person in the room.”

What's next: - Tullio said she expects autonomous-vehicle cases to become more complex and more expensive as the technology expands. - Gonzalez, Tullio & Blache says it will keep representing injured individuals and families throughout New Jersey. - Tullio said she wants the firm to be known for strong legal work and respectful treatment of clients, staff and opposing counsel. - The firm also aims to give women in the workplace opportunities to take on responsibility and have their contributions recognized.

The bottom line: - Tullio’s interview framed personal injury law as a mix of litigation strategy, public accountability and human recovery.