The Hon. Melissa Baeza is Judge of the County Court of Law No. 3 in El Paso County, Texas.
In the area of commercial litigation, Ms. Baeza has experience with various types of disputes, including breach of fiduciary duty claims, professional liability claims, and breach of contract claims, fraud claims, and violations of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act. Ms. Baeza has also handled insurance defense litigation.
Ms. Baeza has advised and represented owners, general contractors, subcontractors, and engineers in all phases of public and private construction.
Ms. Baeza was voted El Paso’s Outstanding Young Lawyer for 2011-2012. Ms. Baeza is a member of the State Bar of Texas, El Paso Bar Association, Texas Young Lawyers Association, El Paso Young Lawyers Association, El Paso Women’s Bar Association, Texas Association of Defense Counsel, and American Bar Association. She is also a member of the American Bar Association’s Forum on the Construction Industry and the Texas State Bar’s Construction Law Section.
With respect to Ms. Baeza’s activities in the community, she was a participant in the Leadership El Paso Class XXXIII, sponsored by the Greater El Paso Chamber of Commerce and is an active member in the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC), El Paso Chapter 248. In 2015 and 2017, she was awarded the President’s Award from the NAWIC of the El Paso Chapter 248.
Ms. Baeza received her Doctor of Jurisprudence degree from Texas Tech University School of Law, where she was Articles Editor of Volume 41 of the Texas Tech Law Review and a Teaching Fellow for the first-year Legal Practice course. While in law school, Ms. Baeza received the CALI Award for Legal Practice I and Jurisprudence Awards for Superior Academic Achievement in Legal Practice II, Business Entities, and Advanced Advocacy Skills in Moot Court. She attended St. Mary’s University in San Antonio, where she received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Biology.
