Melissa T. Billig

Melissa Billig is adept at drafting and negotiating contracts and navigating issues that can arise during the design, development, and construction of projects. She is a strategic counselor and results-driven construction litigator.

For over 20 years, Melissa has represented real estate owners, developers, design professionals, and construction professionals throughout the project life cycle. She has extensive experience in risk management, claim avoidance, and dispute resolution, including high-profile, multiparty contract disputes and defective design and construction claims, including disputes over design defects, defective work, project delays, progress payments disputes, change orders, deliverables, warranties, and insurance proceeds. Her practice also focuses on securing license agreements required to access and protect adjacent properties during construction.

Her practice spans across all sectors of construction, including commercial, institutional, housing and mixed-use, industrial, and infrastructure. Her projects include ground-up mixed-use projects, commercial retail, office and hospitality redevelopments, campus revitalizations, not-for-profit institution expansions, and exterior building envelope restorations, including the preservation of many notable historic and landmarked sites and campuses.

Prior to joining Jones Day, Melissa represented clients in various development projects, including the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center expansion and renovation; the Governors Island Park project; The Culture Shed project at Hudson Yards; the redevelopment, enhancement, and adaptive reuse of facility infrastructure for prominent university campuses, cultural, and religious institutions and museums; represented a high-end global retailer in design and construction agreements for a new flagship retail store; and represented entertainment industry clients in connection with exclusive residential renovations.

Melissa is an active speaker, published author, and CLE instructor.