Colleen M. O'Neil

Colleen has extensive experience in federal and state courts nationwide helping business clients resolve the following:

• Commercial contract disputes
• Shareholder and corporate disputes, including post-closing issues
• Estate and probate matters
• Trade secret claims
• Real property disputes
• Municipal and public law issues
• Title VII claims

Colleen has counseled and represented businesses, financial institutions, and high-net-worth individuals in a variety of corporate, commercial, fiduciary, and employment disputes with a results-oriented, practical approach.  

She has successfully prosecuted and defended a variety of business tort claims in both federal and state courts nationwide.

Colleen has represented municipalities and clients in the energy industry in various types of litigation, including contractual disputes, real estate disputes, and employment matters.

Colleen has been selected for inclusion in the Ohio Super Lawyers list (2012-2023). She also has been named to the "Top 50 Women Attorneys in Ohio" list (2013-2023) and to the "Top 25 Women Attorneys in Cleveland" list (2013-2018, 2020-2023).

Colleen joined Calfee in 1998, and she is a member of the firm’s Practice Planning and Growth Committee and the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee. Colleen began serving as Vice Chair of the firm's Litigation practice group in 2019 and Co-Chair in 2021.

Honors & Recognitions

• The Best Lawyers in America^®, Commercial Litigation (2021-2024) and Litigation - Trusts and Estates (2024)
• Ohio Super Lawyers, Business Litigation (2012-2023)
  • Top 50 Women Attorneys in Ohio List (2013-2023)
  • Top 25 Women Attorneys in Cleveland List (2013-2018; 2020-2023)
• Inductee, 2022 Class of the Cleveland State University College of Law Hall of Fame
• Woman of Professional Excellence Award, YWCA of Greater Cleveland, 2010

Education

J.D., magna cum laude, Cleveland State University College of Law, 1996

B.A., John Carroll University, 1992

Professional & Community

• Cleveland State University College of Law Board of Visitors, Member
• Irish American Law Society of Cleveland, Founding Member, Former Vice President
• Magnificat High School, Board Member, Chair of Governance Committee 
  • Former Chair of the Board of Directors (May 2017-May 2022)
• Cleveland State University College of Law Alumni Association, Board Member
• Leadership Cleveland Class of 2016
• Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association, Member
• Ohio State Bar Association, Member
• American Bar Association and the ABA’s Litigation Section, Member

Presentations

• "Trade Secret Considerations to Avoid Business Risks," Calfee's 2019 Intellectual Property Seminar, Cleveland, OH (June 27, 2019)
• "2018 Litigation Trends and Regulatory Changes," Calfee's 19th Annual Litigation Seminar and CLE presentation, with Mitch Blair and David Bules, Cleveland, OH (September 20, 2018)
• "2017 Litigation Trends and Regulatory Changes," Calfee's 18th Annual Litigation Seminar and CLE presentation, Cleveland, OH (September 13, 2017) 
• “Mitigating Litigation Risk in Trust Administration,” National Trust Real Estate Association (May 3, 2017)
• "Privacy and Data Security: 10 Steps for Minimizing Cyber Threats," Calfee's 16th Annual Litigation Seminar and CLE presentation, with Jamie Ramsey and K. James Sullivan, Cleveland, OH (September 16, 2015)
• “Litigation Basics,” Ohio State Bar Association CLE Presentation
• “U.S. Supreme Court Update with Emphasis on Class Action and Whistleblower/Retaliation Developments, including Dodd-Frank,” Calfee Complex Litigation Seminar, Cleveland, OH (July 2011)
• “Dealing With Difficult Depositions,” Ohio State Bar Association District 5 Annual Meeting (October 11, 2010)
• “A.S.O.R.T. Training: Recent Operations and Lessons Learned,” Allied Special Operations Response Team, with Rick Goddard (February 2010)
• “Law Enforcement and Civil Rights Litigation Training Seminar,” with Maura L. Hughes (February 2010)

Client Feedback

• "I originally engaged Colleen O’Neil of Calfee, Halter & Griswold to provide local representation in an arbitration where the venue of Cleveland had been previously agreed to. Initially, the selection of Colleen O’Neil came from research by my California counsel identifying potential candidates (essentially referrals where my CA counsel started with around 6-7 potentials, culled that down to three, and then homed in on recommending the best candidate; that selection included taking into account both Calfee’s size and reputation). Colleen has proven herself to be an outstanding litigator, but she has added significant value to her original and continuing role as a litigator by bringing in other attorneys at Calfee to handle additional work for me. Calfee is now my corporate counsel." – Calfee client, as reported by U.S. News – Best Lawyers^® “Best Law Firms” report