With more than a decade of experience in estate planning, Melissa Punim advises high-net-worth individuals, senior executives, founders, and multigenerational families on sophisticated strategies for preserving and transferring wealth. Her practice centers on structuring complex, tax-efficient plans that reflect her clients’ values, long-term goals, and family dynamics.
Melissa’s work includes advanced estate planning, pre-IPO strategies, and family business succession and transfer planning. She also advises on the creation of private foundations and other philanthropic structures. Her clients include C-suite leaders at Fortune 500 companies, entrepreneurs preparing for liquidity events, and families navigating legacy planning at the highest level.
In addition to her planning work, Melissa guides clients through the administration of complex estates and trusts, supporting fiduciaries and beneficiaries through sensitive transitions with thoughtful, strategic counsel.
Known for her approachable, client-friendly style, Melissa makes intricate estate planning concepts feel accessible and actionable—empowering clients to make informed decisions and fostering deeper engagement with the planning process. She believes estate planning is most effective when clients not only have the right structures in place, but also understand both the purpose behind those strategies and how they will function over time.
Outside of work, Melissa enjoys traveling to bucket-list destinations—often with unexpected wildlife encounters. Ask her about the elephant that visited her hotel room in Botswana, the deer she helped rescue in Japan, or the penguins she met in Antarctica. At home, she loves spending time with family, friends, and her (somewhat less wild) dog, Tali. Melissa is also proud to give back to the community that raised her and remains actively involved in her local Jewish Federation.
