Melissa M. Morton

Practice Area

Ms. Morton’s practice includes casualty and negligence matters, including medical malpractice and nursing home defense, premises liability, and industrial and construction accidents. 

She also has experience in business litigation and insurance coverage matters.

Education/Experience

Ms. Morton is a graduate of Canisius College, where she graduated summa cum laude.  She received her Juris Doctor from the State University of New York at Buffalo School of Law. 

Ms. Morton is admitted to practice in the State of New York, the United States District Court for the Northern and Western Districts of New York, the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of New York, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and the United States Supreme Court.   

Ms. Morton is a member of the American Bar Association, the New York State Bar Association, and the Bar Association of Erie County, where she currently serves on the Continuing Legal Education, Negligence, Judiciary Committee.

Ms. Morton is also a member of the Western New York Chapter of the Women’s Bar Association of the State of New York, where she serves on the Litigation Committee; the Defense Research Institute, where she is on the Steering Committee for the Medical Liability and Healthcare Law Committee; the New York State Trial Lawyers Association; the Western New York Trial Lawyers Association; and the Defense Trial Lawyers’ Association of Western New York.  She was previously a Board Member of Women Lawyers of Western New York.

Ms. Morton has consistently been recognized as a “Rising Star” for her work in Civil Litigation Defense by SuperLawyers.

Community Involvement

Ms. Morton is active with Say Yes! Buffalo Legal Task Force and provides pro bono legal services to low income families within the City of Buffalo school district. She is a former member of the Board of Directors for the University at Buffalo School of Law Alumni Association GOLD group, and was the chair of the Recruitment and Student Engagement Committee. Ms. Morton is also involved with the Buffalo Claims Association and the Canisius College Alumni Association. Additionally, Ms. Morton was the co-author of "Did I Just Hear That?" in the “Sharing Success” newsletter published by the Women in Law Committee for the Defense Research Institute. She also co-authored "Granny Cams and Smartphones: Use of Audio and Video Footage in the Nursing Home Setting" , a presentation for the Defense Research Institute's Long-Term Care and Assisted Living Facility Seminar.