Sundeep Iyer to Serve as Acting Executive Assistant Attorney General; Yolanda Melville is the Next Director of the Division on Civil Rights
Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin today announced that Sundeep Iyer will rejoin the Office of Attorney General, and that he has appointed Yolanda Melville to serve as the Director of the New Jersey Division on Civil Rights, the state agency charged with protecting the civil rights of all New Jersey residents. Iyer will serve as Acting Executive Assistant Attorney General during the period while Executive Assistant Attorney General Angela Cai is on temporary family medical leave in early spring 2025 and will remain in OAG in a senior executive leadership role thereafter.
The changes will be effective March 19, 2025.
“Put simply, Sundeep Iyer has transformed our state’s efforts to protect the civil rights of our residents. I am so proud of the work the Division on Civil Rights has done under his leadership to combat discrimination, bias, and hate in New Jersey,” said Attorney General Platkin. “As we continue to lead efforts this year to stand up for the rights of our state’s residents, I am thrilled that Sundeep will be rejoining the Office of the Attorney General as Acting Executive Assistant Attorney General. Sundeep is a brilliant lawyer who will bolster our office’s advocacy on issues of national importance.”
“I am also thrilled to appoint Yolanda Melville, an outstanding lawyer with a deep commitment to equality and social justice, as the next Director of the Division on Civil Rights. Yolanda is a trusted advisor and a deeply committed public servant, and I am grateful for her visionary leadership at this critical time for civil rights in our state,” said Attorney General Platkin.
As required by statute, Melville’s appointment as DCR Director was also approved by Governor Phil Murphy and the New Jersey Commission on Civil Rights.
“Since becoming the Director of the New Jersey Division on Civil Rights, Sundeep Iyer has amassed a notable list of accomplishments. From taking enforcement actions against various levels of discrimination in our state to holding institutions accountable for civil rights violations, Sundeep has contributed to our efforts to creating a stronger and fairer New Jersey for all,” said Governor Murphy. “As Sundeep elevates to the role of Acting Executive Assistant Attorney General, I am thrilled to welcome Yolanda Melville as the Director of the Division on Civil Rights. Yolanda’s impressive legal background suits her well for this role and I am certain she will continue on the great work of her predecessor on behalf of all New Jerseyans.”
“We have greatly appreciated the service of Sundeep Iyer as Director of the Division on Civil Rights, and we are proud of the tremendous work that has taken place under his leadership,” said John Traier, Chair of the New Jersey Commission on Civil Rights. “We welcome Yolanda Melville as the next Director of the Division. Director Melville brings a great depth of experience as an attorney and has a deep passion for civil rights, and I look forward to working together with her on the many pressing civil rights challenges facing our state and the Division in the coming year.”
Iyer has served since January 2023 as Director of the Division on Civil Rights. In that time, Iyer spearheaded the dramatic expansion of the Division’s strategic efforts to enforce our state’s civil rights laws, transforming the Division into one of the nation’s leading civil rights enforcement agencies. Under his leadership, the Division created its first-ever standalone Affirmative Enforcement Unit to conduct Director-initiated investigations into patterns and practices of discrimination. Iyer also expanded the Division’s policy, outreach, and public education efforts to combat discrimination, bias, and hate across New Jersey.
During Iyer’s tenure as Director, the Division:
· Brought major enforcement actions to combat housing discrimination, including cases tackling mortgage redlining, discrimination against recipients of government rental assistance, discrimination based on prior criminal history, disability discrimination, and minimum-income requirements for rentals;
· Initiated lawsuits and enforcement proceedings to combat pregnancy discrimination, safeguard students from discrimination in school, and hold government institutions and large employers accountable for violating civil rights laws; and
· Launched the country’s most comprehensive state-level initiative to combat discrimination in home appraisals, together with the Division of Consumer Affairs;
· Launched a Civil Rights and Technology Initiative to address discrimination resulting from the use of algorithms, artificial intelligence, and other advanced technologies, and created the country’s first Civil Rights Innovation Lab to leverage technology responsibly to prevent, address, and remedy discrimination;
· Restructured DCR’s process for investigating complaints of discrimination, resulting in DCR issuing seven times the number of findings of discrimination in 2024 as it did in 2018 and completing nearly 80% more investigations per year in 2023 and 2024 than in the first two years of the Murphy Administration; and
· Developed cutting-edge policy, outreach, and education initiatives to combat discrimination, bias, and hate, including the “No Hate in the Garden State” public awareness campaign developed with the Division of Criminal Justice;
Iyer, a New Jersey native, previously served as Assistant Attorney General and Senior Counsel to Attorney General Platkin and was his principal advisor on civil rights matters. In that role, he worked with the Office of the Solicitor General on appeals involving matters of constitutional law, statutory interpretation, civil rights, and criminal law.
Prior to joining the Office of the Attorney General, Iyer was a lawyer at Hogan Lovells US LLP. During his time at the firm, he served as a special attorney for the State of Minnesota in the prosecution of the four former police officers charged in connection with the death of George Floyd, and was part of the legal team that obtained a conviction of Derek Chauvin. He was also part of the litigation team that obtained an injunction against President Trump’s travel ban; represented death-row inmates in a challenge to the Trump Administration’s federal lethal injection protocol; and served as one of the lead attorneys for a group of eight organizations challenging the rescission of the Bears Ears National Monument in Utah.
Iyer previously clerked for U.S. Supreme Court Justices David H. Souter and Stephen G. Breyer, as well as for then-Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. He received his A.B. from Harvard College and J.D. from Yale Law School.
“I am deeply grateful to Attorney General Platkin for entrusting me with the honor of leading the Division on Civil Rights. The work of the Division has never been more important, and I am grateful to the outstanding and dedicated public servants at the Division who work tirelessly every day to protect the civil rights of our residents,” said incoming Acting Executive Assistant Attorney General Sundeep Iyer. “I am looking forward to the important work that lies ahead as we continue to advance the Department’s mission and stand up for our state’s residents.”
Melville has served since March 2023 as Senior Counsel to the Attorney General and Director of Community Engagement. In that position, she has served as a liaison to stakeholders across the state to connect them with the Office of the Attorney General’s initiatives. Melville was previously a partner at Cooper Levenson, P.A., where she represented municipal and corporate entities as solicitor/general counsel, handled litigation in the federal and state courts, and led the firm’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee.
Melville served as a member of the NAACP National Board of Directors’ Legal Committee from 2018 to 2023, as a member of the New Jersey NAACP Executive Committee from 2018 to 2023, and as Vice President of the Atlantic City NAACP from 2021 to 2022. She was a board member for the Atlantic County Coalition for a Safe Community from 2017 to 2020.
Melville clerked for the Honorable Susan F. Maven in the Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division. She received her B.A. in English and Government from the College of William and Mary, M.S. in Criminal Justice from Virginia Commonwealth University, and J.D. from Howard University Law School, where she was the managing editor of the Human Rights and Globalization Law Review.
“I am humbled by the opportunity to serve New Jersey as its Director of the Division on Civil Rights and thank Governor Murphy and Attorney General Platkin for entrusting me with this responsibility,” said Yolanda Melville, incoming Director of the New Jersey Division on Civil Rights. “This is an uncertain time for civil rights protections in America, which makes the work of states such as New Jersey more important than ever. Alongside the dedicated public servants in the Division, I look forward to applying our State’s civil rights laws to ensure that no resident faces discrimination in New Jersey.”
The Division on Civil Rights is responsible for enforcing the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination, the nation’s oldest anti-discrimination law, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, creed, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, age, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, pregnancy or breastfeeding, and a variety of other protected characteristics in the workforce, places of public accommodation, housing, and lending. The Division is charged with preventing and eliminating discrimination in New Jersey by investigating and acting upon complaints alleging discrimination, and by affirmatively issuing reports and publications, conducting investigations, and implementing educational and community outreach programs to address systemic discrimination.
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Attorney General Platkin recently announced significant leadership changes within the Department of Law and Public Safety, signaling a new direction for the agency. These changes come at a crucial time as the department works to address pressing issues facing the state of New Jersey.
One of the key changes announced by Attorney General Platkin is the appointment of a new director for the Division of Criminal Justice. This position plays a critical role in overseeing criminal investigations and prosecutions in the state. The new director will be tasked with ensuring that justice is served and that criminals are held accountable for their actions.
In addition to the new director of the Division of Criminal Justice, Attorney General Platkin also announced changes in leadership within other divisions of the department. These changes are aimed at improving efficiency and effectiveness in carrying out the department’s mission to protect the public and uphold the rule of law.
The leadership changes within the Department of Law and Public Safety are part of Attorney General Platkin’s broader vision for the agency. He has emphasized the importance of transparency, accountability, and integrity in all aspects of the department’s work. By appointing new leaders who share these values, Attorney General Platkin is signaling a commitment to upholding the highest standards of professionalism and ethics.
These leadership changes come at a time when the Department of Law and Public Safety faces a number of challenges, including rising crime rates, budget constraints, and increasing demands on law enforcement agencies. Attorney General Platkin is confident that the new leadership team will be able to navigate these challenges and continue to serve the people of New Jersey effectively.
Overall, the leadership changes announced by Attorney General Platkin represent a significant shift in the direction of the Department of Law and Public Safety. By appointing new leaders who are committed to upholding the values of justice and integrity, Attorney General Platkin is setting the stage for a more effective and efficient agency that is better equipped to meet the needs of the people of New Jersey.