Meet Team Conti

Michele Conti, Founder

Michele is a Tax and Estate Planning Attorney and Founder of Conti Law. She concentrates on Estate Planning, Estate Administration, Special Needs Trusts, Guardianship, Post-Litigation Planning and Personal Injury Settlement Planning. Michele also focuses on advanced planning strategies for clients to shelter assets from long-term health care, potential tax matters, guardianship and gifting consequences.

Michele received her LL.M. in Taxation from Villanova University School of Law, her J.D. from Duquesne University School of Law, her B.A. in Political Science and Writing from Allegheny College and Oxford University.

As a western Pennsylvania Estate Planning Attorney, Michele can help you plan for your future by confirming that your documents are properly drafted and up to date with the most recent law changes; assist you with obtaining Medicaid and VA benefits, and walk a loved one through probating your will, settling your trust and filing the necessary tax returns. Michele has worked at Meyer, Unkovic, and Scott, as well as Shields and Boris in the past and in 2016, started her own practice, focusing solely on estate planning, tax and elder law.

She can be heard as a featured speaker and expert on Biz Burgh Radio channels FM 101.5, FM 96.5 and AM 730.

Michele is happily married to Jason Conti, has twins, Zachary and Zoey, and two dogs: Duke and Lola.

Laurel Krajewski, Associate

Laurel focuses her practice on Estate Planning, Estate Administration, Special Needs Trusts, Guardianship, and other elder law matters. She is admitted to practice law in Pennsylvania and in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania.

Laurel graduated magna cum laude with her B.A. in Political Science & Sociology from the University of Pittsburgh. Laurel received her J.D. from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law. While in law school, Laurel received the CALI Excellence for the Future Award in Foundations of Legal Research and Law of Armed Conflict. She also served as the business manager and treasurer for Pitt Law Women’s Association.

Laurel comes to Conti Law with experience in elder law, criminal litigation, and civil litigation. She was previously an Assistant District Attorney at the Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office where she handled hundreds of criminal cases. Prior to working at the District Attorney’s Office, Laurel was an Associate Attorney at Very Law where she handled a variety of civil litigation matters in both state and federal court. Laurel’s passion for elder law and estate planning comes from her time at the American Society on Aging and the University of Pittsburgh School of Law Elder Law Clinic. She worked as a Post-Graduate Fellow with the American Society on Aging where she assisted in jumpstarting the organization’s public policy initiative to advocate for the aging population in both State and Federal Congresses. While in law school, Laurel spent time at the University of Pittsburgh Elder Law Clinic where she assisted clients in drafting estate plans, special needs trusts, and litigated guardianship cases on behalf of clients.

Laurel enjoys spending time with her Fiancé Joe and her two cats Stanley and Sadie. She also enjoys traveling and gardening.

Melissa Garzony, Director of Operations

Melissa Garzony’s body of work is impressive. A Strategic Project Manager with nearly a decade of progressive experience and demonstrated success meeting business project milestones makes her a great fit at Conti Law. Melissa is responsible for ensuring the business is well-coordinated and productive by managing its policies and procedures. She will safeguard and augment the efficiency of Conti Law’s operations to facilitate accelerating development and long-term success.
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Melissa served as a Project Manager at a local credit union from 2013-2017 collaborating with executive sponsors, developing project schedules, coordinating Program Analyst/Business Analysts to deliver detailed project and financial/marketing objectives and requirements. While in her role she drove 4 mergers and 1 spinoff, translating into 11K+ new members and $98.5 M in increased revenue.
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Melissa’s educational background includes a BA, Economics & Minors, Communication Arts & Political Science from Allegheny College in Meadville, PA and Certifications: Project Manager Professional (PMP) from Project Management Institute, and Professional Human Resources (PHR) from Human Resource Certification Institute (HRCI).
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Melissa is happily married to Damian, has a daughter, Addison and a Boxer named Sophie.

Corrie Knabe, Paralegal

Corrie has been in the legal field for nearly 15 years as a paralegal.  She holds a Paralegal Certificate with Boston University as well as a legal secretary certificate from Sawyer Business School.  She also has several years experience in customer service so she knows how to deal with people in a friendly manner.  She is very compassionate which can help navigate people through their hardest times.

Corrie enjoys spending time with her family, going on vacations and the outdoors.  She has been married for 16 years and has two sons, Tyler and Trent.

Kayli Conti, Staff Intern

Kayli Is a senior at City Charter High School, fulfilling her job placement internship requirement. It has always been Kayli’s dream to be an attorney and now she gets to experience it every day. Upon graduation, Kayli will attend Robert Morris University.