Scartelli Olszewski President and founder Melissa A. Scartelli has been representing seriously injured plaintiffs in the state and federal courts of Pennsylvania for more than 20 years. She handles a range of complex matters on behalf of accident victims, malpractice victims and other injured individuals and their families. Melissa’s areas of practice include automobile accidents, auto defects, construction and workplace accidents, defective drugs and medical devices, insurance bad faith, liquor liability, medical malpractice, nursing home negligence, premises liability, product liability, professional liability and psychiatric malpractice.

A native of Scranton, Pa., Melissa has remained dedicated to representing the people of Northeastern Pennsylvania throughout her career. She firmly believes that products and health care are made safer in the United States through legitimate lawsuits that reveal and curtail unsafe products and practices. To that end, Melissa founded Scartelli Olszewski (then known as the Scartelli Law Firm) in 2001 to protect the rights of accident and malpractice victims. Today, both Melissa and the firm are known for tackling difficult cases that require exceptional effort and creative lawyering.

Melissa takes particular pride in fighting for the rights of elderly or retired clients, who many attorneys decline to represent. Her first significant personal injury verdict was a $970,000 award on behalf of a 91-year-old woman who fell from a hospital bed. The verdict remains the largest recorded in Luzerne County on behalf of an elderly patient. Melissa also secured a rare punitive damages award against a school district that had denied retirement benefits to four retired teachers. And in a pro bono matter, her elderly client was awarded $80,000 in back and future benefits due to the client's husband’s death at a Veterans Administration hospital 12 years earlier.

Melissa is admitted to practice in all of Pennsylvania's state courts, the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. She is a 1987 graduate of The Dickinson School of Law, where she was captain of the moot court team and received the International Academy of Trial Lawyers "Award for Excellence in Trial Advocacy." A resident of Dallas, Pa., Melissa enjoys boating, golfing and skiing. Her husband, attorney Peter Paul Olszewski, Jr., is also a shareholder with the firm.

Experience

Scartelli Olszewski, P.C., President/Shareholder, 2006-Present
Scartelli & Distasio Law Firm, P.C., President, 2005-2006
Scartelli Law Firm, P.C., President, 2001-2005
Hourigan, Kluger & Quinn, P.C., Associate, 1989-1993; Partner, 1993-2001
Lackawanna County Court of Common Pleas Judge S. John Cottone, Law Clerk, 1987-1989

Court Admissions

Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania
United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit

Professional & Community Affiliations

American Association for Justice
Lackawanna Bar Association, Board of Directors, 2002-2008
Luzerne County Bar Association, Social Committee, 1999-Present
Million Dollar Advocates Forum
Northeastern Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association, President, 2000-2001
Pennsylvania Association for Justice
Pennsylvania Bar Association
Trial Lawyers for Public Justice

Honors & Awards

Presentations & Publications

Melissa A. Scartelli

Experience

Court Admissions

Professional & Community Affiliations

Honors & Awards

Presentations & Publications

Education

Practice Areas

Achievements / Affiliations