Melissa Wischerath is a skilled trial attorney who fights to protect the rights of people who have been injured, abused, or neglected through no fault of their own. For over 15 years, she has successfully led a wide variety of wrongful death and catastrophic injury cases for her clients, including police misconduct, institutional abuse, construction injuries, and products liability matters.

Melissa is widely recognized for her compassion, her wit, and her significant track record of success in holding wrongdoers accountable.

Through the course of her career, Melissa has frequently handled high-profile cases that garnered media attention. The New York Times and The Washington Post have featured her work on police abuse. In addition, a plethora of local print and television media outlets from across the country have covered Melissa’s work on the civil rights of children, wrongful death, sexual misconduct, and much else.

Melissa is consistently recognized by her peers for her legal skill, professional ethics, and successful results.  She has been named to The Best Lawyers in America’s “Ones to Watch” and Super Lawyers’ “Rising Stars” every year since 2016. She has also received the prestigious Honorable James M. Burns Federal Practice Award, an award usually only given to late-career lawyers, in recognition of her professionalism and service representing low-income and under-represented clients.

Not only known for her acumen in the courtroom, Melissa is also actively involved in making an impact in her broader community. She is a member of the steering committee of the Our Outer Harbor coalition, a group committed to keeping public lands and waters public on the Lake Erie coast.

Bar and Court Admissions

  • State of New York
  • State of Oregon
  • United States Supreme Court
  • United States Court of Appeals, Second Circuit
  • United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
  • United States District Court, Western District of New York
  • United States District Court, Northern District of New York
  • United States District Court, Oregon

Education

  • State University of New York at Buffalo, J.D., 2011
  • Fordham University, B.A., 2004

Community Involvement

  • Board of Directors, 21st Century Park on the Outer Harbor, Inc
  • Advisory Board of Directors, Northwest Land Conservation Trust
  • Board of Directors, Campaign for Greater Buffalo

Professional Activities

  • New York State Bar Association, Member
  • Oregon State Bar Association, Member
  • American Association for Justice (“AAJ”), Member
  • Western New York Chapter of the Women’s Bar Association of the State of New York, Member
  • Bar Association of Erie County, Member

Speaking Engagements

    • Workshop leader for American Association for Justice (“AAJ”) Virtual Depositions College: Sharpening Your Skills, October 14, 2022- November 4, 2022
    • Workshop leader for American Association for Justice (“AAJ”) Trial Advocacy College: Depositions, September 8 – September 10, 2022
    • 34th Annual Public Interest Environmental Law Conference, How to Start and Run a Public Interest Law Practice, 2016
    • 33rd Annual Public Interest Environmental Law Conference, Reclaiming the Promise of Home Rule to Protect the Environment, 2015
    • Wayne Morse Center for Law and Politics, “Earned Sick Leave, Preemption and the Powers of Local Government,” 2014
    • CLE Access to Justice, CLE on the Federal District Court Pro Bono Panel, 2014
    • 32nd Annual Public Interest Environmental Law Conference, Food Systems and Environmental Law, 2014

In the News