Education

• Northwestern University

  (B.S., Journalism, 1994)

• Case Western Reserve University School of Law

  (J.D., magna cum laude, 1999)
  Order of the Coif; Articles Editor, Case Western Reserve Law Review

Admissions

• State of Ohio
• U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit
• U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio
• U.S. District Court, Southern District of Ohio
• U.S. District Court, Southern District of Illinois
• U.S. District Court, District of Colorado

REPRESENTATIVE EXPERIENCE

• Obtained a favorable judgment for an independent distributor/installer after a federal court trial in a “business divorce” with an international manufacturer.
• Acted as first-chair counsel for a variety of banks, broker-dealers, custodians, and other financial firms in non-compete/non-solicit disputes and cases involving claims of advisor wrongdoing, including in jury trials, industry arbitrations, and emergency injunctive proceedings.
• Successfully defended class actions in the insurance, financial services, and utilities industries.
• Served as coordinating counsel for a major materials producer in toxic tort litigation.
• Managed a defect inquiry before the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
• Obtained a successful jury verdict on a Federal Employers Liability Act claim defending a railroad subsidiary of the world’s largest steelmaker.
• Won dismissal on behalf of a title insurer in a putative class action in connection with the “largest real estate scam in Maryland history.”
• Product liability work has included defending manufacturers and suppliers of valves, gas cylinders, electrical equipment, soldering equipment, automotive parts, raw materials, minerals, road-marking equipment, and paint products in product liability and wrongful death claims.
• Substantial experience with federal multidistrict litigation proceedings (including in welding fume, securities, opiate, and other pharmaceutical MDLs) and other complex, multiparty actions.

REPORTED CASES

• Werner v. Progressive Preferred Ins., 2009 U.S. App. LEXIS 2995 (6^th Cir. 2009)
• Fowler v. Ohio Edison Co., 2008 Ohio 6587 (Ohio App. 2008)
• Proctor v. Metropolitan Money Store et al., 579 F. Supp.2d 724 (D.Md. 2008)
• Moorjani v. Mid-Ohio Secs., 2008 Ohio 2727 (Ohio App. 2008)
• Trebilcock v. Elinsky, 2007 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 38416 (N.D. Ohio 2007)

Publications

• “Confidentiality Provisions and Sealing of Court Records,” chapter co-author, Settlement Agreements in Commercial Disputes:  Negotiating, Drafting & Enforcement, Aspen Law & Business (2020 ed.)

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS

• American Bar Association
• Ohio State Bar Association
• Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association
• Cleveland Law Library Association (Board of Directors)

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT

• Community Resource Services (Board of Directors, Secretary)

FIRM INVOLVEMENT

• Associate Development Director

HONORS

• Named to The Best Lawyers in America, Commercial Litigation (2013-2024)
• Named to the Ohio Super Lawyers Rising Stars list (2010-2012)

• Ulmer Attorneys Recognized in The Best Lawyers in America® 2024 Report
• Ulmer Attorneys Recognized in The Best Lawyers in America© 2023 Report
• Ulmer Attorneys Recognized in The Best Lawyers in America© 2022 Report
• Best Lawyers® 2020: 60 Ulmer Attorneys Recognized, Two Partners Named “Lawyer of the Year”