Michael Olesnicky holds a BA and LLB from Adelaide University in Australia. He also holds an LLM from Columbia University in New York. He practiced from 1979–82 with Baker & McKenzie's office in Sydney. In 1988, he rejoined Baker & McKenzie's office in Hong Kong, and became a partner in 1989 in the International Tax Group. His chief specialty is Hong Kong and regional tax advisory work as well as estate duty planning. He is the Chairman of the Joint Liaison Committee on Taxation, which is a quasi-governmental committee that interfaces between tax practitioners and the Inland Revenue Department. He is a past chairman of the tax committee of the Australian Chamber of Commerce. He was a member of the Inland Revenue Board of Review (the lowest-level tax court in Hong Kong) between 1985 and 1994. He was Chief Editor of the Hong Kong Law Journal for five years. He writes and speaks frequently on Hong Kong tax matters.