Cincinnati
From Fountain Square in Cincinnati to historic Public Square in Cleveland, Marshall Dennehey's Ohio lawyers represent insurance carriers and other clients throughout the state of Ohio and beyond. The Cincinnati office is located downtown, right along the Ohio River bordering Kentucky, and serves the needs of clients in the Greater Cincinnati region and throughout all of southwestern Ohio.
The office's full complement of attorneys, often in collaboration with the attorney resources of our Cleveland office, service clients in all manner of civil defense litigation under three of four core departments – Casualty, Health Care and Professional Liability. Highly experienced in these matters, the attorneys in our Ohio offices take very seriously the interests of clients and customers in the practical and efficient resolution of claims.
Thought Leadership
Case Law Alerts
Ohio Court Clarifies That No Bad‑Faith Claim Exists Without a Breach of the Policy
July 21, 2026
BBI is a freight brokerage logistics company that arranged transport of frozen chicken for its client – Bird in Hand Farms, Inc. in February 2021. BBI arranged for a transport company – GRS – to deliver the chicken to Bird in Hand. There was a winter storm while the delivery was being transported by GRS. The GRS driver’s trailer was parked on a residential street in Monroe, Louisiana for four days due to the winter storm. During that time, someone cut the trailer seal and stole 15-20 pounds of chicken. Bird in Hand then rejected the entire load upon delivery. BBI sued GRS and Travelers – its insurer. Travelers had issued a policy to BBI covering “damages … for direct physical loss of or damage to covered property.” BBI averred that Travelers’ insurance policy included coverage for the loss of and/or damage to the shipment of frozen chicken, and claimed that Travelers breached the policy by not providing full payment for BBI's loss. BBI also contended that Travelers acted in bad faith in investigating and evaluating BBI's insurance claim and ultimately denying BBI full coverage. The Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court’s decision granting summary judgment that the frozen chicken was not covered property under the Travelers policy. Accordingly the Court of Appeals concluded that Travelers did not breach its policy with BBI. The court then turned to BBI’s bad faith claim. BBI argued genuine issues of material fact precluded summary judgment on its claim for bad faith against Travelers, but the trial court concluded that BBI failed to identify any such issues. In reviewing the grant of summary judgment in favor of Travelers, the Court of Appeals held that, if an insurer does not breach the insurance policy when denying coverage, then an insured cannot maintain a claim for bad faith, citing Wash. v. Evans, 2021-Ohio-587, ¶ 34, 168 N.E.3d 638 (10th Dist.). Therefore, the Court of Appeals affirmed summary judgment in favor of Travelers on the bad faith claim. Plaintiff-insureds in Ohio often attempt to argue that a bad faith claim may be pursued irrespective of whether there was an actual breach of the insurance contract. While there is very little authority to support such a position, the argument is not always clear-cut. However, the BBI Logistics decision stands as helpful authority that insurers may utilize in countering such an argument by their insureds.
Legal Updates for Real Estate E&O Liability
New Ohio Law Targets Real Estate Wholesaling Practices
May 7, 2026
Effective March 2, 2026, the Ohio Department of Commerce Division of Real Estate and Professional Licensing (REPL) now requires real estate wholesalers to clearly disclose their intention and business model when contracting with a property owner and seller. This was part of Ohio Senate Bill 155, which passed unanimously in the Ohio Senate in June 2025, and was signed into law by Governor Mike DeWine on December 1, 2025. Real estate wholesalers serve as intermediaries in property transactions. They enter into a purchase agreement with a seller with no intent to buy the property themselves. Instead, they assign the contract to another buyer or investor at a higher price or charge a fee, typically 5% to 10% of the sale price, to earn a profit. The REPL, in partnership with the Ohio Department of Aging (ODA), and Ohio District 5 Area Agency on Aging in Richland issued a Consumer Alert in March 2025, on wholesalers, citing a rise in unsolicited real estate offers targeting older Ohio homeowners, often offering complex financial arrangements that include hidden risks, leaving older homeowners financially vulnerable. Under this new legislation, real estate wholesalers in Ohio are required to disclose their status to sellers or property owners and clarify that they do not represent the seller in the transaction. The law mandates that this disclosure be made through a clear and conspicuous written statement informing the seller that the individual is acting as a wholesaler. This disclosure must also be separate from the purchase contract or agreement between the parties and must be printed in bold type with a font size of at least 12 points. In the event a wholesaler fails to provide proper notice to the seller, the seller may cancel the purchase contract at any time before the close of escrow without penalty, giving the wholesaler 30 days to return any earnest money or deposits to the seller. Wholesalers who do not clearly disclose their role or properly inform the seller may also face disciplinary action from the Ohio Superintendent of Real Estate. This can include penalties such as suspension or revocation of their real estate license, as well as potential civil liability, monetary damages, and responsibility for attorneys’ fees.
Results
Summary Judgment Secured, Preserving $750,000 in Coverage for Insured in Major Trucking Liability Dispute
Ray Freudiger and Michael A. Roberts (both of Cincinnati) successfully obtained summary judgment on behalf of their client in a coverage dispute arising from a May 19, 2022, motor vehicle accident. A permissive driver operated a box truck for an interstate trucking company and caused severe injuries to two tort victims. Prior to the accident, the insured had procured a commercial auto policy for the trucking company with stated limits of $1,000,000. Following the accident, the insurer initiated a declaratory judgment action asserting that only reduced bodily injury limits of $25,000/$50,000 applied and later counterclaimed, alleging it would not have insured the driver had he been properly submitted for approval under the policy. After extensive discovery, briefing, and oral argument, the court rejected the insurer’s attempt to shift responsibility for the $750,000 in coverage it was legally required to provide for permissive drivers under Ohio law, granting summary judgment in favor of the insured and preserving $750,000 in liability exposure.
Defense Verdict Received in an Insurance Exclusionary Clause Dispute
We received a defense verdict after bench trial in an insurance exclusionary clause dispute. The plaintiff’s personal property in a storage unit was damaged when a municipal water main broke outside the storage facility. The claims representative offered the full policy limits before trial. However, the plaintiff sought recovery of the full claim amount for her damaged property. We argued that her recovery was specifically excluded by the water damage exclusion provision within her insurance policy. The judge agreed and concluded that the water main was part of a containment system for water and the exclusionary clause was applicable.
