Melissa Arbus Sherry

Melissa Arbus Sherry, a former Assistant to the Solicitor General of the United States and former Deputy Managing Partner of the Washington, D.C. office, focuses primarily on appeals in the Supreme Court of the United States, the United States Courts of Appeals, and state appellate courts.

Melissa represents a full spectrum of clients in high-stakes appellate litigation across the country. She has argued 12 cases in the United States Supreme Court and multiple cases in the First, Second, Third, Fifth, Seventh, Ninth, and Eleventh Circuits, among other courts.

She served five years as an Assistant to the Solicitor General of the United States. In that role, she represented the United States before the Supreme Court, oversaw the government’s litigation in federal appellate courts, and worked with and across federal government agencies and components within the Department of Justice.

Melissa represents clients in a wide range of areas, including intellectual property, securities, arbitration, healthcare, tax, communications, white collar, and complex commercial litigation. She excels at distilling and framing complex legal issues through compelling written and oral advocacy.

According to a 2018 Law360 article, Melissa is one of the 10 most experienced women advocates before the Supreme Court, based on the number of cases argued over the past 10 Terms. Some of her notable arguments included:

• POM Wonderful LLC v. The Coca-Cola Co.
• Bowman v. Monsanto
• Amgen, Inc. v. Connecticut Retirement Plans & Trust Funds
• CSX Transportation v. Alabama Department of Revenue

Melissa has also drafted more than a hundred briefs before the Supreme Court. She has briefed dozens of cases in federal and state appellate courts. And she has judged hundreds of moot courts for internal and external clients, as well as for organizations such as the US Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Attorneys General.

She served as a law clerk to Justice John Paul Stevens, and to Judge Diana Gribbon Motz on the Fourth Circuit.

Industry and Community Leadership

Melissa is on the Board of Advisors of the Institute of Judicial Administration at NYU School of Law. She is a member of the Edward Coke Appellate Inn of Court. And she serves on the US Chamber of Commerce’s Constitutional Law and Federal Courts Amicus Committee and as a Vice Chair of Latham's Associates Committee.

She has been featured in media outlets such as the PBS NewsHour, Bloomberg, and the Washingtonian. And she speaks often to industry groups, lawyers, and judges about the Supreme Court and appellate advocacy.

Accolades

Melissa has earned broad recognition for her appellate advocacy from industry publications, clients, and peers. She is a Fellow of the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers. Washingtonian Magazine has recognized her as a 2020 Supreme Court Top Lawyer. Melissa is ranked by Chambers USA as a leading appellate lawyer, and The Legal 500 has recommended Melissa for Supreme Court and Appellate Litigation. Clients and peers describe her as “an excellent writer,” “very easy to work with,” and “a really good advocate,” with “great experience from the Solicitor General’s office.”