Melissa A. Miles

Ms. Miles was assigned to my business litigation case by a firm I hired in December 2025. I had prepared extensive case materials (a detailed summary, all relevant contracts, email exports, and a timeline) and sent everything over before our first call. When we got on the phone, she assured me she... had reviewed everything but was unfamiliar with key details including the name of the person I was litigating against. We spent several hours on the phone with me essentially re-explaining everything I'd already sent in writing. After reviewing the case, Ms. Miles concluded that the lawsuit needed to be filed in another state via pro hac vice but not to worry because she'd be doing all the work and just filing through him. After weeks of nothing happening I followed up with her and then she scheduled a call with an attorney who wanted an additional $20k retainer and Ms. Miles recommended I keep both firms on retainer, with her acting as the "quarterback" for strategy while the new attorney does most of the work. When I decided to close the engagement and requested my retainer back, the invoice showed Ms. Miles had billed 8.4 hours at $575/hr for a total of $4,830 (76% of the total charges against my retainer). The net result of that work was essentially a referral to a more expensive attorney. I never received any of the weekly spending updates I'd requested when I signed the engagement letter. I had no visibility into what was being billed until months later when I had to fight to get an invoice at all. I don't doubt Ms. Miles's legal knowledge and she was delightfully personable on the phone, but the value I received from $5k of her work was extremely disappointing.