Frantz Ward is proud to share that Managing Partner Chris Keim is the recipient of the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association’s 2024 “President’s Award.”
Each year, the departing CMBA President chooses individuals who embody the core values of our community, spanning law, business, and public service. At this year’s Annual Meeting, 2023–24 President Judge John. J. Russo selected Chris for a number of reasons including his extensive involvement with the CMBA.
Chris joined the CMBA in 2002 and attended the Leadership Academy in 2018–19. He plays an active role in the Litigation Section, Council on Conscious Inclusion, and Bench-Bar Committee. Since 2021, Chris has co-chaired the Continuing Criminal Justice Reform Group for the Racial Equality And the Law (REAL) Working Groups. He is also involved in the 2023–24 Strategic Planning Committee and previously led the Nominating Committee.
As Managing Partner, Chris is involved in establishing the firm’s strategic direction and its day-to-day operations for the growing needs of the firm and its clients. In addition to his Managing Partner and Management Committee responsibilities, Chris is a litigator whose legal practice focuses on civil litigation matters, including general business disputes, product liability claims, transportation law, employment litigation, and corporate investigations. He has extensive experience in successfully defending businesses through trial and arbitration throughout the U.S. with over 75 bench and jury trials to date. This includes representing closely held and publicly traded companies and their insurers in routine and catastrophic litigation.
Chris actively supports the firm’s Diversity & Inclusion Committee, which promotes diversity and inclusion and raises awareness of its important throughout the firm and in the broader community. He also began his career as a Cuyahoga County Assistant Prosecutor, which provides him insight into the criminal justice system.
Chris is named to The Best Lawyers in America and to the Ohio Super Lawyers list. He is consistently rated AV Preeminent, the highest ranking, for attorney professional and ethical excellence by Martindale-Hubbell. He serves as a Trustee for the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission and Empowering and Strengthening Ohio’s People (ESOP). Chris earned his J.D. from Case Western Reserve University School of Law and his B.S. from The Ohio State University.
The CMBA is a nonprofit professional organization dedicated to serving the needs of legal professionals in Greater Cleveland. A voluntary membership organization, our members include attorneys and judges, law students, paralegals, and other business professionals. Together, we serve as the collective voice of our legal profession, both bench and bar. The CMBA is home to nearly 5,000 members.