Melanie Cunningham Law Office P.C.

I walked away from traditional law to embark on a decade-plus career in banking (Anti-Money Laundering Compliance) with the hope of moving closer to doing meaningful work. I worked in large, global financial institutions, and at least there, I worked on the side of protecting the savings of the middle class and safeguarding our financial systems from being utilized by criminals.

Nonetheless, there was still a small voice that said there was more for me to do. I could never feel fulfilled getting paid for the hours I spent in front of a computer. I knew I wanted to be out in the world, bringing value directly to people. I knew the real reason I went to law school was to serve others and in my free time I did just that. More and more people in my circle were pursuing side hustles, starting businesses after long stretches of unemployment (especially in the wake of the 2008 financial collapse), or they were finally making the decision to go after their creative dreams.

They would reach out to me for help, sometimes much later than they should. I loved all of it, especially helping owners start off on the right foot. In part, I secretly wanted to be an entrepreneur just like the brave people I helped, but more importantly, I finally felt of service.

However, the idea of returning to hourly billing, spending more time on matters involving large institutional clients (because that's where the money is) and crafting complex documents in lawyerly language that only other lawyers understand, did not sound appealing. I knew I could not follow the traditional law firm mold because what I loved about the work was being a trusted advisor to everyday people.

Locations	No. of Attorneys
Nutley, NJ	1

Practice Areas	No. of Attorneys
Corporate - General	1