The character Melnick is a New York City–based defense attorney with a practice spanning more than 20 years. She is portrayed as a well-established, high-profile litigator, regularly going up against the toughest, most powerful prosecutors in the New York City District Attorney's office. Her role in the Law & Order universe has been as a foil for Ben Stone (Michael Moriarty) and Jack McCoy (Sam Waterston). She has had an affectionately competitive friendship with the latter since the early days of their careers.
