
KJK’s Ohio-based civil litigators have successfully resolved a broad range of commercial and regulatory matters, including construction defects, breaches of contracts, creditor disputes, employment issues, fraud allegations, and securities and shareholder litigation.
KJK maintains a substantial litigation practice with a strong regional and national reputation. With offices in Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio, KJK’s attorneys litigate in state and federal courts and in arbitration tribunals throughout the United States, and advise clients worldwide. Our litigation attorneys have tried cases to judges and juries, and routinely handle complex commercial lawsuits. We are also experienced in representing national broker-dealers, registered investment advisory firms, clearing firms and individual brokers and investment advisors in securities arbitration work.
Litigation & Arbitration
What wE do
- Appellate Litigation
- Beverage & Alcohol Litigation
- Broker-Dealers & Securities Clients
- Financial Institutions & Securities Litigation
- FINRA & Securities Arbitration
- Securities Litigation
- Class Action
- Construction Litigation
- Consumer Protection Litigation
- Data Privacy & Cyber Security
- Government
- State & Federal Discrimination Claims
- State & Federal Employment Litigation
- Regulatory Compliance & Enforcement
- Corporate
- Corporate Compliance
- Business Contingency Litigation
- Director & Officer Liability
- Partnership Disputes
- Employment Litigation
- Non-Compete Enforcement & Defense
- Government Investigations
- eCommerce Litigation
- Product Liability
- eDiscovery & Document Retention
- IP Litigation
- Contract, Business, Commercial & Consumer Disputes
- Shareholder Disputes
- Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA)
- Health Care Litigation
- Individuals
- Domestic Relations Litigation
- Probate Litigation
- Fraud Investigation, Prosecution & Defense
- IP Litigation
- Unfair Competition
- Mediation
- Real Estate Litigation
- Student & Athlete Defense Litigation
- Wage & Hour Class Action Defense

Litigation & Arbitration
What Sets Us Apart
Business-Focused
KJK’s litigation attorneys prioritize business realities when litigating cases. By focusing on economic factors and staying responsive to our clients’ needs, your litigation strategy will be informed, first and foremost, by your business strategy.
Proactive
When time is of the essence, KJK’s civil litigation attorneys are experienced at obtaining immediate relief and strategically filing lawsuits to best protect your interests.
Flexible
Arbitration and mediation can be viable alternatives to traditional litigation or may be required by your contracts. KJK’s attorneys have decades of experience with a variety of arbitration formats and have won significant victories for clients.
Innovative Program:
Litigation Programs
Our experienced attorneys employ a pragmatic, proactive approach coupled with savvy judgment to effectively address our clients’ most critical litigation issues.
BUSINESS CONTINGENCY LITIGATION
Litigation costs can sometimes be a barrier to fighting for your rights or protecting your business from bad actors. KJK’s litigators are experienced at evaluating the merits of cases and will share the risk of bet-the-business actions.
Whether we’re representing the plaintiff or defendant, KJK can develop a contingent fee arrangement to meet your needs, including blended structures with capped hourly fees or reduced contingency percentages so that you can take greater advantage of the possible upside in your case.
Representative Experience
- Secured eight-figure recovery for three large nonprofits in one of the first collateralized debt obligations cases to go to trial
- Saved manufacturer of complex machinery more than $10 million defending them against a claim for breach of warranty
OUTSOURCED LITIGATION MANAGEMENT
KJK provides litigation supervision and management to a variety of publicly traded and middle-market businesses. We work directly with in-house lawyers and key executives within the company as “outsourced general counsel” and manage litigation holistically, prioritizing risk mitigation and minimizing litigation disruption.
Cost-Effective
- We ensure that all discovery requests are responded to efficiently and without undue burden
- KJK’s attorneys ensure that cases are handled timely, strategically and effectively without the cost, expense or overhead associated with traditional, full-time in-house counsel
Single Point of Contact
- Our team is the point person for all outside counsel and ensures cases are properly and consistently handled
- We maintain internal reports on material claims and legal proceedings and support the work of in-house counsel in reporting to a company’s board of directors
Litigation & Arbitration
Frequently Asked Questions
How does the process of litigation generally work?
If you are the party who has been harmed by actions of another, the first step in the litigation process is an investigation into your claims. What happened, why did it happen, what is the other sides position, and how were you harmed by the action? When this is completed and you decide to move forward, a complaint is prepared by counsel and filed in the appropriate court.
The party who has been sued (the “defendant”), is then provided with the complaint and provides the court their answer as well as any claims they believe they have against the party who brought the claim (the “plaintiff”) or against other parties required to determine the dispute. The defendant may also attempt to have the court throw out some or all the claims on the ground that the allegations, even if true, do not present legal claims.
Once it is determined what parties and claims are appropriately before the court, the discovery stage can commence. This is often the most timely and costly period in litigation. The parties can seek information from others, including the other parties and third-parties, through written questions, documents and oral questioning of witnesses. Disputes unfortunately often arise at this stage and the court may be asked to rule on discovery disputes.
Following discovery, the parties may move to narrow the issues in the case or to dismiss the case in total (“summary judgment”). Here the moving party will argue that, based on the claims and the discovery which has been completed, there are no material factual disputes, and they are entitled to a judgment on those claims.
If any claims survive summary judgment, the case then proceeds to trial.
What is e-discovery?
As more and more of our information is shared and stored electronically, the discovery process now includes the requesting and production of this electronic information (“e-discovery”). Today we collect, review, and produce information retained electronically in response to the other party’s discovery requests. This may include your databases, e-mails. voice-mails, social media, and other relevant information stored in electronic form. This is sometimes a complicated and costly process due to the locations and manner and methods of storing this information. Courts in Ohio do not require the production of such information if it is not reasonably accessible due to some undue burden or cost.
Are there alternatives to court litigation?
Of course. The parties may try to work out the dispute through private discussions, or agree to have a mediator hear the dispute and attempt to find a workable resolution for all parties. The parties, through contract or agreement, may also agree to arbitrate. Arbitration is like having a private judge. The process generally follows court litigation procedures, although discovery can be limited and the arbitrator may or may not be willing to hear motions attempting to limit the claims before them. Arbitration is also generally private with the arguments and sometimes the result is not available to the public. It can be faster than court litigation, although the parties are responsible to pay the cost of the arbitrator. Contrast that with regular in-court litigation, where state or federal taxes pay for the judges and the process is generally open to the public.
How are legal services billed for litigation?
There are many potential methods to structure the attorney fees incurred in litigation. Initially, understand that the party is usually directly responsible for the “hard costs” of litigation. These may items such as the cost of filing a claim, the court reporters fees, the electronic discovery storage and production fees, and the hearing and deposition transcript fees. In addition, attorney fees are often billed per hour worked on the claim. This is a simple mathematical calculation – the number of hours billed times that attorney’s hourly rate as set by the firm. This cost can usually be estimated and should be discussed with counsel. There are other fee arrangements that sometimes make sense for both the client and counsel such as hybrid fees, capped fees, fixed fees or contingent fees.
Are my attorney fees recoverable after litigation?
Generally, unless you have a contract which provides for the payment of attorney fees, these fees are not recoverable in a court action. The American Rule provides that each party will bear their own attorney fees resulting from the court litigation. The rationale for this rule is that our system does not want to create a disincentive for aggrieved parties to bring suit asserting their rights. This contrasts with the English common law which provides that the losing party pays the legal fees of the winning party. Note that even under the American Rule, though relatively rare, a party may be required to pay some attorney fees of the other party, such as situations where a frivolous claim or position is presented in litigation.
Litigation & Arbitration
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Litigation & Arbitration
attorneys

Brett Krantz
CHAIR

Samir B. Dahman
PARTNER

Jon W. Groza
PARTNER
Contact
CLEVELAND OFFICE
1375 East Ninth Street
One Cleveland Center, 29th Floor
Cleveland, OH 44114-1793
COLUMBUS OFFICE
10 West Broad Street
One Columbus Center, Suite 1900
Columbus, OH 43215