Melissa A. DiVincenzo > Morris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnell LLP > Wilmington, United States > Lawyer Profile

Morris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnell LLP
CHASE MANHATTAN CENTER, 18TH FLOOR
1201 NORTH MARKET STREET
WILMINGTON, DE
DELAWARE
United States

Work Department

Corporate Counseling

Position

Morris Nichols partner Melissa DiVincenzo provides advice on corporate governance matters and private and public corporate transactions, including initial public offerings, mergers, asset sales, domestications, dissolutions and financing transactions. Clients look to Melissa for specialized knowledge of Delaware law when structuring transactions and confronting complex or novel corporate issues.

Her work also involves guiding Delaware corporations on the requirements of the Delaware General Corporation Law (“DGCL”), counseling boards of directors and board committees with respect to fiduciary duties, and providing formal legal opinions on issues of Delaware law. Melissa has represented Fortune 500 companies, retailers, energy companies, agriculture and food businesses, technology companies, and many others on matters of Delaware law. For more, view her bio at https://www.morrisnichols.com/lawyers-melissa-a-divincenzo.

Career

Melissa is actively involved with the American Bar Association’s Mergers and Acquisitions Committee and serves as the co-chair of the Private Company Merger Agreement Working Group. Appointed by the Delaware Supreme Court, Melissa served on the Delaware Board of Bar Examiners from 2015-2017.  She previously served on the Delaware Bar Association’s subcommittee on Sections 204 and 205 of the DGCL.

Melissa frequently speaks on Delaware corporate law issues with a focus on M&A developments, the changing litigation landscape, and technical guidance from the Delaware courts on drafting matters.

Memberships

  • American Bar Association (Business Law Section)
    • Committee on Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Private Company Merger Agreement Working Group (Co-Chair)
    • Subcommittee on Acquisitions of Public Companies
    • Annual Survey Working Group
    • Judicial Interpretations Working Group
  • Delaware Board of Bar Examiners (appointed by Delaware Supreme Court, 2015-2017)
  • Delaware State Bar Association

Education

  • J.D., 2001, magna cum laude, Dickinson School of Law of The Pennsylvania State University
  • Comments Editor, The Dickinson Law Review
  • B.A., English and History, 1998, magna cum laude, Mount Saint Mary’s University

Lawyer Rankings

United States > M&A/corporate and commercial > Delaware counsel

(Leading lawyers)

Melissa A. DiVincenzoMorris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnell LLP

Morris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnell LLP are specialists in Delaware law, and extremely experienced in this area and have a strong reputation, working on large private transactions for large corporations. One client comments that it is a ‘go- to firm for the most complex Delaware state law and corporate governance issues.’ Daniel Matthews, Jeffrey Wolters, David Harris, and Louis Hering head up the practice, and are well supported by team members such as Eric Klinger-Wilensky, who ‘is exceptionally knowledgeable about the law’ and is instrumental in the team’s corporate work when it comes to transactions. The quartet are also supported by ‘superstar female partners’ such as Melissa DiVincenzo and Patricia Vella who ‘have deep knowledge, expertise and practical wisdom.’ Jason Russell is also a key team member for alternative entities.