During the course of his professional career, Mr. Melnick has prosecuted and defended against hundreds of civil and commercial disputes, and has extensive experience litigating claims of breach of contract, securities fraud, negligence, bad faith, defamation/libel, lender liability, employment discrimination, breach of fiduciary duty and unfair trade practices.
He also has prosecuted and defended against numerous actions alleging copyright and/or trademark infringement, patent infringement, unfair competition, libel, invasion of privacy, RICO violations, and violations of the First, Fourth, Fifth, and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution.
Mr. Melnick has additional experience prosecuting and defending against a wide variety of claims made and/or actions commenced before local, state and federal administrative and/or regulatory bodies, including the SEC and FINRA. He has further experience representing clients in connection with real estate, matrimonial and criminal matters. An accomplished appellate advocate, Mr. Melnick also has briefed and argued numerous appeals, both in state and Federal court.
Apart from his considerable litigation experience, Mr. Melnick has substantial transactional experience, having represented both public and private companies in connection with dozens of commercial and securities transactions, as well as in the capacity of outside general counsel. A forceful and effective negotiator, Mr. Melnick also has negotiated agreements and/or contracts of all kinds, including, merger/acquisition, financing, equity purchase, asset purchase, real estate, employment, pre and post-nuptial, separation, marital dissolution, partnership, brokerage, distribution, royalty and leasing agreements.
Bar Admissions:
Mr. Melnick is admitted to practice before the Bars of the States of New York, Connecticut and New Jersey. In addition, he is admitted to practice before the Bars of the United States District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York, the District of Connecticut and the District of New Jersey. Mr. Melnick is also admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
Other Legal Experience:
- Associate, Phillips Nizer LLP, New York, New York, 1987-1989;
- Associate, Proskauer Rose LLP, New York, New York, 1989-1991;
- Associate, Pryor Cashman LLP, New York, New York, 1991-1994;
- Of Counsel, Tanner Propp LLP, New York, New York, 1998-2002.
Education:
- Clark University, Bachelor of Arts (B.A.), English Literature/Letters;
- Trinity College, Master of Arts (M.A.), Economics;
- Temple University – James E. Beasley School of Law (J.D.) (Order of the Coif).
Activities and Awards:
- Lead Member, Winning Team, 37th Annual National Moot Court Competition (1986);
- Recipient, American College of Trial Lawyers Medal for Excellence in Advocacy (1986);
- Recipient, Temple Law Alumni/ae Moot Court Award (1987);
- AV Preeminent® , Martindale-Hubbell;
- Top Lawyers in New York, The Legal Network, 2011 - 2023.
Recommendations
- Stuart is a consummate professional and a skilled and talented attorney. He recognizes that vigorous representation does not require contentious and unnecessary stridency and works towards achieving realistic solutions for his clients. An excellent lawyer.
- Stuart was hired for assistance with a complex matter. He was very professional, timely, and aggressive in his pursuit. He was transparent and communicative which was much appreciated. He was also thoughtful and caring around the sensitive nature of the matter. Overall Stuart did a great job and ...
- Great experience. Mr. Melnick dives deep into all the details and can find something small but super important for you.
- Stuart's old world values [often forgotten today] of conducting business and especially dealing with clients was refreshing and a pleasure.
- Stuart is detailed, persistent, and knowledgeable. He was successful on behalf of plaintiffs in current litigation; we are awaiting payment of funds from the insurance company.
- Stuart has worked long and hard on a very difficult case and has produced excellent results. He has been very reasonable with his fees and keeps me well informed. He is very personable and I have enjoyed my relationship with him. Expecting to wrap up case soon.
- Stuart is a very knowledgeable lawyer who moves quickly to provide clients with the right services at very fair costs.
- Stuart has been fighting a case for me for several years. He has always been up front, frank and persistent. I think he can really wear down an adversary.
- Stuart is tenacious and hardworking. Thank heaven he is persistent as well.
- Stuart is an exceptional lawyer with a keen sense of intricacies and genuine interest in clients. I worked with Stuart twice with my current case. Stuart left my previous firm to start his own after drafted and filed the complaint. I was very much impressed with his understanding of the case, giv...
- I met Stuart a decade ago — and he helped me save my business. We've worked together ever since. There's no one else I trust. Not only is Stuart a great lawyer, he's also a great guy. More importantly, he gets results. I recommend him without reservation.
- Stuart handled the whole negotiation process in a complex asset purchase agreement which was simple, to the point and very well drafted. Comes highly recommended for business transactions.
- I found Stuart in this website rated very highly, I called him to talk about my case and his attention to detail and the legal; direction he pointed me to before even getting hired by me was commendable. He is extremely thorough and does a very good job of handling everything. Would definitely re...
- I messaged Mr. Melnick and he reached out to me within hours. During our phone consultation, he presented me with a number of reasonable options that I can explore to help resolve my issue. I appreciated his honesty and respected his opinion.
- In February 2016, I engaged Mr. Melnick and his firm to represent me and my company in connection with the defense of several commercial leasehold disputes. Within a matter of days, and much to our satisfaction, all of these disputes were resolved — on the most favorable possible terms. Mr. Melni...
- I was a named defendant in an action alleging defamation and other misconduct. Prior to my meeting Mr. Melnick, my case was pending for a period of more than 2 years, at considerable cost and expense – and toward no end. Upon the recommendation of a colleague, I terminated my relationship with fo...
- Stuart is detailed, persistent, and knowledgeable. He was successful on behalf of plaintiffs in a recent litigation, and we are waiting on payment of funds. Best attorney I've ever worked with. I strongly recommend him.
- I engaged Stuart to represent my company in connection with a very substantial and complex business transaction. Stuart's representation was superb. Not only did we close on target, we did so on terms more favorable than those we initially bargained for. Costs were reasonable and, throughout, Stu...
- Stuart is a very knowledgeable lawyer who moves quickly to provide clients with the right services at very fair costs. I engaged Stuart to assist me in connection with a contentious dispute with my former business partner. Not only was he able to achieve a favorable outcome for me, but did so exp...
- Stuart is a very trustworthy attorney. He communicates well and has a passion for his work. If I had to sum up in one word my thoughts on Stuart, it would be “tenacious.” I have enjoyed working with him over the years and would highly recommend him.
- My partner and I own an art gallery in lower Manhattan. We've worked hard to get to where we are. Stuart has served as our counsel since we started out, almost 8 years ago. During that time, he has handled a wide variety of legal issues for us, and has done so capably and well. Stuart is very res...
- I have had the misfortune of engaging attorneys too many times in the last few years. Divorce, employment and business disputes that combined to make my life miserable, each with its own lawyers. Too many of these lawyers simply didn't care, and made an already bad situation much worse. Stuart Me...
- Stuart has acted as my counsel and has represented me and my business for many years. He is a very skilled and talented attorney, with strong business acumen. He's not about process; he's about results and doing that what it takes to achieve them — cost-effectively and well. He's a dedicated advo...
- Stuart is a very astute and capable attorney who works hard for his clients. He has run point for me and my company on 2 major litigations and, in each case, his representation was successful. Stuart's also an exceptional negotiator and deal maker, who has handled a number of business transaction...
- My company and I were sued for a considerable sum of money by a former service provider. We retained Stuart and his firm to represent us – and it proved to be one of the best business decisions we ever made. We won the case in the lower court; we also prevailed on appeal. We were thrilled with St...
- Highest recommendation. Stuart was already aware of extremely complex processes & concepts with regard to electronic trading and understood the nuances of my case from the get-go. Will work with him again should any other issues arise. Excellent lawyer. Honest, very caring and smart.
- Stuart helped us with a litigation case. He is an excellent attorney, and a great human being as well. He offers wise counsel, and is very efficient, writing professional and complete legal documents, and representing us at the court as well. He is also honest about the the cost breakdowns and th...
- Successfully negotiated global contracts with patent protection. Coordinated cap table and preferred share contracts. Very efficient and well organized. I highly recommend.