Q & A with Melody (Lins) Block
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Q&A
Q & A with Melody (Lins) Block
Melody M. (Lins) Block is an associate in the Corporate Law Practice Group at Mandelbaum Barrett, P.C. in Roseland, NJ. Block focuses her practice on business entity formation, mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, commercial transactions and corporate governance concerns, frequently for start-ups, family- owned businesses and closely-held businesses. She also advises dental groups, veterinary groups, and physicians across the country in the acquisition and sale of professional practices.
While in law school, Block was selected to serve on the Editorial Board of the Rutgers Law Record and interned with U.S. District Judge Esther Salas of the District of New Jersey. She also served as a Student Attorney at the Rutgers Education and Health Law Clinic where she advocated for the rights of children with disabilities.
Block graduated from Rutgers Law School, where she earned her Juris Doctor, cum laude. She is admitted to practice in New Jersey and New York. Melody received her B.A. from Trinity College and post-graduation she received a Fulbright Grant to work as an English Teaching Assistant in La Guajira, Colombia. She also is fluent in Spanish and Portuguese.
Q: Before becoming an attorney, what was your first job?
A: After graduating from Trinity College, I received a Fulbright Grant that was sponsored by a coal mining company in La Guajira, Colombia. I lived in La Guajira for two years, where I helped train university professors and elementary school teachers in their English language teaching skills.
Q: What motivated you to pursue a legal career?
A: I became interested in corporate compliance and business social responsibility initiatives during my time in Colombia. My Fulbright experience was thanks to the coal mining company’s social responsibility initiative, but I was also immersed in the community outside the mine where activists and other leaders were communicating concerns about the company’s actions/ inactions in other areas of concern. I found this dichotomy fascinating and was motivated to explore a legal career because I believe the law is one of the many foundations of the divisions I was witnessing.
Q: Who was your chief mentor and how did he or she influence your career?
A: This is a difficult question to answer – there are many chiefs and many mentors in my life and they all played/play an important role. But if I have to choose one, my mentor throughout high school and to this day is Jorge Ramirez. He is my cousin’s husband, and he invested a great deal of time and effort into supporting me throughout the different phases of my education and career. He made me believe that no obstacle or goal was too great.
Q: What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?
A: Be careful with how you speak to yourself. Positive or negative self-talk has a huge impact on everything – mood, confidence, productivity, etc.
Q: What is one thing you would like to learn to do?
A: Learn to fly a plane.
Q: What is your proudest career achievement?
A: Having been exposed to many practice areas in a short time
– I clerked at the Appellate Division, practiced family law and commercial litigation, and now corporate law.
Melody M. (Lins) Block
Q: What other career path might you have chosen?
A: A university professor.
Q: What is your most treasured material possession?
A: My photo albums.
Q: What is your happiest childhood memory?
A: Laying in a hammock with my grandfather and listening to him tell jokes that he could barely get out because of how much he was already laughing.
Q: What is your favorite movie and book?
A: Movie – “What Dreams May Come.”
Book – “Love in the Time of Cholera.”
Q: What is the most awe-inspiring place you have visited?
A: Machu Picchu.
Q: What are your favorite leisure time pursuits?
A: Hiking and taking photos of my dog.
Q: What is your favorite famous or inspirational quote?
A: “Spread love everywhere you go . . . Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God’s kindness; kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile, kindness in your warm greeting.” ― Mother Teresa
Q: Who is on your guest list for the ideal dinner party?
A: Honestly, I don’t spend enough time with my loved ones. My ideal dinner party is more quality moments with my family and friends.
Q: Name the top three items on your bucket list?
A: Go scuba diving. Go to a Field of Dreams baseball game. Hike through the Torres del Paine National Park in Chile’s Patagonia.