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EDUCATION:
University
of
Cincinnati
Bachelor of Arts Degree
1974
Northern
Kentucky
University
Salmon P. Chase
College
of
Law
Juris Doctor
Degree
1978
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LICENSING
:
 | State of
Ohio |
|
U.S.
District Court,
Southern District of Ohio |
|
U.S.
District Court,
Eastern District of Kentucky |
|
U.S.
Court of Appeals,
Sixth Circuit |
|
U.S.
Supreme Court |
|
LITIGATION
PRACTICE
:
Mr. Gustavson has been engaged full-time in litigation since 1978, with
the exception of his time as Safety Director for the city of Cincinnati
as detailed below. The
practice is concentrated in the areas of civil rights, including police
misconduct and government abuse; wrongful death, including medical
malpractice, product liability and personal injury; gun issues and the
rights of firearms owners; business litigation; and construction disputes.
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PROFESSIONAL AND GOVERNMENT EXPERIENCE:
Mr. Gustavson is a 1974 graduate
of the University of Cincinnati with a Bachelor of Arts Degree
and a 1978 graduate of the Salmon P. Chase College of Law with a
Juris Doctor Degree. He joined
the staff of prosecutor=s
office of the city of Cincinnati in 1978 where he served as a trial
attorney. In 1981, he was
promoted to the civil division of the Cincinnati solicitor=s
office where his duties included general civil litigation.
In 1984, he was promoted to senior assistant city solicitor.
In 1986, he was promoted to chief trial counsel for the City of
Cincinnati. As chief trial
counsel, his duties included supervision and responsibility for all City
civil litigation attorneys, as well as responsibility for monitoring an
average of more than 400 active cases seeking recovery of in excess of one
billion dollars. Mr. Gustavson=s
trial practice primarily involved police misconduct cases, with an
emphasis on police shooting cases, government abuse of citizen=s
rights, injury cases, contract litigation, and construction law and
litigation. In 1991, he was
promoted to deputy city solicitor, courts division.
That position involved the supervision and responsibility for the
staff of the city prosecutor=s
office, as well as the city=s
civil litigation attorneys. The
supervisory role involved a staff of more than 50 persons, including 25
litigation attorneys. In 1992,
he was appointed safety director for the city.
The safety director administered the Safety Department and was the
administrative supervisor of the Cincinnati Police Division and the
Cincinnati Fire Division, with direct supervisory responsibility for the
Cincinnati Police Chief and the Cincinnati Fire Chief.
The Safety Department was the largest city department with more
than 2,200 employees and a budget in excess of $140 million.
At the end of 1995, Mr. Gustavson ended his career in public
service to devote his time to litigation matters, primarily on behalf of
plaintiffs.
Committee
as a part of the International City Managers Association's national
benchmarking project.
Since leaving government service, Mr. Gustavson has been involved in
litigation and union representation. The
litigation includes police misconduct, medical malpractice, wrongful
death, personal injury, business litigation, city employee promotional and
administrative disputes, and intentional torts.
Since 2004, Mr. Gustavson has achieved punitive damage jury
verdicts in three cases, including a defamation case with a jury verdict
in excess of $1.1 million. The
union representation involves CODE, a group of middle managers employed by
the City of Cincinnati. That
representation includes contract negotiation, discipline and grievance
arbitrations.
Mr. Gustavson has been involved in litigation in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana,
New York, Florida, Arizona and California. |
EXPERT WITNESS
|
Mr. Gustavson has
served as an expert witness in cases involving the value of attorney
services in litigation and in issues involved in the dissolution of a
law firm. |
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EXAMPLES
OF PRIOR APPOINTMENTS AND VOLUNTEER WORK
:
| Member of the
Regional Computer Center Control Board
|
|
Member
of the Central Warrant ID Board
|
|
Chairman
of the Cincinnati
Boxing and Wrestling Commission
|
|
Member
of the Mayor's Commission on Youth Violence
|
|
Member
of the Cincinnati
MIS Steering
Committee
|
|
Member
of the Cincinnati
Board of Health
Advisory Council for Reshaping Youth
Priorities
|
|
Member
of the International City Managers Association's Police Technical
Advisory Committee
for national benchmarking of police services
|
|
Member of the
Hamilton
County
Domestic Violence
Coordinating Council
|
|
Member of the Keep
Cincinnati
Beautiful Graffiti
Task Force
|
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CURRENT
APPOINTMENTS AND VOLUNTEER WORK
| Volunteer Lawyer for the Poor Project
|
| Adjunct and part-time faculty at the Chase
College of Law, Northern Kentucky University |
|
EXAMPLES
OF AWARDS
:
| 1993-The
Cincinnati Coalition on Domestic Violence Award for outstanding
service and dedication in the area of criminal justice
|
|
1993-Human
Involvement Project Hipzen Award for promoting youth violence
prevention
|
|
2002-Bill
of Rights Award from the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and
Bear Arms for service to the preservation of Second Amendment right
|
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MISCELLANEOUS
AND EXAMPLES OF TEACHING EXPERIENCE
:
|
1987-Local
and national television appearances to discuss pit bulls and the
constitutionality of pit bull bans
|
|
1989-Panelist
discussion with Ohio Supreme Court Justices Andrew Douglas and Herbert
Brown concerning public records issues before the Associated Press
Society of Ohio
|
|
2000,
2001, 2002-Taking and Defending Effective Depositions in
Ohio
for Lorman Education Services
|
|
2001-Contemporary Issues in
Healthcare Litigation for the
Cincinnati
Bar Association
|
|
2000,
2001-Construction Contracting for Public Entities in
Ohio
: Public Bidding for Lorman Education
Services
|
|
2002-Discovery
in Civil Rights Litigation for the
Cincinnati
Bar Association
|
|
2003-Detention,
Arrest, Search & Seizure for the Cincinnati Bar Association |
|
On April 22, 2003, the successful handling of the appeal of Klein
v. Leis in the First District Court of Appeals striking down Ohio's
prohibition on the carrying of concealed firearms was chosen by the
National Law Journal as the "Decision
of the Week" in the "Litigation
Week"
section. |
|
Teaching of pretrial
litigation techniques at Chase College of Law, Northern Kentucky
University |
|
Judge, Chase College
of Law Center for Excellence in Advocacy Second Annual Closing
Argument Competition, 2011 |
|
Coach, Chase College
of Law National Trial Team which won the Regional National Trial
Competition, 2011 |
|
Selected as an Ohio
Super Lawyer, 2012 |
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WMG-CV
- PDF
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