Melissa Garand
General Counsel
Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department
Melissa Garand has more than three decades of practice in litigation, employment and labor law, civil rights, and public-sector legal affairs.
Melissa currently serves as the General Counsel for the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department where she represents the Department and its employees in state and federal court matters involving negligence, discrimination, and civil rights claims. She also represents the Department before the Massachusetts Commission against Discrimination, and the Department of Labor Relations. As General Counsel, Melissa advises the Sheriff and his leadership team on legal and administrative matters, manages policy review, and responds to subpoenas and public records requests.
Melissa has a longstanding history with the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department, having previously served in progressively senior legal positions from 1989 to 2003 culminating in her appointment as General Counsel. In that role, she was a legal advisor to the Sheriff and command staff, managed attorneys and legal services operations, participated in collective bargaining negotiations, addressed employment and labor issues, and represented the Department before courts and administrative agencies.
Between her periods of public service, Melissa spent 15 years in private practice with Koufman & Frederick, LLC, now known as the Koufman Law Group. Her practice included insurance defense, correctional medical malpractice defense, civil rights litigation, legal malpractice defense, and appellate practice. Earlier in her career, she operated the Law Office of Melissa Garand, where she handled criminal appeals and argued appellate matters before the Massachusetts Appeals Court and the Supreme Judicial Court.
Melissa has been a member of the Massachusetts Bar since 1989 and is also admitted to practice before the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts and the United States Court of Appeals.