Attorney at law and generally sworn, certified translator
Andrea Melletat
Residence, family, criminal and international contract law. Practical, clear and solution-oriented.
About me
My name is Andrea Melletat and I am an attorney at law and a generally sworn, certified translator. My main areas of work are residence law, family law, criminal law and international contract law.
Through my work as a generally sworn translator for English and Spanish, I have been familiar with contracts from different international legal systems, and with their validity, since 1990. In 2012 I passed the specialist attorney course in family law and successfully trained as a coach for systemic and family constellations.
I am happy to advise you on protection against violence and victim protection, divorce, maintenance, equalisation of accrued gains and pension rights, as well as name law and adoption. I also represent you in and out of court in criminal matters.
I share an office with attorney at law Thomas Melletat.
My qualifications
- 17 years of experience as an admitted attorney
- Specialist attorney course in family law (2012)
- Comprehensive knowledge of criminal law, inheritance law and civil law
- Many years of experience in international court proceedings and cross-border cases
- Strong advisory skills for holistic support
My services
- Family law: Divorce, maintenance, custody, visitation rights, equalisation of accrued gains and pension rights, name law, adoption
- Criminal law: Defence, representation of victims, narcotics offences, juvenile criminal law
- Inheritance law: Wills, estate arrangements, disputes between heirs
- Civil law / contract law: Contract review, claims, damages
- International matters: Certified translations, cross-border proceedings, international contract questions
How I support you, step by step
- First contactYou describe your concern to me by e-mail or by phone.
- AdviceWe discuss the situation, including possible courses of action, risks and costs. If needed, we can also check together whether an advice voucher for legal aid (Beratungshilfeschein) can be applied for.
- ImplementationI support you with the legal implementation, representation or mediation.
- AftercareEven after your case has been concluded, I am available for any follow-up questions.
Practice areas at a glance
Family law
Family law governs central areas of life, from marriage through separation or divorce to questions of maintenance, custody, contact with children, guardianship and inheritance matters in a family context.
All of these topics are not only legally demanding but often also emotionally stressful. As your legal contact, it is therefore particularly important to me to support you not only with professional competence but also with human sensitivity.
In addition to my legal qualification, I have completed training as a systemic family counsellor. This enables me to support you even where the law reaches its limits, for example in deep-rooted conflicts, family tensions or the search for out-of-court solutions.
Among other things, I advise and support you in the following areas:
- Prenuptial agreements and legal arrangements before marriage
- Separation and divorce (by mutual consent or contested)
- Maintenance claims (child, separation and spousal maintenance)
- Custody and visitation rights (also in international relationships)
- Protection against violence and allocation of the marital home
- Guardianship and powers of attorney for future care
- Inheritance law questions with a family connection
In many cases, early and clearly structured advice can avoid court proceedings or at least defuse them. I stand by you with legal know-how and psychological sensitivity, so that you regain clarity and the confidence to act.
Talk to me. I will support you through this special situation in your life.
Criminal law
Whether you are accused of an offence or have yourself become the victim of one, I stand by you with determination. Criminal proceedings are stressful for everyone involved. All the more important is competent legal support from the very beginning.
Even in the investigation stage, access to the files held by the police and the public prosecutor’s office allows important points to be set. Procedural errors, contradictions or gaps in the evidence often come to light, making a new legal assessment possible, up to and including the discontinuation of the proceedings.
I advise and represent you in particular in the following areas:
- Criminal defence in the investigation and main proceedings
- Charges of theft, fraud, bodily harm, traffic offences and others
- Narcotics criminal law (BtMG)
- Juvenile criminal law
- Criminal complaints, joining prosecutions as a private party (Nebenklage) and victim protection
- Questions of detention and court-appointed defence counsel
As an experienced criminal defence lawyer, I stand by you with expertise, discretion and a clear strategy, from the first suspicion to the court hearing.
International contract law
“Pacta sunt servanda”: contracts must be honoured. This basic principle of contract law applies internationally. In practice, however, not every clause that is legally valid in one country is also recognised abroad. In cross-border business relationships in particular, problems regularly arise with the enforceability of general terms and conditions, jurisdiction agreements or exclusions of liability.
I advise you comprehensively on the drafting and legal safeguarding of international contracts, whether in a German-English, German-Japanese or other constellation. Among other things, I clarify with you:
- Which contract clauses are effective in international legal relations and which are not
- How you can limit liability risks in a legally effective way
- Which jurisdiction and choice-of-law clauses are sensible and enforceable
- What to bear in mind when using general terms and conditions in different legal systems
- How to draft contracts in several languages, both linguistically and legally, so that they are effective
International contracts require experience, tact and a clear eye for the legal differences between countries. I help you to make your contracts legally secure and commercially sensible.
Feel free to talk to me. I look forward to advising you.
Frequently asked questions
What goes on my certificate of good conduct?
Will this appear on my certificate of good conduct?
Young offenders in particular who have violated the Narcotics Act fear that their misconduct will be recorded and appear on the police certificate of good conduct (Führungszeugnis).
For a certificate of good conduct issued for private purposes (for example a job application), a sole conviction for possession of narcotics with a sentence of up to 90 daily rates is not entered. If, however, it is the second conviction for possession of narcotics, and each conviction was a fine of 30 daily rates, every conviction with a fine of no more than 90 daily rates must be entered in the certificate of good conduct once the judgment has become final.
What does a divorce cost?
A question that everyone affected inevitably asks: a divorce can be expensive. It can only be granted with legal effect by a family court, so court costs arise on the one hand. In addition, at least one divorce lawyer has to act in court and must also be paid. If the spouses are also locked in a bitter dispute over numerous ancillary matters such as maintenance, equalisation of accrued gains, remaining in the marital home, jointly acquired property, household effects or matters concerning children, the costs of the divorce are almost open-ended.
In an uncontested divorce, on the other hand, only court costs and legal fees arise. These depend on the spouses’ income and on the value of the pension rights equalisation.
Contact
Contact Andrea Melletat
- Phone
- 05102 909770
- andrea@melletat.de
- Office
- Hildesheimer Straße 372
30880 Laatzen, Germany - Office hours
- Mon to Thu 9:00 am–1:30 pm and 3:00 pm–6:30 pm
Fri 9:00 am–1:30 pm and 3:00 pm–5:30 pm