Melissa A. Hewey

Attorney

Melissa A. Hewey

Attorney

Phone: 207.772.1941 Fax: 207.772.3627 Email: mhewey@dwmlaw.com

84 Marginal Way, Suite 600 Portland, ME 04101-2480

Assistant: Tricia King Email: tking@dwmlaw.com

About

Melissa Hewey is an accomplished litigator with substantial experience across a broad range of practice areas, including insurance defense, school law, higher education law, employment matters, and complex commercial litigation. Melissa has represented a diverse set of clients, such as insurance companies, schools, colleges and universities, municipalities, law firms, hospitals, individuals, and businesses in a variety of industries.

Melissa has tried a wide range of cases and argued significant appeals in state and federal courts in Maine and New Hampshire. She regularly represents clients in complex litigation in federal court, including in class action and mass tort cases. In her higher education practice, Melissa works regularly with colleges and universities around the country on Title IX matters, serving in the roles of investigator, decision maker, and at the appellate level. In litigation, Melissa has the expertise, preparation, and commitment to her clients to take their cases from inception to verdict or judgment if trial is required.

In 2020, Melissa was recognized as a Top Five Maine Lawyer by Super Lawyers. Benchmark Litigation lists her as one of the Top 250 Women in Litigation nationwide.

For almost 20 years, Melissa has been recognized in Best Lawyers in America for employment, education, municipal, and commercial law categories. She is the first woman in Maine to be inducted into the American College of Trial Lawyers and was elected as a Fellow in the Litigation Counsel of America’s Trial Lawyer Honorary Society. Melissa also serves on the pro bono panel for the Immigrant Legal Advocacy Program in Portland, Maine.

Representative Complex Litigation Matters

  • Represented competitive electricity provider and related entities in a class action relating to allegations of fraud in the competitive electricity market;
  • Represented creditor’s committee in litigation involving fire and ultimate bankruptcy of paper company;
  • Acted as coordinating counsel for a tanning company in a series of class action and individual lawsuits brought in Missouri relating to the spreading of hexavalent chromium sludge;
  • Represented a blueberry grower in a class action antitrust case; and
  • Represented furnace manufacturer in asbestos litigation cases.

Education

University of Maine School of Law, J.D., magna cum laude, 1987

Wesleyan University, B.A., 1980

Recognition

Super Lawyers, Top 5 Maine Lawyers 2020

Top 100 (Awarded by New England Super Lawyers)

Employment Law-Management Lawyer of the Year, Portland, ME (Awarded by Best Lawyers) 2012, 2016, 2018, 2024

Top 50 Women (Awarded by New England Super Lawyers) 2007-2018

Education Law Lawyer of the Year, Portland, ME (Awarded by Best Lawyers), 2021, 2024

New England Super Lawyers, Employment & Labor, General Litigation, Schools & Education 2007-2021

Best Lawyers, USA

Benchmark Litigation

Chambers USA, Maine, Litigation: General Commercial, Band 1

Chambers USA, Maine, Labor & Employment, Band 3

Martindale Hubbell, AV Preeminent

Katahdin Counsel, Honoring Pro Bono Legal Services in Maine 2012-2015

American College of Trial Attorneys, Awarded Fellow

Litigation Counsel of America, Trial Lawyer Honorary Society, Awarded Fellow

Publications

Co-Author, Maine School Law (4th ed. 2012)

Memberships

Trial Law Institute
Member

College of School Attorneys

Litigation Counsel of America

American College of Trial Lawyers

Maine State Bar Association

Maine Bar Foundation
Fellow

New Hampshire Bar Association

Maine Trial Lawyers Association

Community/Public Service

ILAP, Pro Bono Panel
Member

Past Presentations

From June 17, 2022 12:00 pm

Student Rights: Zooming in on the Rights of Transgender and Gender Expansive Students

From August 26, 2020 9:00 am

The New Era of Title IX

From September 7, 2018 9:00 am

Guarding the Gates: Keeping Your Schools Safe from Violence and Harassment

From January 31, 2018 12:00 pm

Supporting Transgender Students in Maine Schools

Admissions