Richard T. Corbett, Esq.

Honorable Mel L. Greenberg

Honorable William E. Melahn

Richard T. Corbett, Esq.
McLucas & West, PC, Boston

Richard Corbett has been a trial lawyer practicing in the field of personal injury law since January, 1977. Over the course of his career, he has tried cases involving serious and catastrophic injuries, including wrongful death, traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries and burn injuries in the Massachusetts Superior Courts and the United States District Court for Massachusetts. He has also argued in the Massachusetts Appeals Court and the Supreme Judicial Court. He has represented both plaintiffs and defendants. Earlier in his career, Attorney Corbett served as in-house counsel for both Travelers and Cigna where he was able to litigate countless cases and gain a deep understanding of the insurance claims handling process.

Since 1997, his association as "of counsel" at both the Law Office of Peter Eleey and his current position with McLucas & West allowed him to handle many cases representing injured plaintiffs. Attorney Corbett also served as general counsel for the Massachusetts Guarantee Fund from 2007 to 2009. Dick is a frequent panelist in Continuing Legal Education panels. He is a NITA Certified Trial Advocacy Instructor and received Mediation certification from JAMS in 2002. Since 2002, he has devoted a considerable part of his practice to acting as a neutral Mediator and Arbitrator while continuing to act as a trial lawyer, representing both plaintiffs and defendants.

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Honorable Mel L. Greenberg
Seder & Chandler, Worcester & Westborough
Former Massachusetts Appeals Court Justice

Judge Greenberg, recently retired from the Massachusetts Appeals Court, has had an illustrious career, presiding over trials at many different levels of the court system. Appointed to the District Court in 1977, he handled cases for both the District Court and the Appellate Division of the District Court.

In 1982, a Lawyer's Weekly survey recognized Judge Greenberg as one of the "10 Best Trial Judges in Commonwealth." He was appointed to the Superior Court in 1983, serving there until 1990, when he joined the Appeals Court, where he served until 2007. Upon retiring from the Appeals Court, Judge Greenberg accepted the position "of counsel" to the Worcester firm of Seder & Chandler (offices also in Westborough).

He currently serves as the chair of the firm's Appellate Advocacy and Consulting Group and co-chair of the Arbitration and Mediation Services Group, which specializes in dispute resolution of complex commercial, insolvency, corporate and intellectual property matters.

Before his appointment to the bench, Judge Greenberg had a very successful career as a Worcester area trial attorney in the 1960s and 70s, litigating cases involving employment issues, civil rights, personal injury, criminal, subrogation and general civil matters. He also served as a Judge Advocate General for the United States Army Reserve from 1961-67. Alternate Dispute Resolution was a logical next direction for a jurist with Judge Greenberg's stature and extensive trial experience. In addition to being a Case Closed panelist, he currently serves both on the American Arbitration Association's panel and the Real Estate Bar Association's panel. Judge Greenberg has completed the Program on Negotiation and Mediation at Harvard Law School.

Judge Greenberg has always maintained strong ties to the Worcester area and serves as a director for the Worcester Center for Performing Arts and the Foothills Theatre.

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Honorable William E. Melahn (Ret.)
Former Lowell District Court Justice

Judge Melahn was first appointed to the Newburyport District Court in 1992, but was subsequently assigned to all the courts in Region III of the District Court. Judge Melahn spent the major portion of his judicial career at the Lowell District Court.

In 1996, when the District Court Division of the Trial Court started civil jury sessions on an experimental basis in Norfolk and Middlesex Counties, due to his significant civil background, Judge Melahn was assigned the task of setting up and presiding over the civil jury session in the Lowell District Court. He maintained that position until his retirement in 2008. It is estimated that he has presided over close to 1,500 trials, civil and criminal.

Prior to his appointment to the District Court, he was a trial attorney for law firms in New York City and Massachusetts. Starting out in a Brooklyn firm specializing in personal injury litigation, he then moved to a Manhattan law firm concentrating in Customs and International Trade. From the mid 1970's he maintained this specialty along with a general practice in Massachusetts.

During his years on the bench, Judge Melahn handled all types of civil matters including automobile cases, premises liability and many business and contract cases including homeowner-contractor disputes. He had a reputation of always running an efficient courtroom and being fair and even-handed to members of the Bar.

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