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Steven J. Shrock

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Steven J. Shrock

Overview

Steve Shrock joined Critchfield in 1992 and has spent his entire career serving clients out of the Millersburg office.  Steve focuses his practice on litigation matters and guides both plaintiffs and defendants through a wide variety of disputes but gravitates towards complex commercial litigation, closely-held company disputes, contested wills, personal injury cases, and oil and gas matters.  

In addition to his duties on behalf of clients, Steve serves as Chair of the firm’s Litigation Department, where he utilizes a skill-set honed over nearly 30 years as a litigator to assist in training and leading others.  Steve is known for his sharp analytical mind and bold dedication to his clients.  He has tried numerous cases in courtrooms across Ohio and has argued more than 50 appeals during his career, at both the state and federal levels.  

Steve understands that even the most complicated and contentious disputes can present opportunities for business solutions, and while he is known for being aggressive and effective before judges and juries, he never puts his love of the courtroom ahead of his clients’ desires.  Whatever the project may entail, individuals and businesses can count on Steve to deliver stand-up advocacy and sound judgment in their critical legal disputes.

Education

University of Minnesota, J.D., magna cum laude, Moot Court Competition Team, member and director, Order of the Coif

College of Wooster, B.A., With honors, Phi Beta Kappa

Admissions

Ohio

Colorado

U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio

U.S. District Court, Southern District of Ohio

United States Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit

Experience

  • Lead counsel in Sheaffer v. Westfield Ins. Co., which established that under the “law-of-the-case doctrine”, the denial of jurisdiction over a discretionary appeal by the Supreme Court of Ohio settles the issue of law appealed, thus affirming a judgment in favor of the firm’s client.
  • Lead counsel in Bilbaran Farm, Inc. v. Bakerwell, Inc., in which the Fifth Appellate District concluded that the firm’s client did not have a duty, express or implied, under an oil and gas lease to fully develop the land at issue under the lease. The firm’s client was further awarded its attorneys’ fees incurred as sanctions for the landowner’s pursuit of meritless claims.
  • Counsel in Corban v. Chesapeake Exploration, LLC, the seminal Ohio Supreme Court case regarding the applicability of the Ohio Dormant Minerals Act of 1989 to mineral abandonments.

Recognitions

  • Named to The Best Lawyers in America© for Commercial Litigation (2022-2024)

Affiliations

  • American Bar Association
  • Ohio State Bar Association
  • Holmes County Bar Association

In the Community

  • New Pointe Community Church, Member of the Board
  • Holmes County District Public Library, Past President and current Member of the Board of Trustees
  • Every Woman’s House, a domestic violence shelter and counseling agency serving Wayne and Holmes Counties, Past President of the Board of Trustees
  • Community Crossroads, a non-profit corporation which owns and manages real estate used by other non-profits, Past President and current Board of Trustees member

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