Melissa Rankine joined Rathbun, Cservenyak & Kozol, LLC as an associate attorney in 2023. She comes to our office with 15 years previous experience as a paralegal. Ms. Rankine obtained her license in 2021, and is focused primarily on family law issues such as divorce, custody (now allocation of parental responsibility), and child support. Her practice area will include probate issues such as the guardianship of disabled adults and minor children
Ms. Rankine graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Parkside with a bachelor's degree in Criminal Justice and minor in psychology. During her time at UW Parkside, she interned with the Racine Correctional Institution pre-release planning and Racine's Juvenile deferred prosecution intervention programs. She was also a member of the UW Parkside competitive dance team. After graduating from UW Parkside, Ms. Rankine worked as a paralegal for civil litigation and creditors' rights law firms. She also worked as a social worker with the Wisconsin Department of Children and Family in Milwaukee.
Ms. Rankine made the move to Chicago, IL in 2013 and received her Juris Doctor from Loyola University Chicago School of Law with a certification in Public Interest and Social Justice. Ms. Rankine continued to work full time at a family law firm while attending law school. During law school, she was elected as the Student Bar Association Representative for the class of 2021, on the Dean's List, and was one of Loyola's first recipients of the Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity Award in 2019. She was an active member of the American Inn of Courts, a mentor at Chicago's Legal Prep Academy, intern for the American Bar association, and volunteer for the Inner-City Muslim Action Network's Family Law Clinic and Legal Aid of Illinois. Ms. Rankine added to her academic experience by traveling to Loyola's John Felice Rome Center in Rome, Italy, where she studied under Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg.
Before joining Rathbun, Cservenyak & Kozol, LLC, Ms. Rankine worked as an attorney specializing in formation, structuring, compliance, and ongoing management of alternative investment funds for startups and angel investors.
Ms. Rankine's diverse professional background and education offers thorough, transparent, and zealous representation for clients. Ms. Rankine is a current member of the Illinois State and Will County Bar Associations, she is a past member of the Chicago Bar Association and the Women's Bar Association of Illinois.