Melanie J. Chico

Co-leader of Dykema’s Data Privacy and Cybersecurity and Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) practice teams and managing member of the firm’s Chicago office, Melanie serves as both a sword and shield for clients. She understands that while protracted, disruptive, and costly litigation is sometimes unavoidable or necessary, it is rarely the preferable mechanism for resolving consequential disputes. Accordingly, she complements her courtroom experience and acumen with creative and practical approaches firmly grounded in a comprehensive understanding of each client’s business, goals, and risk tolerance.

Throughout her impressive career, Melanie has regularly secured favorable outcomes across the full spectrum of commercial and privacy disputes in state and federal courts, arbitrations, and mediations in jurisdictions around the country. Her immersive understanding and experience with class action defense have formed a cornerstone of her work defending businesses in large data privacy and cybersecurity matters. What makes her particularly effective in this aspect of her practice is her ability to grasp, explain, and integrate the technological, legal, and practical issues that lie at the heart of these matters. As fluent in the zeros and ones of cybersecurity as she is with the letter of the law, Melanie is able to craft compelling and comprehensible narratives for judges and juries that bring clarity to complexity.

Melanie is exceptionally well-versed in and continually stays abreast of developments with the constantly changing, multi-layered legal and regulatory framework governing the collection, storage, use, and dissemination of consumer data. This deep subject matter knowledge also facilitates her ability to assess and manage risk and advise clients on regulatory and statutory compliance, keeping watch for costly pitfalls and obstacles.

Melanie’s commercial litigation experience includes cases involving breach of contract, business torts, workplace disputes, restrictive covenants, constitutional challenges, antitrust, construction defects, and intellectual property, and class action defense. Melanie has also represented players in the auto industry in matters involving product liability, breach of warranty, consumer fraud, subrogation, premises liability, technology and intellectual property, and dealer claims.

An ardent proponent of developing the next generation of Dykema attorneys, Melanie serves on the firm’s Litigation Training Committee, mentoring up-and-coming lawyers and colleagues, and was the hiring member for the Chicago office for six years. Committed to serving her community, she regularly donates her time and talents to a range of pro bono matters, including representing individuals in civil rights and asylum cases. Her efforts have earned her recognition from her colleagues, including the Award for Excellence in Pro Bono Service from the United States District Court, Northern District of Illinois, and the Federal Bar Association Margaret A. Costello Award for Outstanding Pro Bono Service.