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Melissa Paul-Franklyn
Melissa Paul-Franklyn, Esq., is the Assistant-Attorney-in-charge at The Legal Aid Society Juvenile Rights Practice( JRP). Melissa has worked with JRP for 12 + years, primarily in Child Protective Law, in various boroughs of New York City. She is currently a Supervising Attorney at JRP’ s Manhattan Trial Office.
At the Juvenile Right Practice, Attorneys for the Children are court appointed to represent children and youth in the Juvenile Justice system, as well as, in Neglect and Abuse cases filed against parents and persons legally responsible by the Administration of Children Services in Family Court. As a Law Grad, paralegal and then as a Staff Attorney working for LAS, Melissa has represented hundreds of children in her various roles in the child welfare system. She currently co-teaches the Juvenile Rights Law Clinic as an Adjunct Professor at New York Law School, where her main objective is to introduce law students to the field of child
welfare and the art of being a defense litigator in Public Interest Law.
In her role as New York State Coordinator for the National Association of Counsel for Children( NACC), Melissa serves as a liaison between child welfare practitioners, the courts, and organizations throughout New York State.
Melissa obtained a law degree from Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, Yeshiva University in NYC, class of 2008. Prior to that, Melissa taught Mathematics to adult education students, while studying for her B. A at McGill University in her hometown of Montreal, Canada. She is the only child of parents originating from the Spice Island of Grenada, who emigrated to Canada in the 1960s. Melissa has a passion for education and trains both newly licensed and experienced attorneys in child welfare law. Melissa has a deep interest in fostering mentorship and diversity in the workplace and seeks out opportunities to be of service to the community.