Ohio

After 20 Years in Practice, Ohio Lawyer Starts New Gig as Louisiana College Athletics Director

Darrell Payne has no background in athletics administration. But the 20-year Cincinnati legal practitioner was a college basketball star player and has worked as a sports agent, the Town Talk reported. And also to thank for his new appointment as the athletics director at Louisiana College are his personal qualities.…

Jun 23, 2011 7:29 PM CDT

Stairs in Courthouse Create Transparency Illusion, Administrator Says

The administrator for Franklin County, Ohio, has promised to investigate concerns about a glass staircase in a new courthouse, but he says the issue may be overblown because the stairs aren’t really pure glass. Last week, Judge Julie Lynch raised concerns that the glass staircases were perilous for women who…

Jun 17, 2011 10:30 AM CDT

Criminal Defense Lawyer Whose Tip Led to OSU Football Coach’s Resignation Faces Related Ethics Case

A criminal defense attorney whose emailed tip about potential college football player misconduct led to the resignation of Ohio State’s coach is now in hot water himself, according to the Associated Press and the Columbus Dispatch. In emailing coach Jim Tressel in April about possible NCAA violations by his players,…

Jun 13, 2011 6:44 PM CDT

Ohio Supreme Court Strikes Down Statutory Rape Law as Applied to Two Kids Under Age 13

The Ohio Supreme Court has struck down the state’s statutory rape law in a case involving a 12-year-old boy accused of sexual conduct with a boy who was a year younger. The unanimous opinion (PDF) found the law is unconstitutionally vague as applied to sexual conduct between two youths under…

Jun 9, 2011 11:46 AM CDT

Judge Warns Women in Skirts to Avoid New Courthouse’s Glass Staircase

Judge Julie Lynch notes an unfortunate juxtaposition at the new courthouse in Franklin County, Ohio. The courthouse is used to sentence sex offenders, and its glass staircase may be used by women in skirts, the Columbus Dispatch reports. “If you wear dresses, you’re on notice that you might want to…

Jun 8, 2011 2:44 PM CDT

Lawyer Snagged by Malpractice Insurance Requirements Gets Suspension

A Kentucky lawyer who had repeated problems with malpractice insurance requirements has been suspended from law practice in Ohio. Lawyer Robert Trainor of Covington, Ky., was suspended for two years, with the final 18 months stayed if completes 18 months of probation, according to an Ohio Supreme Court opinion (PDF)…

Jun 8, 2011 10:30 AM CDT

Ohio Judge Assigns Homework Essays to Offenders on Probation

Some offenders in Ohio have an added requirement with their probation: They have homework papers. Judge Stacy Cook has required as many as 30 offenders to write the essays, usually five pages in length, the Toledo Blade reports. Topics include the effect of head injuries sustained from violent blows, and…

May 25, 2011 11:00 AM CDT

Judge Sentences Couple to Distribute Water Safety Message from Festival’s Wading Pool

An Ohio judge known for his creative sentences has devised a new one for a couple swept away in the Grand River during a severe flood after boarding a raft without life preservers. Judge Michael Ciccconetti of Painesville Municipal Court gave Grace Nash and Bruce Crawford a choice, report the…

May 20, 2011 12:01 PM CDT

Lawyer Who Barricaded Himself in Apartment Is Killed by Police

An armed Ohio lawyer who barricaded himself in his apartment was shot and killed by police on Wednesday. Police went to the Bowling Green apartment of 46-year-old lawyer Robert B. Blackwell after a family member asked for a check on the man’s welfare, report the Toledo Blade, WTOL.com and ABC13.com.…

Apr 28, 2011 11:32 AM CDT

Affidavit Alleges Lawyer Had Affair with Client’s Wife During Murder Trial

A lawyer who defended an Ohio man convicted of murder is accused in an affidavit of having an affair with his client’s wife during the 1997 trial. The affidavit accuses Columbus lawyer James Owen of having sex with the wife of his client at a local hotel only hours after…

Apr 21, 2011 1:08 PM CDT

Wealthy Tort Lawyer Settles With Ex-Partner’s Widow for Reported $10M to $35M

For five years, mass torts lawyer James Ferraro battled with Lynn Arko Kelley, the widow of his former law partner. Now they have reached a confidential settlement of her claims concerning the massive sum she claimed to be due to her after Michael Kelley’s death from a heart attack. Although…

Apr 20, 2011 7:04 PM CDT

Fisher & Phillips Acquires 19-Lawyer Firm, Opens First Office in Ohio

A growing national employment boutique has now established its first office in Ohio, with the acquisition of a 19-attorney law firm, Millisor + Nobil. Fisher & Phillips announces the merger in a press release today. Ken Millisor is retiring from the firm he co-founded in 1975, but Steven Nobil remains…

Apr 18, 2011 6:20 PM CDT

Judge Discovers His Gavel Is Missing; Court Personnel Track Down Suspect, Now Charged with Theft

Discovering that his gavel was missing, Magistrate Daniel Cook of Lorain, Ohio, concluded that someone had to have stolen it from his small claims court. Sure enough, when workers there reviewed security footage they spotted a suspect allegedly making off with the purloined court equipment, reports the Smoking Gun. Although…

Apr 9, 2011 1:03 AM CDT

Cleveland Browns Fan Sues NFL over Lockout; Experts Give Suit Little Chance

A Cleveland Browns fan has sued the National Football League, claiming that the lockout and lack of negotiations violated his contract to buy tickets through his personal seat license. The plaintiff is Ken Lanci, the owner of a printing business who ran unsuccessfully for Cuyahoga County chief executive, report the…

Apr 5, 2011 3:50 PM CDT

Trial Starts for Law Partner Charged in $1.3M County Auditor Bribe Conspiracy

Two of William Mitchell’s former law partners, Timothy Armstrong and Bruce Zaccagnini, have taken pleas and are serving prison terms. Prosecutors say the mastermind of an alleged bribery scheme involving a former Cuyahoga County, Ohio, auditor and the Armstrong, Mitchell, Damiani and Zaccagnini law firm was the firm’s other name…

Apr 4, 2011 5:52 PM CDT