Gary J. Saalman

Gary is a partner in the Vorys Columbus and Houston offices and a member of the litigation practice group.  He represents companies in complex commercial, product liability litigation, and advises clients on document retention and e-discovery obligations. 

Gary is national counsel for a Fortune 200 company in asbestos, benzene, chemical and product liability litigation, and has appeared as the first chair trial lawyer in New York, California, Pennsylvania, Florida, Illinois, Texas and Georgia.  Gary also serves on national trial teams and as Ohio counsel for other Fortune 500 companies.  He has litigated complex commercial litigation before courts and arbitration panels involving breach of fiduciary duty, conversion, breach of contract, tortious interference, and legal malpractice claims.

Gary defends product manufacturers in suits involving workplace and highway traffic fatalities, and cases in which cancers and severely-disabling injuries are alleged to result from chemical exposures.

Gary also advises clients on the identification, preservation and collection of ESI and designs litigation hold protocols to ensure compliance with federal and state rules.  He has worked with corporate, environmental, and labor attorneys to develop efficient and compliant document retention, IT and archiving practices.  He has presented to judges, local rules committees and practitioners on ESI at the Sixth Circuit Judicial Conference and at various CLEs in the Midwest.

Gary received his J.D. magna cum laude from Notre Dame Law School where he was the executive articles editor of the Notre Dame Law Review.  He received his B.S. from Miami University.

Gary clerked for The Honorable Alan E. Norris of the U. S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. 

Before joining Vorys, Gary served in the U. S. Department of Justice, Office of Legal Counsel in 1989 and was an Assistant District Attorney in Harris County, Texas from 1996-1997.

Honors & Recognitions

The Best Lawyers in America, Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Defendants, 2025; Product Liability Litigation – Defendants, 2023-2025

Columbus CEO, Best Lawyers, Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions, 2023; Product Liability, 2023-2024

Columbus CEO, Top Lawyers in Columbus, 2010-2021

Ohio Super Lawyers, Business Litigation, 2005-2006

Martindale-Hubbell AV Peer Review Rated

Columbus Bar Association Community Service Award, 1993

Fellow of the Columbus Bar Association since 1995