Professional Experience
Chris has been providing legal services to clients for over 30 years. His practice concentrates on providing real estate transactional and litigation services to private and public entity clients and representing of municipal and private clients on public sector matters. He has conducted jury and bench trials in the various County Common Pleas Courts and Federal District Courts. He has represented clients before the Ohio Courts of Appeal, the Ohio Supreme Court, and the Federal Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. He has represented clients before the Cuyahoga County Board of Revision and the Ohio Board of Tax Appeals.
Chris has been providing legal services to clients for over 30 years. His practice concentrates on providing real estate transactional and litigation services to private and public entity clients and representing of municipal and private clients on public sector matters.
Areas Of Emphasis
- Chris provides both transaction and litigation services related to real estate, including purchase and sale of real property, lease of real property, land use and development of real property and zoning of real property, easements, mechanic liens, foreclosures, real estate tax exemptions and tax valuation, appropriation of real property and development agreements between private and public entities.
- As a municipal attorney, Chris currently serves as Law Director of Pepper Pike (1989-present) and served as the Law Director of Moreland Hills for a seven year period between 1989 and 1995 providing general legal counsel and litigation services for the municipality.
Representative Client Projects and Cases
- Represented privately held business before the Ohio Board of Tax Appeals which resulted in tax valuation reductions and refund of taxes.
- Represented private owner of multi-tenant housing before the Ohio Board of Building Appeals and Common Pleas Court in relation to enforcement actions by the State Fire Marshall.
- Represented private land owners before local Planning and Zoning Commission, Common Pleas Court and Court of Appeals on zoning issues related to the property.
- Represented the City of Pepper Pike before the Common Pleas Court, Court of Appeals and Ohio Supreme Court in the case of Central Motors vs. Pepper Pike concerning zoning on 114 acre parcel in the city.
- Represented City of Pepper Pike in the case of Wolstein vs. Pepper Pike before the Court of Appeals on the issue of granting a variance for the property.
- Represented the City of Pepper Pike in the reported case of Hirshauser vs. Pepper Pike on issues of eminent domain the power of a municipality to take property for a public purpose.
- Represented the Village of Moreland Hills in the zoning case of Henry Meyer v. Moreland Hills before the Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court, the Eighth District Court of Appeals, and the Ohio Supreme Court.
- Representation of private businesses in the acquisition of property and construction, including purchase agreements, construction contracts, financing and related documents.
- Representation of land owners on issues related to construction contracts mechanics’ liens and other construction related issues.
Professional & Community Associations
- American Bar Association
- Ohio State Bar Association
- Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association - Real Estate Section
- Cuyahoga County Law Director’s Association
Education
Carleton College, B.A., 1973
Cleveland State University School of Law, J.D. 1977
Licensed to Practice
- All Ohio courts
- U.S. District Court (Northern District of Ohio)
- U.S. Court of Appeals (Sixth Circuit)
Awards & Recognitions
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