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Melissa C. Brown
Of Counsel
Litigation
Bankruptcy and Restructuring
Securities Litigation
Life Sciences
Agribusiness

mbrown@dykema.com
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Grand Rapids, Michigan
616-776-7566

Chicago, Illinois
312-876-1700

Education
Grand Valley State University, B.A.
  with high honors
Ohio University, M.S.
  Kappa Tau Alpha
University of Notre Dame, J.D.
  cum laude

Admitted to Practice
Illinois
Michigan
U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois, including Trial Bar
U.S. District Court, Western District of Wisconsin
U.S. District Court, Western District of Michigan
U.S. Court of Appeals, 7th Circuit
U.S. Supreme Court
U.S. Court of Appeals, 6th Circuit
Ms. Brown is a litigator focusing on general commercial litigation, securities litigation, and receivership matters. 
 
Ms. Brown is a member of the Trial Bar of the United States District Court, Northern District of Illinois, and has represented public corporations in shareholder derivative and class action lawsuits; broker-dealer organizations in regulatory investigations; federal equity receivers in matters brought by the Federal Trade Commission; a national stock exchange in civil litigation; a corporate plaintiff in an insurance dispute involving liability under federal environmental regulations; and other businesses, public and private, in commercial litigation and appeals.  She has represented, on a pro bono basis, a criminal defendant in two highly publicized trials in Cook County, Illinois.
 
Ms. Brown is also active in community and bar associations, having served for several years on the Executive Committee of the Chicago Bar Association Alliance for Women, as well as serving on the planning committee of "POWER: Opening Doors for Women."™  She is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Peninsular Club, a Grand Rapids, Michigan social club and community organization founded in 1883.
 
Ms. Brown and her family live on a small farm in an agricultural community in rural West Michigan, where she raises registered American Quarter Horses.  In addition to her legal practice Ms. Brown has extensive experience as a professional writer, speechwriter, and corporate communications consultant.

Seminars and Speeches

  • 5/6/2010  Women in World Affairs, POWER Opening Doors For Women Conference, Grand Rapids, MI

Publications

  • "High Court's 'Stoneridge' Decision Reveals Ideological Divide," Corporate Counsel Weekly  Vol. 23, No. 5 (BNA) 46-48 (Feb. 2008)
  • "The Stoneridge Case: U.S. Supreme Court Decision Reveals Ideological Divide," World Securities Law Report  Vol. 14, No. 2 (BNA Internat'l) 21-25 (Feb. 2008)
  • "The Stoneridge Case: Supreme Court Decision Reveals Ideological Divide," Securities Regulation and Law Report  Vol. 40, No. 4 (BNA) 125-129 (Jan. 2008)
  • "First Reg FD Decision Finds SEC's 'Excessive Scrutiny' Chills Disclosure,"   Securities Regulation & Law Report, Vol. 37, No. 49 (BNA) 2102-05 (Dec. 2005)
  • "The Perils of Publicity: Getting the Message Across Without Running Afoul of Regulation FD,"   Webcast (Aug. 2005)
  • "When You Become a Target of the SEC,"   Boards and Directors, Summer 2002 (co-authored)
  • "Equal Protection in a Mean World: Why Judge Cahill Was Right in United States v. Clary,"   11 Notre Dame Journal of Law, Ethics & Public Policy 225, 1997
  • "Good Writing is Good Business,"  Vital Speeches of the Day, Vol 59, No. 10 at 311-14 (1993)

Professional Associations

  • American Bar Association
  • Federal Bar Association
  • Illinois State Bar Association
  • Chicago Bar Association
  • Executive Committee, Chicago Bar Association Alliance for Women (2003 to 2006)
  • Former Board Member, Life Span (domestic violence service organization)
  • Women Lawyers Association of Michigan
  • American Quarter Horse Association