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Gregory V. Mersol

Greg Mersol focuses his practice on the resolution of class action and other complex employment disputes. He is a frequent speaker and writer on issues involving class actions and the defense of class action disputes.  He has been certified as an employment law specialist by the Ohio State Bar Association and has been designated a Master Bencher by the Cleveland Employment Inn of Court.

Mr. Mersol assists employers in matters ranging from class action litigation and management, restructuring and novel issues, to other difficult employment-related disputes. He has defended employers in class actions on topics such as wage and hour disputes in state and federal courts, race, sex and age discrimination, public accommodations and employee benefits.

Mr. Mersol has consulted extensively with employers on electronic discovery and retention issues, evaluation of electronic document retention protocols, retrieval of electronic data, document holds and the use, preservation and production of electronic data in the litigation context. He has also assisted employers in termination and restructuring efforts, including preparation and coordination of separation pay plans, severance agreements, WARN Act compliance and related issues.

Mr. Mersol has been described by Chambers & Partners as “a brilliant trial lawyer,” and praised for his “total unflappability” in high exposure cases. He has tried cases throughout the state and federal court systems on both class and individual claims and on matters ranging from age, race and disability discrimination to entitlement, disability and other benefits. He has regularly argued cases before the state and federal courts of appeal. He has obtained successful results for employers in the energy, transportation, technology, retail, manufacturing and financial services industries, as well as others.

Mr. Mersol is actively involved in alternative dispute resolution procedures. He serves on the panel of Mediators for the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. He has also spoken and written on the subject of alternative dispute resolution.

Mr. Mersol is a frequent speaker and writer on a wide range of employment topics and litigation. His recent presentations have included discussions on electronic discovery, employment class actions, employer defense strategy, sexual harassment training for supervisors and Internet use by employees. His writings include articles on class action litigation and related ethical issues, electronic discovery and a book chapter on affirmative defenses in employment actions. In addition, Mr. Mersol serves as the editor and a contributor for Baker Hostetler’s Employment Class Action Blog, providing commentary on developments in employment class actions and litigation trends impacting employers.

Mr. Mersol is a member of the Labor & Employment Sections of the American, Ohio and Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Associations and a member of the Federalist Society. Mr. Mersol has regularly been named an “Ohio Super Lawyer” by Law & Politics Magazine from 2004 through the present, and as a Leading Lawyer in Employment Law by Chambers & Partners.

Professional Activities, Organizations and Honors:

• Named in Best Lawyers in America 2006 through the present. 
• Designated a “Leading Lawyer” by Chambers & Partners.
• Certified Specialist in Labor and Employment Law.
• Master Bencher, Cleveland Employment Inn of Court.
• American Bar Association, Management Co-Chair, Sub-Committee on Ethics in Employment Class Actions.
• American Bar Association, Member of Labor & Employment Law and Torts and Insurance Practices Sections (Employer-Employee Relations Committee).
• Ohio State Bar Association, Member of Labor & Employment Law Section.
• Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association, Fellow, Member of Labor & Employment Law Section.
• The Federalist Society.
• Ohio Management Lawyers Association, Charter Member.
• Named in “Ohio Super Lawyers” 2004 through the present.

Selected Publications:

• “Skirt the Maze of Class Actions,” Society for Human Resource Management, April 2008.
• “Gaining Control of Electronic Discovery,” Municipal Lawyer, July/August 2007.
• Chapter, “Pleading Strategies, Affirmative Defenses, and Burdens of Proof,” The Practitioner’s Guide to Defense of EPL Claims, American Bar Association (2005).
• “Ethical Issues in Class Action Employment Litigation,” 20 The Labor Lawyer 55 (2004).
• “Opinion and Rhetorical Hyperbole in Workplace Defamation Actions: The Continuing Quest for Meaningful Standards,” 52 DePaul L. Rev. 19 (2002) (co-author).
• “Preparing to Persuade the Mediator,” Cleveland Bar Journal, July/August 2000.
• “Employer/Employee Rights on the Information Highway - Is There A Right of Privacy?”, Cyberspace Lawyer, June, 1999.
• “Veterans’ Re-Employment Rights,” Cleveland Bar Journal, March 1991 at 163 (co-author).
• “Defamation in the Workplace: A Survey of the Law and Proposals for Reform,” 54 Mo. L. Rev. 797 (1989) (co-author).
• “Defamation Actions in the Workplace: How to Protect the Employer,” The Compleat Lawyer, Spring 1988 (co-author).

Representative Reported Litigation in which Mr. Mersol has been involved:

• Schreiber v. Philips Display Components Co., 692 F. Supp. 2d 747 (E.D. Mich. 2010).
• Harps v. TRW Automotive, 47 EBC Cases (BNA) 2846 (6th Cir. 2009).
• Heffelfinger v. Electronic Data Systems Corp., 580 F. Supp. 2d 933 (C.D. Cal. 2008).
• Tenney v. General Electric Co., 118 Ohio St. 3d 197, 887 N.E.2d 349 (2008).
• Dudich v. United Auto Workers Local Union No. 1250, 454 F. Supp. 2d 668 (N.D. Ohio 2006).
• Watson v. Cleveland Municipal Sch. Dist., 36 EBC Cases (BNA) 1177 (N.D. Ohio 2005).
• Spohn v. Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. Ret. Income Plan, 33 EBC Cases (BNA) 1411 (N.D. Ohio 2004).
• Risner v. Shopko Stores, Inc., 325 F. Supp. 2d 825 (N.D. Ohio 2004).
• Rodgers v. Norfolk Southern Corp., 304 F. Supp. 2d 961 (S.D. Ohio 2003).
• Palacio v. Progressive Ins. Co., 244 F. Supp. 2d 1040 (C.D. Cal. 2002).
• Jaeger v. Matrix Essentials, Inc., 236 F. Supp. 2d 815, 29 EBC Cases (BNA) 1042 (N.D. Ohio 2002).
• Weirauch v. Sprint Retirement Pension Plan, 182 F. Supp. 2d 638 (N.D. Ohio 2002).
• Camp v. Progressive Corp., 8 WH Cases (BNA) 477 (E.D. La. 2002).
• Ullmo v. Gilmour Academy, 273 F.3d 671 (6th Cir. 2001).
• Chapman v. The Higbee Co., 256 F.3d 416 (6th Cir. 2001), vacated for rehearing en banc, 270 F.3d 297 (6th Cir. 2001).
• McCormick v. Kmart Distribution Ctr., 163 F. Supp. 2d 807 (N.D. Ohio 2001).
• Dingle v. Union City Chair Co., 134 F. Supp. 2d 441, 16 IER Cases (BNA) 60 (E.D. Pa. 2000).
• Lovas v. Huntington Nat’l Bank, 215 F.3d 1326 [table] (6th Cir. 2000).
• Steppe v. Kmart Stores, 136 Ohio App. 3d 454, 737 N.E.2d 58 (1999).
• Smoot v. United Transportation Union, 991 F. Supp. 913 (N.D. Ohio 1998).
• Cowin v. Lutheran Hosp., 8 AD Cases (BNA) 472 (N.D. Ohio 1998).
• State ex rel. Warren Newspapers, Inc. v. Court of Jurisdiction, 80 Ohio St. 3d 261, 685 N.E.2d 1223 (1997).
• Biggs v. North Cent. Tel. Co., 75 FEP Cases (BNA) 617 (S.D. Ohio 1997).
• O’Neill v. St. Luke’s Med. Ctr., 13 IER Cases (BNA) 534 (Ohio App. 1996).
• Kent v. United of Omaha Life Ins. Co., 96 F.3d 803 (6th Cir. 1996).
• Schlett v. Avco Financial Services, 950 F. Supp. 823 (N.D. Ohio 1996).
• State ex rel. Warren Newspapers, Inc. v. Hutson, 70 Ohio St. 3d 619, 640 N.E.2d 174 (1994).
• Reese v. Kmart Corp., 10 IER Cases (BNA) 202 (N.D. Ohio 1994).
• Radikovich v. The Higbee Co., 9 IER Cases (BNA) 1850 (Ohio App. 1994).
• Henegar v. Banta, 27 F.3d 223 (6th Cir.), cert. denied, 513 U.S. 1057 (1994).
• Cooke v. Norfolk & Western Railway Co., 143 LRRM Cases (BNA) 2591 (N.D. Ohio 1993).
• Cromwell v. Equicor-Equitable HCA Corp., 944 F.2d 1272 (6th Cir. 1991).
• Henegar v. Banta, 817 F. Supp. 668 (N.D. Ohio 1993).
• International Longshoremen’s Ass’n v. Norfolk Southern Co., 927 F.2d 900 (6th Cir. 1991), cert. denied, 502 U.S. 813 (1991).
• Aldrete v. Foxboro Co., 49 Ohio App. 3d 81, 550 N.E.2d 208 (1988).
• Cox v. Radiology Consulting Assocs. Inc., 658 F. Supp. 264 (W.D. Pa.), aff’d, 835 F.2d 282 (3d Cir. 1987).
• Hess v. United Tel. Co. of Ohio, 40 FEP Cases (BNA) 1487, 40 EPD (CCH) ¶ 136, 190 (N.D. Ohio 1986).
• Mendenhall v. City of Akron, 2008-Ohio-270 (Ohio Supreme Court 2008) (amicus curiae).
• Elek v. Huntington Nat’l Bank, 60 Ohio St. 3d 135 (1991) (amicus curiae).

Selected Presentations:

• “The Class Action Explosion,” Ohio Labor and Employment Law Institute, 2010.
• “Reductions in Force,” Midwest Labor and Employment Law Seminar 2009 (selected by the Ohio State Bar Association for inclusion in The Best of Labor & Employment Law).
• “Ethical Issues in Class Action Employment Litigation,” Washington, D.C., 2009.
• “The Matter of Definitions and The ADA,” National Business Institute, 2008 and 2009.
• “Class and Collective Actions Under Ohio and Federal Law,” Midwest Labor and Employment Law Seminar 2007 (selected by the Ohio State Bar Association for inclusion in The Best of Labor & Employment Law).
• “Defusing the New Electronic Discovery Rules,” Baker Hostetler Client Seminar, 2007.
• “Proactive Management of Electronic Discovery Matters,” Baker Hostetler (Six Module Training Program), 2006-07.
• “Electronic Discovery: A Growing Nightmare for Employers,” Baker Hostetler Client Seminar, 2006.
• “Employment Class Actions,” Cleveland Bar Association, 2006.
• “Ethical Issues for the Defense in Employment Class Actions,” American Bar Association Teleconference, 2006.
• “Ethics for the Labor and Employment Law Practitioner,” American Bar Association, Best of Midwinter Programs Teleconference, 2005.
• “Ethical and Enforcement Issues Under the Fair Labor Standards Act,” National Business Institute, June 2, 2005.
• “Ethical Issues in Employment Class Actions,” American Bar Association, Labor and Employment Law Section, Mid-Winter Conference, 2005.
• “Ethics for the Labor and Employment Law Practitioner,” American Bar Association Teleconference, 2004.
• “Sexual Harassment,” Ohio State Bar Association, 2004.
• “Ethical Issues in Class Action Employment Litigation,” American Bar Association, Mid-Winter Meeting, 2003.
• “Employee Investigations,” Council on Education in Management, 2003.
• “Case Analysis and Discovery,” Ohio State Bar Association, 2002.
• “Practice and Procedure Clinic,” Cleveland Bar Association, 2001.
• “Labor and Employment Issues, Internet, E-Commerce & Law: The Fundamentals,” Cleveland Bar Association, 2001.
• “Preparing to Persuade the Mediator,” Women’s Bar Association of the State of New York, 2000.
• “Documenting Employee Performance and Discipline,” National Business Institute, 2000.
• “Avoiding Sexual Harassment Liability,” Cleveland Managers’ Association, 1999.
• “Loss Prevention Practices to Help Avoid Employment Litigation,” Denmark Group, 1998.
• “Covenants Not To Compete (And Other Post-Employment Issues),” Ohio CLE Institute, 1998.
• “Highlights Review of the Americans with Disabilities Act,” Disabilities Law Seminar, Ohio CLE Institute, 1997.
• “Employer and Employee Rights on the Information Highway,” Labor and Employment Law Seminar, Cleveland Bar Association, 1996.
• “Reductions in Force: The Good, The Bad, and What to Do,” Employment Law 1996, Ohio CLE Institute, 1996.
• “Employer/Employee Rights on the Information Highway -- Is There A Right Of Privacy?” Institute of Business Law, 1996.
• “Special Problems in Workplace Sexual Harassment,” Institute of Business Law, 1995.
• Chair, “Employment Regulations in Ohio,” Institute of Business Law, 1995.
• “Wrongful Discharge Claims,” Fifth Annual Banking Law Seminar, Progressive Casualty Insurance Company, 1995.
• “Wrongful Discharge Claims,” Employment Law & Practices in Ohio, Federal Publications, Inc., 1995.
• “Employment Law Developments,” Steel Service Center Institute, 1995.
• “Crime and Violence in the Ohio Workplace,” Institute of Business Law, 1995.
• Chair, “Employment Regulations In Ohio,” Institute of Business Law, 1994.
• “Avoiding Employment Litigation Through the Use of Documentation,” Institute of Business Law, 1994.
• “The Employment Contract: Protecting the Employer’s Proprietary Interests and Customer Relationships,” Ohio CLE Institute, 1994.
• “Ohio Wage and Hour Laws,” Knowledge Circle, 1994.
• Chair, “Employment Regulations in Ohio,” Institute of Business Law, 1993.
• “Employee Benefits Litigation,” Institute of Business Law, 1993.
• “Employment Law Issues of the 1990s,” Ohio Ambulance Association, 1993.
• “Avoiding Wrongful Discharge Litigation,” Institute for Management Education, 1992.
• “Implementing Reductions in Force,” Institute of Business Law, 1992.
• “Age Discrimination in the Workplace,” Institute of Business Law, 1991.
• “Americans With Disabilities Act,” Ohio State Bar Association, 1991.

Civic Activities:

• Great Lakes Theater Festival—Trustee, Executive Committee
• Women’s Philanthropic Union—Trustee
• Friendly Inn Settlement, Inc.—Trustee