August 5, 2020 – Three Ulmer & Berne LLP partners have been honored in the latest rankings by Benchmark Litigation. Frances Floriano Goins was named to the “Top 250 Women in Litigation,” and Paul R. Harris and Joshua A. Klarfeld were included in the “40 & Under Hot List.” The individual recognitions for Goins, Harris, and Klarfeld follow Ulmer’s department-wide honor of being named Benchmark’s “Ohio Firm of the Year” for the fourth consecutive year and the fifth time in the last seven years.
“It’s gratifying to see Fran, Paul, and Joshua honored again by Benchmark Litigation for their skill and sophistication in resolving complex disputes for their clients,” said Scott P. Kadish, Ulmer’s Managing Partner. “Each of them has incredible talent to litigate at the highest level, and unwavering commitment to exceptional client service, which are hallmarks of what we at Ulmer strive to deliver to our clients. I’m very proud to be their partner.”
This is the seventh consecutive year that Goins has been included in the “Top 250 Women in Litigation” list, which acknowledges female litigators from all 50 states and the District of Columbia for participating in some of the most impactful litigation matters in recent history.
Goins serves as Co-Group Leader of Ulmer’s Cybersecurity & Privacy and Financial Services & Securities Litigation Practice Groups. She is skilled in resolving complex business disputes for clients including securities, corporate governance, shareholder rights, cybersecurity, financial services, and contract matters, and is an accomplished appellate advocate. She is active in the ABA as well as the community, and was recently appointed to the ABA’s prestigious Election Law Advisory Committee. She also recently chaired the ABA Business Law Section Director & Officer Liability Committee. She has served as co-chair of the Ohio Eighth District Judicial Conference, and currently chairs the Art Song Festival at the Cleveland Institute of Music. Goins also serves on the Board of Directors for the Beck Center for the Arts and is a member of the Cleveland Rape Crisis Center Sing Out! Chorale.
Harris and Klarfeld each make a fourth consecutive appearance on the “40 & Under Hot List,” which honors top young litigators in the United States and Canada who are involved in high-impact litigation matters and who have won the hard-earned respect of their clients and peers.
Harris serves as Group Leader of the firm’s Business Litigation Practice Group, focusing his practice on litigating a wide range of business and employment matters. He represents various types and sizes of businesses in litigation, and he counsels clients on practices to avoid litigation. As trial counsel, Harris has obtained both plaintiff and defense verdicts, and he has significant appellate experience, including making successful oral arguments before various Ohio Courts of Appeals. He serves on the Board of Trustees of Lutheran Hospital, on the Associate Board of Boys Hope Girls Hope of Northeast Ohio, and just completed his term serving as President of the St. Ignatius Alumni Executive Council.
Klarfeld is a partner in the firm’s Product Liability Practice Group, where he regularly defends pharmaceutical, medical device, and mass and toxic tort actions. He also represents clients in complex business litigation, including counseling major corporations in multidistrict, coordinated, and consolidated proceedings, and healthcare companies in high-stakes litigation. He serves on the Steering Committee of VeloSano, a community-driven fundraising initiative to support lifesaving cancer research at the Cleveland Clinic.