Colin R. Jennings is a trial lawyer who actively and efficiently obtains results for clients. He focuses his practice on complex civil and criminal litigation including responses to governmental investigations. He has appeared in matters throughout the United States, and has successfully tried numerous civil and criminal matters in various federal and state courts.

Colin has diverse and extensive experience in complex civil litigation including matters related to technical product liability and tort claims, insurance coverage, contract and other commercial disputes, RICO, fraud and abuse, and trade secret litigation.

In addition to his civil experience, Colin’s practice focuses on white collar criminal defense and quasi-criminal matters including the conducting of internal investigations and the defense or prosecution of civil matters which arise from or relate to alleged criminal conduct. In conjunction with this practice, Colin has represented numerous professional athletes, business leaders and celebrities in connection with fraud and abuse perpetrated against them.

Building on his experience in both civil and criminal matters, Colin also has extensive experience in the creation, assessment and implementation of compliance programs for both national and global companies. Colin has been selected as the primary outside counsel providing global legal assistance to Newell Rubbermaid on its global compliance program and related matters.

Colin was selected for inclusion in the 2009 edition of Ohio Super Lawyers - Rising Stars, a distinction that recognizes lawyers under the age of 40 or those in practice for 10 years or less.

Colin is the author of “Avoiding Criminal Liability for Corrupt Practices Abroad Through Effective Corporate Compliance” in International White Collar Enforcement and published by Aspatore in 2012. Colin is a member of the John M. Manos Inn of Court and the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association (CMBA). He has been appointed a member of the Certified Grievance Committee for the CMBA and has served as trial counsel for the CMBA in various attorney discipline matters. Colin also serves on the leadership team for the CMBA’s Criminal Law Section.

Representative Experience

Product Liability

• Defending a Tier 1 seatbelt and air bag manufacturer in numerous product liability matters.
• Defending an international electrical component manufacturer in a wrongful death and product liability case arising from a workplace accident.
• Defending a leading child restraint manufacturer in a two-week product liability trial in Wisconsin alleging brain injury to an infant; trial resulted in favorable verdict for the client.
• Participating in class action and individual smoker trials on behalf of a major tobacco company.
• Defending one of the world’s largest chemical companies in a wrongful death action related to the transportation of product.

Commercial Litigation

• Defending a leading aerospace company against claims of fraud and breach of contract resulting from alleged export law violations.
• Prosecuting a matter to successfully rescind a stock purchase agreement related to the acquisition of a company that was the subject of a state and federal money laundering investigation.
• Representing a large multinational insurance company in the defense of claims of antitrust and bid rigging.
• Defending several large insurance companies in national class actions asserting claims arising from credit insurance markets, and defending claims of breach of contract and bad faith against various insurers.
• Defending a leading international supplier of pollution control systems for power generation plants against claims of breach of contract.
• Defending a mass tort action related to a complex chemical reaction occurring in a large landfill.
• Defending claims arising from the collapse of a US$26 million Ponzi scheme based upon mortgage-backed securities.
• Prosecuting an action against the State of California arising from the refusal to reimburse a large healthcare provider for its responses to 911 emergency calls.
• Defending a publicly traded real estate development company in a dispute related to a large scale development in Miami; trial resulted in favorable verdict for the client.
• Prosecuting claims related to theft and embezzlement by a financial services provider and obtaining a trial verdict of more than US$1 million; also coordinated reporting to law enforcement and related insurance recovery actions.

Investigations/White Collar Defense

• Conducting internal investigations related to suspected misappropriation of trade secrets and theft embezzlement by employees.
• Defending the first Economic Espionage Act prosecution; the matter related to the alleged theft of trade secrets by a major Taiwan-based manufacturer and included defense of parallel civil litigation.
• Representing a large automobile manufacturer in a federal investigation of wide-scale odometer tampering by a dealership.
• Conducting internal investigations for various public entities arising from claims of public corruption or embezzlement, and coordinating cooperation with law enforcement and related insurance and other recovery actions.
• Defending large healthcare fraud investigations for publicly traded healthcare companies.
• Defending mortgage fraud investigations and prosecutions in both state and federal court.
• Conducting internal investigation and defense of leading environmental services company related to claims of falsification of landfill monitoring data.
• Representing clients in connection with numerous grand jury investigations and administrative enforcement actions.