Fifteen Vorys Attorneys Named 2017 Lawyers of the Year by Best Lawyers
Fifteen Vorys attorneys have been named 2017 Lawyers of the Year by Best Lawyers. Each year, only a single lawyer in each specialty in each community is honored as the “Lawyer of the Year.” According to Best Lawyers, lawyers being honored as “Lawyer of the Year” have earned a high level of respect among other lawyers in the same communities and the same practice areas for their abilities, professionalism and integrity. The Vorys lawyers and their selections are listed below.
Columbus
Nelson D. Cary has been named the 2017 Best Lawyers’ Columbus Employment Law Management Lawyer of the Year. Cary is a partner and member of the labor and employment group. He represents management in a broad range of labor and employment matters, including counseling employers on compliance and defending employers in litigation.
Russell M. Gertmenian has been named the 2017 Best Lawyers’ Columbus Corporate Compliance Lawyer of the Year. He serves as the firm’s managing partner. Gertmenian engages in the practice of general corporate and contract law, including mergers, acquisitions, divestitures and initial public offerings and acts as general counsel to a variety of public and private corporations.
Herbert A. Hedden has been named the 2017 Best Lawyers’ Columbus Franchise Lawyer of the Year. Hedden is a partner and practices in the area of commercial law with a strong emphasis on franchising and distribution law. He represents franchisors, subfranchisors and master franchisees in planning the structure of franchise relationships and the initiation of new franchise programs.
John J. Kulewicz has been named the 2017 Best Lawyers’ Columbus Appellate Lawyer of the Year. He is a partner and member of the litigation group as well as head of the firm’s appellate subgroup. Kulewicz focuses his practice on civil litigation and appeals including constitution, statutory, regulatory and common law issues.
Kristin L. Watt has been named the 2017 Best Lawyers’ Columbus Environmental Lawyer of the Year. Watt, a partner and chair of the environmental group, focuses her practice on environmental compliance and counseling, enforcement defense, environmental audits and permitting issues.
John B. Weimer has been named the 2017 Best Lawyers’ Columbus Equipment Finance Lawyer of the Year. Weimer is a partner and leader of the firm’s finance group. He represents borrowers and lenders in all types of commercial finance transactions ranging from syndicated secured credit facilities, public notes offerings, securitization facilities and receivables purchase transactions.
John P. Wellner has been named the 2017 Best Lawyers’ Columbus Real Estate Lawyer of the Year. Wellner, partner and member of the finance, energy and real estate group focuses his practice in general real estate and real estate development. He has represented developers, ventures, owners, operators, borrowers and lenders on projects in Ohio and across the country.
James A. Wilson has been named the 2017 Best Lawyers’ Columbus Antitrust Lawyer of the Year. Wilson is a partner and member of the litigation group. He has litigated and tried a wide variety of antitrust and complex business matters over nearly thirty years, including class, injunctive and multidistrict actions, involving issues of price-fixing, tying arrangements, vertical restraints, and alleged monopolization.
Akron
Philip F. Downey has been named the 2017 Best Lawyers’ Akron Bet-the-Company Litigation Lawyer of the Year. Downey is a partner and member of the litigation group. His practice focuses on oil and gas litigation, toxic tort litigation and litigation in a variety of areas including financial institutions, bankruptcy, probate, product liability and general commercial liability.
Mark A. Watkins has been named the 2017 Best Lawyers’ Akron Patent Lawyer of the Year. He is a partner and member of the technology and intellectual property group. Watkins focuses on all facets of intellectual property protection, including patent, trademark, copyright, trade secrets and intellectual property litigation.
Cincinnati
Victor A. Walton, Jr. has been named the 2017 Best Lawyers’ Cincinnati Banking and Finance Litigation Lawyer of the Year. Walton, a partner and member of the litigation group, focuses on commercial litigation. He has experience defending government contractors and health care entities in proceedings brought under the False Claims Act as well as defending financial institutions.
Cleveland
James M. McMonagle has been named the 2017 Best Lawyers’ Cleveland Mediation Lawyer of the Year. McMonagle is a partner and member of the corporate and litigation practice groups. He has been involved with the mediation and arbitration of complex cases throughout the United States, including tort business, securities and employment litigation.
John Keller, Thomas Tarpy and Don Shuller, retired partners in the Vorys Columbus and Cincinnati offices, were named as 2017 Best Lawyers Lawyer of the Year. Keller was named Best Lawyers' Columbus Oil and Gas Lawyer of the Year, Tarpy was named Best Lawyers’ Columbus Labor Law Management Lawyer of the Year and Shuller was named Best Lawyers’ Cincinnati Real Estate Lawyer of the Year.
More than 100 Vorys attorneys were included on the 2017 Best Lawyers in America ® List. Click here to see a full list of the firm’s 2017 Best Lawyers.
