DAYTON, OH— December 29, 2022 — Several Faruki PLL attorneys have been recognized for their notable talents in law in the 2023 edition of Ohio Super Lawyers magazine. Co-Managing Partner Erin Rhinehart, along with Partner Jeff Ireland, were awarded the titles and named to the "Top 100 in Ohio", and "Top 50 in Cincinnati"; Erin was additionally awarded "Top 50 Women in Ohio" and "Top 25 Women in Cincinnati"; Co-Managing Partner Brian Wright and Partners Jeff Cox and Steve Weigand were also named Ohio Super Lawyers for 2023; and Melissa Watt was again named an Ohio Rising Star for 2023.
Super Lawyers is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The selection process is multi-phased, and includes independent research, peer nominations and peer evaluations. Rising Star recognizes the top up-and-coming attorneys in the state – those who are 40 years old or younger, or who have been practicing for 10 years or less. Super Lawyers magazine is published in all 50 states and reaches more than 13 million readers. For more information, visit http://www.superlawyers.com/.
About Each Attorney:
Erin Rhinehart is a Co-Managing Partner of Faruki PLL. She frequently defends class action litigation in state and federal court, with a focus on consumer, health care, mass tort, and environmental issues; and assists clients with a variety of contract (licensing, distribution, master services agreements, franchise agreements, non-compete, entertainment, non-disclosure, and non-disparagement agreements) and employment issues. Erin also leads our firm’s media and communications practice (First Amendment, defamation, anonymous speech, public records, trademark, copyright, trade secrets, open courts, advertising law, social media, and certain privacy issues). She has first-chair jury trial experience, and has argued before various appellate courts in Ohio, including the Supreme Court of Ohio. Erin has been repeatedly recognized by Benchmark Litigation, and Ohio Super Lawyers as a Rising Star and Super Lawyer. This year, and previous years, she has been recognized as one of the Dayton Business Journal's Power 50. Earlier this year, Erin was selected to appear in the 10th edition of Benchmark Top 250 Women in Litigation; she has also been recognized as one of America's Top 100 High Stakes Litigators. For consecutive years 2020-2022, Erin was named Premier Health Care Lawyer for Dayton – a recognition given to just one health care lawyer per city. Erin has also been repeatedly recognized by BTI Consulting as a Client Service All Star – a recognition given to less than 500 lawyers nationally.
Brian Wright is Co-Managing Partner of Faruki PLL. Brian helps businesses and individuals pursue and protect legal rights. He litigates matters throughout Ohio and the United States. He has successfully represented clients in numerous class actions and individual actions involving securities, privacy, business torts, copyright, trademarks, consumer protection, product liability, breach of contract and warranty, trade secrets, restrictive covenants (including covenants not to compete), and false advertising disputes. Brian also routinely serves as outside general counsel for businesses. Working closely with clients, he provides focused, client-centered, and cost-effective advice and efficient, thoughtful, and innovative solutions. He typically receives the first call when clients encounter business issues with legal implications. Acting as a strategic advisor, he works swiftly and effectively to implement the correct solution.
A founding partner of Faruki PLL and recognized each year by his peers in the Ohio Super Lawyer poll, Jeff Ireland has tried cases throughout the United States in federal and state courts, and is a frequent mediator and arbitrator. His practice focuses on competitive issues (e.g., trade secrets, antitrust, false advertising, etc.) as well as class actions and employment. The 5th edition of Benchmark Litigation, Labor & Employment has recognized Jeff as a Labor & Employment Star. For several years Jeff has been recognized as an America's Top 100 High Stakes Litigators by America's Top 100 LLC for 2020. Jeff has been recognized each year since its inception by his peers in the Ohio Super Lawyer pool as an Ohio Super Lawyer, rated as one of the top 10 attorneys in Cincinnati, and one of the top 50 in the state. He has been selected repeatedly for Best Lawyers in America®, and named "Lawyer of the Year" on numerous occasions. He is listed in Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business. This year Jeff completed the Harvard Program on Mediation at Harvard Law School, which trains mediators to successfully resolve disputes by focusing on the development of a common understanding among the parties, an interest-based approach to mediation. He is also a member of the American, Ohio, Dayton, and Cincinnati Bar Associations. He is a past President of the Dayton Bar Association.
Jeff Cox represents clients in a wide array of business and commercial litigation matters, including contract and business torts, technology, privacy and data security, products liability cases, class actions, and professional malpractice claims. He has handled complex disputes in courts across the United States, in matters before the American Arbitration Association, and in investigations by the Federal Trade Commission, the Departments of Justice, and other federal agencies, and various state Attorneys General. A Benchmark Litigation® "State Litigation Star", Jeff also has been recognized repeatedly as a "Best Lawyers in America®" honoree for commercial litigation, as well as antitrust and intellectual property matters, and has been recognized as an "Ohio Super Lawyer (Business Litigation)" in each of that program's 20 years. Jeff is a Senior Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America, is again recognized in the 2022 edition of "America's Top 100 Bet-the-Company Litigators®" and is rated "AV Preeminent" by Martindale Hubbell. Jeff is admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of the United States, and is a member of the Bar of the State of Ohio, the United States District Courts for the Northern and Southern Districts of Ohio and several federal circuit courts.
Steve Weigand is a successful trial attorney and counselor on complex legal issues and commercial disputes. Steve has litigated and tried multiple non-compete and trade secret matters, successfully obtaining temporary, preliminary, and permanent injunctions. He has regularly handled disputes involving contracts, employment issues, product liability, intellectual property, and class actions, among others. Steve's experience includes representing companies in diverse industries such as healthcare, payment processing, technology, financial services, and manufacturing.
Melissa Watt focuses on complex business litigation and contract disputes, including fraud and deceptive practices. Melissa has experience in all aspects of the litigation process, from pre-litigation claim analysis to alternative dispute resolution to appeals. In 2019, Melissa was chosen to be an inaugural recipient of PLEDGE Recognition -- Promoting Lawyer Excellence & Driving Gender Equality, that spotlights emerging women in litigation and in the legal profession as a whole. Prior to joining the firm, Melissa clerked for Judge Pat DeWine – now Ohio Supreme Court Justice Pat DeWine – at Ohio's First District Court of Appeals. Melissa also started, co-owned, and operated her own business creating customizable training materials for manufacturing and industrial companies before attending law school.
About Faruki+
Faruki PLL is a litigation firm with offices in Dayton and Cincinnati that handles complex disputes, including intellectual property, class actions, competition-based litigation, employment, antitrust, privacy, commercial litigation, and arbitration. You can find Faruki PLL on LinkedIn Twitter at @FarukiMediaLaw. Also, visit the business litigation blog site, for the latest developments in business litigation, intellectual property, data security, communications and media, class actions, and employment.
