Melissa Nuño

Melissa Nuño is a Law Clerk at Arias Sanguinetti Trial Lawyers in the firm’s Southern California office, where she supports attorneys across a range of civil litigation matters, including employment, class actions, mass torts, and personal injury cases. Her work includes legal research, factual analysis, discovery, evaluating legal issues, and assisting with case and pretrial preparation.

Her current role marks a return to Arias Sanguinetti, where she previously served as a Litigation Fellow from July 2024 through April 2025 before beginning law school. Her progression from fellow to law clerk has allowed her to continue building upon her understanding of plaintiffs’ litigation while developing the legal research, writing, and analytical skills she is gaining in law school.

Melissa’s interest in the law has developed through experiences across private practice, public interest advocacy, and government. In 2026, she served as a Law Clerk with California Rural Legal Assistance, where she supported housing, workers’ rights, and immigration matters through legal research, factual investigation, and client advocacy. Her work included researching and drafting memoranda addressing employment and language-access issues.

She also spent several months in Washington, D.C., as a Legislative Intern in the Office of Congressman Raul Ruiz, M.D. There, Melissa researched federal legislation involving healthcare, immigration, and education, attended congressional hearings and briefings, and assisted with constituent communications. Earlier in her career, she gained hands-on legal experience as a Legal Assistant at Ferreira Law Group and as a Legal Intern at Ghitterman, Ghitterman & Feld, where her responsibilities included legal research, drafting legal documents, client intake, case preparation, and communicating with clients about their injuries, treatment, and work histories.

Melissa is currently pursuing her J.D. at Chapman University Dale E. Fowler School of Law, where she is active in the Latino Law Student Association, Student Bar Association, and Public Interest Law Foundation. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of California, Santa Barbara, where she was named to the Dean’s Honors List throughout her undergraduate studies and was a member of Phi Beta Kappa. Her undergraduate experience also included studying abroad at the University of Barcelona.

A native Spanish speaker, Melissa brings an additional perspective to her interest in advocacy and access to the legal system. Outside of her legal work and studies, she enjoys hiking, attending concerts, and reading psychological thrillers and historical nonfiction.