As an attorney, maintains areas of expertise in construction law, employment and labor law, litigation, business disputes and ADR. Has successfully litigated and served as an arbitrator and mediator in cases involving construction disputes, commercial business disputes, and employment disputes.
Construction experience includes the representation of owners, general contractors and subcontractors and serving as a neutral in disputes involving competitive bidding, contract formation, unforseen and differing site conditions, scope of work disputes, changed or extra work disputes, quality of work issues, timeliness of completion, delay, acceleration, liquidated damage claims, completion of work, mechanic’s lien claims, and non-payment issues.
Employment experience includes representation of parties or service as a neutral in disputes under age discrimination, race discrimination, sex harassment, disability discrimination, cases brought under state civil rights statutes, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, the ADEA, the ADA, the NLRA, cases alleging wrongful discharge, cases seeking the enforcement of non-competition agreements, small business ownership issues, and disputes between shareholders in closely held corporations.
Extensive experience in alternate dispute resolution. Member of the ADR Federal Court Panel for the Northern District of Ohio (1996 to present); Member of the panel of arbitrators for the American Arbitration Association, serving as an employment (1996 to present) and construction and commercial arbitrator (1995 to present). Member and former Chair of the Construction Advisory Council of the AAA (term ending in 2007). Member of the panel of arbitrators for the NASD and National Arbitration Forum (2000 to present). Has been an arbitrator and mediator for many employment, construction and business disputes and has been an advocate in numerous ADR proceedings. Served as Arbitration Panel Chair for several large and complex cases.
Frequent lecturer on issues relating to construction law, ADR, and employment law.
When not practicing law, I enjoy bicycle touring, skiing, farming and other outdoor activities.
Practice areas
Construction experience includes the representation of owners, general contractors and subcontractors and serving as a neutral in disputes involving competitive bidding, contract formation, unforseen and differing site conditions, scope of work disputes, changed or extra work disputes, quality of work issues, timeliness of completion, delay, acceleration, liquidated damage claims, completion of work, mechanic’s lien claims, and non-payment issues.
34 years, 200 cases
Employment experience includes representation of parties or service as a neutral in disputes under age discrimination, race discrimination, sex harassment, disability discrimination, cases brought under state civil rights statutes, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, the ADEA, the ADA, the NLRA, cases alleging wrongful discharge, cases seeking the enforcement of non-competition agreements, small business ownership issues, and disputes between shareholders in closely held corporations.
37 years, 250 cases
Member of the ADR Federal Court Panel for the Northern District of Ohio (1996 to present); Member of the panel of arbitrators for the AAA serving as an employment and construction and commercial arbitrator, member of the panel of arbitrators for FINRA. Has been an arbitrator and mediator for many employment, construction and business disputes and has been an advocate in numerous ADR proceedings. Served as Arbitration Panel Chair for several large and complex cases.
26 years, 100 cases
Served as mediator for construction and employment disputes; member of the ADR Federal Court Panel for the Northern District of Ohio.
26 years
Languages spoken
English
Fortney & Klingshirn
4040 Embassy Parkway Suite 280
Akron, OH, 44333
State | Status | Acquired | Updated |
---|---|---|---|
OH | Active | 1986 | 07/24/2022 |
Legal answers | 0 |
Legal guides | 3 |
Award name | Grantor | Date Granted |
---|---|---|
AV Preeminent 5.0 out of 5 Peer Review Rated | Martindale-Hubbell | 1994 |
Outstanding law student in the Sixth Circuit | Federal Bar Association | 1985 |
Title | Company name | Duration |
---|---|---|
Partner | Fortney & Klingshirn | 1992 - Present |
Attorney | Millisor & Nobil | 1988 - 1992 |
Attorney | Squire Sanders & Dempsey | 1985 - 1988 |
Association name | Position name | Duration |
---|---|---|
FINRA | Arbitrator | 2004 - Present |
Federal Court ADR Panel | Neutral | 1996 - Present |
American Arbitration Association | Arbitrator | 1995 - Present |
Publication name | Title | Date |
---|---|---|
Fortney & Klingshirn web page | A Primer on Performance and Payment Bonds in Ohio | 2010 |
Fortney & Klingshirn web page | Ohio Mechanic's Lien Defense Tactics | 2010 |
School name | Degree | Graduated |
---|---|---|
Cleveland State University - Cleveland-Marshall College of Law | J.D., Summa cum laude | 1985 |
University of Tennessee, Knoxville (main) | 1979 |
Conference name | Title | Date |
---|---|---|
Ohio Mechanic's Lien | Construction claims | 2007 |
Getting Paid for your Work | Construction claims | 2004 |
Case name | Outcome |
---|---|
Steingass Mechanical v. City of Strongsville | Injunction granted. |
O.L. Construction v. Vetron, LLC | Judgment for defendant on claim and counterclaim. |
Waynco Electrical v. Westra Construction | Judgment for Plaintiff |
Cassel v. Schuster Elecs., Inc., 159 Ohio App. 3d 224; November 24, 2004 | |
Sharp v. Union Carbide Corp., 38 Ohio St. 3d 69; July 27, 1988, Decided |
Posted by Skip
September 2, 2011
Mark Wachter, Construction and development Attorney on Sep 1, 2011
Relationship: Worked together on matter
I endorse this lawyer. It has been my pleasure to work with him. He is an outstanding advocate with a thorough knowledge of his field.