Michael J. Melkersen has been practicing law for 11 years specializing in personal injury, wrongful death, business litigation, and divorce and child custody cases. While still in law school, Melkersen authored the brief that ultimately led to the decision in Maximum Home Health Care, Inc. v. Shalala, Secretary of HHS, 272 F.3d 318 (6th Cir. 2001), a landmark decision that was included by United States Supreme Court Justice Breyer in his textbook on administrative law. Early in his career, Melkersen achieved notoriety when he obtained sanctions in a reported federal opinion against one of the largest commercial law firms in Montgomery County Maryland in a case known as Melkersen v. Ray Construction Company, 315 B.R. 45 (D. Md. 2004), which changed the landscape of permitted practices in Maryland commercial and bankruptcy litigation and which has been cited by numerous courts since that time. Melkersen himself has taken multiple cases to the Virginia Supreme Court, including one case that is currently pending before the High Court in the matter of Property Damage Specialists, Inc. v. Aaron Rechichar, Record No. 151214. In his personal injury and wrongful death practice, Melkersen has achieved verdicts and settlements in excess of tens of millions of dollars in favor of his clients, and maintains a reputation for fearlessly and aggressively pursuing even the largest corporations including the likes of Eli Lilly & Company (pharmaceutical manufacturer), Landstar Ranger, Inc. (trucking company), Frito-Lay (snack manufacturer/distributor), and Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (vehicle manufacturer/distributor), to name just a few. Of the thousands of lawsuits filed against Volkswagen for what has become known as "dieselgate" – a scandal by which VW equipped vehicles with software designed to deceive emissions tests into concluding that certain VW diesel vehicles emit EPA compliant emissions when the actual emissions emitted are 10-40 times higher than EPA standards allow - Melkersen is lead counsel in the first case that will go to trial against Volkswagen Nationwide, which is scheduled to occur in June 2016. Melkersen's clients consistently have given him the best possible rating of 5 out of 5 stars on the well-known AVVO lawyer rating service, which has led to Melkersen receiving the prestigious AVVO's Clients' Choice Award. Melkersen has also been voted as one of the top attorneys in North America by the Who's Who Directories. Melkersen received his J.D. from William & Mary School of Law, and his M.B.A. from Southern Adventist University. While Melkersen is licensed to practice in both Maryland and Virginia, demand for his services has led him to litigate cases for clients in many other states around the Country, which he is able to do by partnering with lawyers licensed in the jurisdiction where the case is to be litigated. In his free time, Melkersen enjoys playing poker semi-professionally, playing chess and spending time with his family in the beautiful Shenandoah Valley in Central Virginia where he resides. Melkersen may be contacted directly by e-mail at mike@mlawpc.com.
