Twenty-three attorneys in the Cleveland office of Taft have achieved the distinction of an AV Preeminent Peer Review Rating – the highest Peer Review Rating possible – by Martindale-Hubbell.  The attorneys devote their practices to a number of legal disciplines including business and finance, litigation, real estate, family law and estate planning, bankruptcy, international law, tax, public law, intellectual property, labor and employment and workers’ compensation.  AV Preeminent is a significant rating accomplishment and a testament to the fact that a lawyer’s peers rank him or her at the highest level of professional excellence.

The attorneys are:

• Kevin D. Barnes
• Irv Berliner
• Charles A. Bowers
• John D. Brown
• Michael H. Diamant
• Bruce E. Gaynor
• Jill Friedman Helfman
• Stephen H. Jett
• Thomas J. Lee
• Fred J. Livingstone
• Bruce J. L. Lowe
• Joel A. Makee
• Carl A. Murway
• Stephen M. O’Bryan
• Richard S. Rivitz
• Richard A. Rosner
• William J. Stavole
• David R. Tavolier
• Robert J. Valerian
• Mark J. Valponi
• Missia H. Vaselaney
• David H. Wallace
• Timothy L. Zix

Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Ratings reflect a combination of achieving a very high general ethical standards rating and a legal ability numerical rating. Legal ability ratings are based on performance in five key areas, rated on a scale of 1 to 5 (with 1 being the lowest and 5 being the highest). These areas are:

1. Legal Knowledge – Lawyer’s familiarity with the laws governing his/her specific area of practice(s)
2. Analytical Capabilities – Lawyer’s creativity in analyzing legal issues and applying technical knowledge
3. Judgment – Lawyer’s demonstration of the salient factors that drive the outcome of a given case or issue
4. Communication Ability – Lawyer’s capability to communicate persuasively and credibly
5. Legal Experience – Lawyer’s degree of experience in his/her specific area of practice(s)

About LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell
LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell is the authoritative source for information about U.S. Lawyers. The Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Ratings service taps into the premier source of lawyer ratings to identify the top lawyers and law firms in their local areas and across the nation. For more information, visit www.martindale.com.