Introducing Melissa Goldstein

Schwed, Adams & McGinley’s newest attorney, Melissa Goldstein, has returned to her roots in South Florida after spending most of her life pursuing her original legal passion of criminal justice reform. She has embarked upon a new passion: helping the injured. Along the way, she has been able to rekindle her previous passions for tennis and running, helping to make her a well-rounded individual and a valuable addition to Schwed, Adams & McGinley’s roster of talented Florida personal injury attorneys.     

An Early Passion for Criminal Justice Reform

Melissa’s original legal passion was criminal justice reform. She had her sights set on this area of the law since high school, in Palm Beach Gardens, participating as a volunteer with Teen Court. She was a criminology major for her undergraduate degree at the University of Florida. While in college, she interned at the local Teen Court in Gainesville and also worked for the Mid-Atlantic Innocence Project, an organization that works to exonerate those who have been wrongfully convicted. However, during law school, Melissa also became interested in the many other areas of law that are out there. She originally took and passed the bar in Washington, D.C., but quickly decided she missed family and South Florida and decided to return home. 

Melissa Returns Home

Melissa began working as a law clerk at Schwed, Adams & McGinley while studying for the Florida Bar to gain legal experience, but she was also able to discover a new passion along the way: helping those who have been injured by someone else’s negligence. Returning home to Palm Beach Gardens has also given Melissa the opportunity to return to one of her previous passions, the sport of tennis. She began playing tennis when she was 4 or 5 and continued playing all the way through high school before picking the game up again when she moved back to Florida. She now can pick up her racket again and plays two-four times per week for the first time since high school. She has also been able to rekindle her love for running, particularly along the beach. Music also is and has always been one of Melissa’s other great passions. She took a variety of music classes in college at UF. She has a vinyl collection and an eclectic taste in music, ranging from music from the 60’s and 70’s to hip-hop, R&B and early 2000’s rap.

What is Different and so Special About Schwed, Adams & McGinley

After working at the firm as a law clerk while studying for the Florida Bar, Melissa has found her professional home at Schwed, Adams & McGinley. Rather than viewing her as a law clerk who they want to get as much work out of as possible, as many firms do with their law clerks, the firm’s attorneys have taken the time to mentor Melissa and teach her what it is to be an attorney and to truly represent a client’s best interests. The attorneys at the firm sit down with Melissa and help her understand why approaching a case a certain way makes the most sense for a particular client. This was an important factor for Melissa when deciding to stay at the firm after she had passed the bar exam and she had become a full-fledged member of the Florida Bar. The firm’s culture is very special and unlike anywhere else. For more information about Melissa Goldstein, visit her profile page.