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REBECCA J. BENNETT is a partner in the Cleveland law firm of Frantz Ward LLP, where she focuses her practice on representation of management in the area of labor and employment, including claims involving employment discrimination under federal and state law. Ms. Bennett also advises employers regarding personnel policies, OSHA compliance, prevailing wage and other government contracting requirements, and union avoidance and labor relations issues. She earned her B.A. degree, summa cum laude, with distinction, from The Ohio State University and her J.D. degree, magna cum laude, from Cleveland-Marshall College of Law, where she was a business editor for the Cleveland State Law Review and a member of the Moot Court Board of Governors. Ms. Bennett is a member of the Federal Bar Association, the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association and the Defense Research Institute. BRIAN K. BRITTAIN is a principal in the law firm of Ross, Brittain & Schonberg Co., L.P.A., where he practices in the areas of labor law, OSHA law and workers' compensation law. He is certified by the Workers' Compensation Law Specialty Board of the Ohio State Bar Association as a specialist in the field of workers' compensation law in Ohio. Mr. Brittain wrote several articles on workers' compensation and has lectured before professional and civic groups on topics relating to workers' compensation and OSHA. He was named an Ohio "Super Lawyer" by his peers in 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009 and 2010. Mr. Brittain earned his B.A. degree, summa cum laude, from Mount Union College, his J.D. degree from Case Western Reserve University and his M.B.A. degree from Cleveland State University. He is a member of the Ohio State Bar Association (member, Workers' Compensation Section). JOEL R. HLAVATY is a partner in the Cleveland law firm of Frantz Ward LLP. Mr. Hlavaty focuses his practice on the representation of management in all phases of labor relations and employment litigation. He routinely advises employers on all aspects of their relationships with employees, as well as with respect to matters concerning litigation prevention and human resources management, and he regularly defends them in federal and state courts of all jurisdictions on claims arising under the various federal and state labor and employment laws. Mr. Hlavaty additionally represents employers with respect to complaints and charges filed with the EEOC and OCRC, NLRB and SERB, and with OSHA and the DOL, as well as with health care and ERISA issues and complaints, and collective bargaining issues and strike disputes. He is a frequent presenter at seminars and management training programs on a wide variety of topics. Mr. Hlavaty earned his B.A. degree from John Carroll University and his J.D. degree from the University of Akron. ROB MEDLOCK worked for OSHA more than 33 years before joining Safety Controls Technology, a multi-service consulting company that provides engineering, environmental and occupational safety and health services. In 1991 he was promoted to area director of the Cleveland Area OSHA Office. During his tenure as area director, he led his office to conduct over 17,000 inspections that included 40 significant cases. Under his guidance, The Cleveland Area Office became one of the largest and most successful Area Offices in OSHA. In Cleveland, Mr. Medlock established the first OSHA Construction Team to better understand and respond to the needs of that industry. He implemented several OSHA Emphasis Programs including one on construction fall hazards which was adopted nationwide by OSHA. This program generated over 5,000 fall hazard inspections and helped reduce fall related fatalities in Northeastern Ohio. Mr. Medlock has served on a variety of committees and task forces of national merit. He was the former chairperson for the OSHA Tower Task force which specifically addressed issues within the telecommunication tower industry. Through his leadership, OSHA has been able to amicably resolve many safety & health concerns within the tower industry and enter into the first ever partnership with the National Association of Tower Erectors. Mr. Medlock led his office in redesigning the way OSHA responded to safety & health complaints nationwide. This resulted in dramatically improved response times and set new priorities for inspection related complaints. Mr. Medlock earned his B.S. degree in safety management from Indiana State University. PATRICIA A. POOLE is a partner in the Cleveland office of Baker & Hostetler LLP, where she concentrates her legal practice in the areas of regulatory compliance and litigation, including occupational safety and health, toxic tort, workers' compensation, environmental, employment, intentional tort and emergency response. Ms. Poole has significant experience assisting employers with matters involving federal and state safety and health statutes and regulations, including defending OSHA citations and whistleblower claims. In addition, she has worked with many clients in the aftermath of catastrophic workplace events causing injuries, property damage and other types of loss. As a result, Ms. Poole has defended clients in wrongful death, mass tort, insurance defense, class actions, workers' compensation and other employment-related matters, including wrongful discharge and discrimination. Ms. Poole is a member of the Cleveland Metropolitan, Ohio and American bar associations, the American Association of Nurse Attorneys and Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing. She earned her B.S.N. degree, summa cum laude, from Bowling Green State University and her J.D. degree from Cleveland-Marshall College of Law.
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