Practice Area And Professional Expertise
· Joined the Firm as an associate attorney in 1977 and was elected partner in 1982.
· Has served three terms as Vice President of the law firm's Board of Managers.
· Has extensive experience in federal litigation matters.
· Mr. Skakun has been involved in a wide range of litigation including:
-Patent litigation
-Unfair competition cases and trade secret litigation
-Numerous oil and gas cases, including class actions
-ERISA special separation programs and/or pension claims, including class action suits
-Employment discrimination cases
-International litigation
-Virtually all areas of commercial litigation
· Prior to joining Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs, LLP, Mr. Skakun served a clerkship (1974-1977) for Judge Contie, who was then of the U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio, late Circuit Judge.
· Listed in the The Best Lawyers in America® (1995 through 2011).
· Received special recognition for 10 consecutive years or more listed in The Best Lawyers in America®.
· Selected for inclusion in Ohio's Super Lawyers® 2004 - 2011, as voted by his peers.
· In addition, he is selected to Ohio's Top 100 Super Lawyers® list, 2009 - 2011 and Cleveland's Top 50 Super Lawyers® list, 2009.
· Recognized in the 2008 - 2010 Corporate Counsel Editions of Super Lawyers® for Intellectual Property Litigation.
· Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Rating of AV® Preeminent™, which is the highest possible rating in both legal ability and ethical standards as established by confidential opinions from members of the Bar.
Publications
Co-Author: Chapter in the book Intellectual Property Law 2007: Top Lawyers on Trends and Key Strategies for the Upcoming Year entitled "A Supreme Court Case that Was Never Decided: But Did the United States Patent and Trademark Office Get the Message?" Aspatore Books (March 2007)
Mr. Skakun has edited Banks Baldwin Annotated, "Ohio Rules of Civil Procedure."
Contributing Author: Inside the Minds, Developing an IP Strategy for Your Company, chapter entitled "Winning Legal Strategies," Aspatore Books (2005)
Bar Associations
Member, Civil Justice Reform Act (CJRA) Advisory Group
Member: Federal Bar Association
Member: American Bar Association
Member: Ohio State Bar Association
Member: Stark County Bar Association
Member: Akron Bar Association
Professional & Civic Affiliations
Member: Federal Bar Association 1992 and 2000 Convention Committee
Member: American Board of Trial Advocates (1997 - 2011)
Member: Scanlon Inn of Court