Akron lawyers

Buckingham Columbus^SM combines traditional values, carved out as far back as 1913 by the founding attorneys of the firm’s original Akron office, and cutting edge facilities, information, and technology to meet the complex needs of our growing client base. Like the firm’s other offices, Buckingham Columbus plays a significant role in the local economy. Looking for continued growth and heightened visibility in the community, Buckingham Columbus is positioned in an exciting, developing area of downtown with great amenities. The relatively new office in the city’s trendy Arena District has helped spark the renaissance of the area. The Arena District is a 95-acre urban village development surrounding the Nationwide Arena in downtown Columbus.

Buckingham Columbus^SM was established in May of 1989 by Brett L. Miller and Thomas W. Hess and currently employs 25 attorneys whose diverse expertise reflects the commitment and foresight needed to provide the full-service legal needs of today’s business owners, as well as pubic and private sectors. Practice groups include Business Law, Employment Law, Entertainment & Sports Law, Health & Medicine, Intellectual Property, Litigation, Real Estate and Construction, Trusts & Estates, and Workers’ Compensation Defense. This broad blend of knowledge and resources enables Buckingham Columbus^SM to attract and develop long standing personal and business relationships with its clients and community. Clients range from the sole practitioner to multinational corporations, tax-exempt organizations, governmental bodies, charities, foundations and public organizations. We stress teamwork and camaraderie—and our interest in enjoying our relationships while serving our clients well.

Buckingham Columbus anticipates continuing its growth through mergers and lateral hires and constantly is looking for quality people to join its team.

We invite you to learn more about Buckingham Columbus and contact us for further information.

Donald B. Leach, Jr.

Donald B. Leach, Jr., Managing Partner

We are pleased to feature the Columbus attorneys who have been named to the Best Lawyers in America for 2005-2006.

These highly prestigious peer evaluations are based on surveys of more than 15,000 leading attorneys. Nationwide, fewer than three percent of all attorneys receive this honor. Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs ranks in the top ten Ohio law firms for the number of attorneys listed.

“We are honored to have so many of the firm’s attorneys listed as being among our country’s best lawyers,” said Nicholas T. George, President and CEO of Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs, LLP. “Working with them on a daily basis, I know how dedicated they are to the interests of our clients. In addition, I appreciate the legal knowledge and expertise they share with all of the attorneys in the firm’s different practice groups.”

Counsels corporate clients and individuals regarding health care issues, including hospitals and health systems, ambulatory service centers, nursing facilities and individual and group medical practices. He has provided such services as corporate and practice formation, merger and acquisition, Medicaid and Medicare reimbursement, antitrust counseling, regulatory and corporate compliance with fraud and abuse regulation and the Stark II law, medical staff by-law counseling and Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (“JCAHO”) accreditation and professional licensure.
Mr. Antrim has also acted as a lobbyist concerning health care issues on behalf of health care organizations and providers. He has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America® since 1991.

Member of the law firm's Board of Managers and serves as the Co-Chair of the Health & Medicine Practice Group. He has more than 27 years of comprehensive health care law experience and regularly represents hospitals, medical staffs, nursing homes and physicians in the areas of certificate of need, licensure, and Medicare/Medicaid certification and reimbursement. Mr. Hess represents health care providers throughout the United States and was an assistant attorney general for the State of Ohio and represented numerous agencies involved in the regulation of the health care industry. Mr. Hess was recently appointed by Governor Robert Taft to serve a second three-year term on The Ohio Board of Examiners of Nursing Home Administrators. He has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America® since 1995.

Mr. Leach is the Managing Partner of the Columbus office. His practice is focused on construction-related contracting, disputes and business matters. Prior to obtaining his law degree, he served as legislative assistant to the President of the Ohio Senate. He assisted in drafting the 1992 amendments to Ohio’s mechanics' lien law. In 1989, he was appointed by the governor as the first public member of Ohio's Real Estate Appraiser Board. He is the first practicing attorney ever elected to the Board of Directors and then president of the 110-year-old, 1300 member Builders Exchange of Central Ohio. He was the recipient of the 2003 Cornerstone Award from The Builders Exchange of Central Ohio. Mr. Leach is listed in Chambers USA America’s Leading Business Lawyers 2002 – 2004 and 2005 edition (Construction). He has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America® since 2003.

Mr. Miller serves as Co-Chair of the Firm's Employment & Workers' Compensation Practice Group. He is a Certified Workers' Compensation Specialist by the Ohio State Bar Association under the guidelines of the Supreme Court. Represents a wide range of clients, including: major manufacturing companies, interstate trucking companies, food processing, retail and institutional clients. Prior to joining Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs, LLP, Mr. Miller worked for two years as a staff attorney for the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation. He has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America® since 2003.

Mr. Sigmund's practice includes estate and business succession planning for professionals and business owners, charitable giving and other extensive estate and gift planning. He has dealt extensively with qualified retirement plan accumulations and distribution planning. He assists clients with income tax, estate tax and generation skipping tax issues. Mr. Sigmund has also represented closely held businesses and business owners regarding fringe benefits, deferred compensation, insurance planning, estate planning, buy/sell agreements, general corporate matters, qualified and non-qualified retirement plans, ERISA litigation matters, and qualified domestic relations orders. He has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America® since 1997.

Employment and Workers' Compensation Practice Group: The Employment Law group represents employers with regard to labor and employment relations including collective bargaining and grievance, arbitration, defense against union organizing campaigns, employment discrimination litigation, ERISA litigation, wrongful discharge litigation, unfair competition and trade secret litigation. Our attorneys represent clients before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the National Labor Relations Board, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the Ohio Civil Rights Commission, and the State Employment Relations Board. In addition, the Employment Law group provides consulting on personnel practices, wage-hour matters and unemployment compensation, as well as DWRF issues, handicap reimbursement and subrogation. The Workers' Compensation section of the group represents state-funded, self-insured and public employers before the Bureau of Workers’ Compensation, the Industrial Commission, the Court of Common Pleas, the Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court of Ohio.

Health & Medicine Practice Group: Our Health Law group offers comprehensive legal services to a wide range of clients in the health care industry, including hospitals, physicians, physician group practices, health care facilities, medical staffs, nursing homes, assisted living facilities, managed care plans, MSOs, IPAs, PPOs, HMOs, home health care providers, durable medical goods suppliers, allied health professionals and other health related businesses. Our Medical Malpractice Group provides comprehensive legal services to clients nationwide in malpractice issues.

Real Estate & Construction Practice Group: The Real Estate group represents clients in all types of real estate matters, including the sale, leasing, acquisition, financing, development, construction and zoning of residential, commercial and industrial property. Our Real Estate attorneys have expertise in estate planning, tax, construction, insurance, and environmental law. The Construction group offers assistance in all phases of construction, representing owners, contractors, developers, subcontractors, material suppliers, engineers, architects and bankers in each aspect of the industry and in both public and private construction projects.

Trusts & Estates Practice Group: This group provides a broad array of estate and business-succession planning services, including management of assets in the event of incapacity, disposition and management at death, and arranging for payment of taxes. Our Trusts & Estates attorneys have extensive experience in planning for owners of growing companies and developing strategies for ensuring smooth generation-to-generation transfer while maximizing growth.