Deborah S. Brenneman
Partner
OverviewExperiencePublicationsDistinctionsProfessional and CivicNewsEvents
Debbie is a partner in the firm's Labor & Employment and Business Litigation practice groups. She represents management in all areas of employment law, with a focus on trade secret and non-compete cases. She has a wealth of experience in successfully litigating and resolving these matters in state and federal courts across the country.
Her practice includes employment discrimination and wrongful discharge litigation; restrictive covenants; fair labor standards; employment and termination agreements; and commercial litigation.
Debbie currently serves as national employment counsel for publicly held companies.
She has served as lead counsel in numerous jury and bench trials, arbitrations, mediations, employment investigations, and forensic employment investigations throughout the United States.
She has practiced before state and federal courts throughout the United States.
Representative Experience
- Obtained $1.5 million dollar jury verdict in Butler County, Ohio after a two-week trial against a former employee and his new employer on claims involving trade secrets, breach of non-compete and tortious interference.
- Awarded summary judgment in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on tortious interference claims brought against a national company, arising out of hiring of competitor’s employee with various non-compete obligations.
- Obtained Preliminary Injunction against a former employee and his new employer in Butler County, Ohio in a trade secret/tortious interference matter.
- Obtained Preliminary Injunction from the Hamilton County Court of Common Pleas against a former employee of a national medical device company, prohibiting him from accepting employment with a competing company.
- Awarded summary judgment in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio on claims of age and sex discrimination brought against a publicly traded company by a former employee. The decision was affirmed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.
- Obtained defense verdict following a jury trial in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio on claims brought against a publicly traded company for age discrimination and wrongful termination, involving an employee with 25 years of service and an unblemished disciplinary record who was terminated for a safety violation.
- Obtained judgment for a defendant employer in administrative trial before the Ohio Civil Rights Commission on claims of sex discrimination and sexual harassment brought by a former employee.
- Obtained preliminary injunction from the U.S. District Court of Idaho against defendant employee, her husband, and their company on claims of breach of a non-competition agreement, tortious interference, prospected economic advantage, fraud, breach of fiduciary duty and unfair competition.
- Obtained a temporary restraining order, then a preliminary injunction from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, against defendant employee on claims of breach of a non-competition agreement, violation of Ohio's deceptive trade practices statute, the Lanham Act, tortious interference with contract and unfair trade practices.
- Summary judgment granted from the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana on plaintiff's claims of sex discrimination and termination in violation of the FMLA.
- Numerous summary judgment decisions in discrimination and wrongful discharge matters in state and federal courts across the country.
- Thompson Hine Trade Secret Quarterly, Summer 2019
- Thompson Hine Trade Secret Quarterly, Spring 2019
- Thompson Hine Compliance Check 2020: Non-Competition Agreements, April 2019
- Thompson Hine Trade Secret Quarterly, Winter 2019
- “Massachusetts Enacts Broad Noncompetition Agreement Law,” Thompson Hine Labor & Employment @lert, August 2018
- “Parental Leave Policy Perils,” Thompson Hine The Law@Work Newsletter, Fall 2017
- “Federal Judge Enjoins New FLSA Overtime Regulations.” Thompson Hine Labor & Employment @lert, November 2016
- “Reminder: FLSA Overtime Rule Effective December 1,” Thompson Hine Labor & Employment @lert, October 2016
- “Appellate Decision Sets the Stage for a Supreme Court Determination on Sexual Orientation Discrimination,” Thompson Hine The Law@Work Newsletter, Summer 2016
- “It’s Time to Update Noncompete Agreements & Confidentiality Policies,” Thompson Hine Labor & Employment @lert, June 2016
- "From a Woman's Point of View: The Use of the Reasonable Woman Standard in Sexual Harassment Cases," University of Cincinnati Law Review, 1992
- "Sexual Harassment Claims and Ohio's Workers' Compensation Statute," University of Cincinnati Law Review, 1993
- Listed as a Litigation Star by Benchmark Litigation, 2019 and 2020
- Listed in The Best Lawyers in America, 2017-2020
- Recognized with the 2015 Glass Ceiling Award, The Ohio Diversity Council
- Athena Award Finalist, 2011
- West Chester Chamber Alliance, recipient, 2010 Women of Excellence Award
- Selected for inclusion in Super Lawyers by Ohio Super Lawyers magazine, 2009 to 2020
- West Chester Chamber Alliance Rookie of the Year Finalist, 2008
Professional Associations
- Ohio State Bar Association
- Cincinnati Academy of Leadership for Lawyers, Class VI
Community Activities
- West Chester Chamber Alliance, Board of Trustees
- Visions Community Center, volunteer mentor
- Exhale Dance Tribe, Board of Trustees
- Dominican Community Services, Board of Trustees, former member
- Xavier Mentoring Program
- American Heart Association, Executive Leadership Team for Go Red For Women
Professional Activities
- Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce WE Lead, participant
- Leadership 21, Class V
- Cincinnati Leadership for Lawyers (CALL Program), graduate
Labor & Employment Breakfast Briefing
February 18, 2020
Employment & Benefits Law Briefing: Key Internal Audits – Cincinnati
May 21, 2019