AFM Welcomes New Staff

November 1, 2026

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In-House Counsel Micky Devitt

The AFM is pleased to welcome In-House Counsel Michelle “Micky” Devitt, who brings years of labor law experience and a lifelong passion for music to the role. Devitt will oversee negotiations, administration, and enforcement of the AFM’s electronic media and theater agreements, while advising on union governance and supporting Federation staff and locals working in organizing, contract negotiations, and enforcement.

“I grew up in a family of instrumental musicians and studied music for many years, but I became a lawyer so that I could fight for workers’ rights,” says Devitt. “I am excited and proud to join the staff of the AFM where I can finally combine my passion for law with my love of music and fight for the rights of professional musicians.”

Most recently a partner at Willig, Williams & Davidson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Devitt has championed the rights of working people across higher education, healthcare, retail, longshore work, and trucking. Her experience includes assisting clients in organizing campaigns, collective bargaining, contract administration, grievance arbitration, and union governance.

Devitt’s background includes serving as legal and policy coordinator for Heartland Workers Center in Omaha, Nebraska. She was the organization’s lobbyist for workers’ rights, voting rights, immigrant rights, and poverty relief legislation. She provided legal and strategic support to workers organizing for better wages and working conditions in the state.

Devitt spent more than a decade as an appellate and field attorney at the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) where she also represented colleagues in the board’s staff unions as a steward and professional representative, and served as Local 27 vice president.

Devitt received her B.A. in Political Science (minor in music) from the University of Northern Colorado and her J.D. from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law.

Symphonic Services Division Negotiator/Translator Chantal Brunette

This summer, the AFM Symphonic Services Division (SSD) welcomed Chantal Brunette as a new part-time symphonic negotiator/translator. Brunette, a member of Local 518 (Kingston, ON), brings a unique blend of orchestral, labor, and bilingual communications experience to her work supporting orchestra committees in bargaining, contract enforcement, and internal organizing.

A trombonist, Brunette earned her master’s degree in music performance from McGill University. She has freelanced with symphony orchestras across Ontario and Québec, and taught trombone and low brass at Queen’s University since 2001. As a trained translator with a graduate diploma from McGill, she works fluently in English and French—an essential asset for serving Canada’s francophone orchestras.

Since 2014, Brunette held a range of leadership roles with the Queen’s University Faculty Association, including secretary, officer, and continuing adjuncts representative on the Executive, as well as chair of the Workload Standards Committee and union representative for her department. She comes to the SSD recently from Les Violons du Roy. As personnel manager, she administered the orchestra’s contracts with Québec Local 406 and Union des Artistes. Her duties ran the gamut, from being the key liaison between musicians and management, hiring substitute musicians, and managing payroll, to sitting on audition planning and probation committees. Since 2025, she has been working as a bilingual project manager and administrator at Latitude 45 Arts.

“As a freelance trombone player who sometimes pushed through injuries, a dedicated instructor who has helped her students develop their skills, and a union leader representing my colleagues, I understand the challenges orchestral musicians can face,” says Brunette. “I am excited to work as an SSD negotiator to fight for fairness and for working conditions that allow musicians to thrive and play at their full potential. I am also proud to provide services and resources in French to Canada’s francophone communities.”

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