In 1984, Edward L. Gilbert obtained what is reported to be the first $1 million jury verdict in Ohio for a police misconduct case under 42 U.S.C. 1983, in the matter of Currence v. City of North Canton. Forty-one years later, on February 26, 2025, he stood before the United States Supreme Court to argue Case No. 23-1039. The arc between those two moments is the story of a civil rights practice that has operated continuously in northeastern Ohio for more than three decades, rooted in plaintiffs’ rights and structured around a single attorney whose presence in civil rights litigation in the Summit-Stark County area is, by his firm’s account, without parallel from the plaintiff’s side.
Overview
Edward L. Gilbert Co., LPA is a civil rights and employment law practice based in Akron, Ohio, incorporated in May 2007. Edward Gilbert has practiced civil rights and employment law for more than 30 years. The current entity formalizes a practice that predates the 2007 incorporation by decades.
The firm describes itself as the only plaintiff-side civil rights litigation firm with that specialty in the Summit-Stark County area. It handles constitutional claims against government agencies, police, employers, and schools; employment discrimination and retaliation cases; and estate planning as a secondary practice area.
Gilbert established the Attorney Edward L. Gilbert Endowed Scholarship Fund at the University of Akron School of Law for members of the Black Law Students Association. He was appointed to the Ohio Constitutional Modernization Commission from September 2012 through June 2017. He has been appointed to the Federal Court Attorney Advisory Board by judges of the U.S. Northern District of Ohio, lectured to Sixth Circuit judges on the subject of retaliation, and taught employment and labor law at Cleveland Marshall School of Law. In 1991 and 1992, he assisted Ohio State Representatives in drafting new legislation for the Ohio Civil Rights Act. He testified before the Ohio Senate in support of House Bill 50 in May 2016.
Gilbert has been a Life Member of the NAACP across multiple northeastern Ohio chapters, serving as legal counsel and chairman or past chairman of the Legal Redress Committee for numerous branches, including Akron, Canton, Barberton, Massillon, Alliance, Portage County, Mansfield, and Zanesville.
He published a memoir, “Swallowing Nickels, A Memoir of a Welfare Child,” in December 2015, and was featured in U.S. News and World Report in December 1997 for his work developing legal dialogue on racial relations.
Practice Areas
Civil rights litigation is the firm’s defining practice. Edward Gilbert represents plaintiffs bringing constitutional claims under federal civil rights statutes, primarily 42 U.S.C. 1983, which provides the legal mechanism for suing government actors who violate constitutional rights. The firm handles claims involving excessive force by police, due process violations, equal protection claims, and First Amendment and free speech matters.
The firm’s federal court footprint is extensive. Gilbert is admitted before the U.S. Northern District of Ohio, the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the U.S. Supreme Court. He argued before the Supreme Court in February 2025 with assistance from the University of Virginia law school clinic.
Judge Dowd declared Gilbert an expert in civil rights and discrimination work in Wilson v. International Brotherhood of Teamsters (Case No. 91-2348), a designation that reflects judicial recognition of his depth in this field.
Employment law at the firm addresses discrimination, retaliation, and wrongful termination claims brought by individual employees. The firm also assists employers and organizations with human resource matters, employee handbooks, and compliance work. Gilbert’s decades of litigation experience in employment discrimination cases is the foundation for the advisory work.
Estate planning is offered as a secondary practice area. The firm prepares wills, durable powers of attorney, healthcare powers of attorney, living wills, and real property transfer documents. Probate services are also available.
Business formation is handled for sole proprietorships, partnerships, LLCs, nonprofits, and corporations.
Attorney Profiles
Edward L. Gilbert is the principal attorney. He earned his BA from Wooster College, where he received the Schwartz Award for general excellence, and his JD from the University of Akron School of Law. He is admitted to the Ohio bar, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the U.S. Supreme Court.
His practice record includes: the first reported $1 million jury verdict in Ohio for police misconduct under 42 U.S.C. 1983, in Currence v. City of North Canton (1984, settled on appeal); expert designation by a federal judge in civil rights and discrimination; argument before the U.S. Supreme Court in Case No. 23-1039 (February 26, 2025); and service as legal counsel for multiple NAACP chapters across northeastern Ohio.
He has lectured at the Sixth Circuit judicial level on retaliation, taught employment and labor law at Cleveland Marshall School of Law, and assisted in drafting Ohio Civil Rights Act amendments. He is a Life Member of the NAACP, a 33rd degree Prince Hall Mason, and a member of Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity. He endowed a scholarship at the University of Akron School of Law for Black Law Students Association members.
Additional attorneys are employed at the firm on occasion, though none are publicly identified by name.
Location and Service Area
The firm’s primary office is at One Cascade Plaza, Suite 825, Akron, OH 44308. Phone: (330) 376-8855. The firm also has a presence in Canton, Ohio.
The service area spans Summit and Stark County and extends to Ohio statewide civil rights and employment matters. Federal court practice covers the U.S. Northern District of Ohio, the Sixth Circuit, and the U.S. Supreme Court.
Client Focus
The firm represents individual plaintiffs in civil rights and employment matters: people whose constitutional rights have been violated by government actors, employees who have been discriminated against or retaliated against in the workplace, and individuals navigating estate and business matters.
The firm’s community presence through the NAACP, its scholarship fund at Akron Law, and its decades of civil rights litigation work in northeastern Ohio make it a known resource for communities and individuals seeking plaintiff-side civil rights representation.
Languages other than English at the firm are not publicly specified. Consultation inquiries can be directed to (330) 376-8855 or through the website contact form at https://www.edwardlgilbert.com/
FAQ
What is 42 U.S.C. 1983 and why does it matter?
42 U.S.C. 1983 is a federal civil rights statute that allows individuals to sue state and local government actors, including police officers, for violations of constitutional rights. It is the primary legal vehicle for civil rights cases involving police misconduct, due process violations, and equal protection claims. Edward Gilbert has practiced in this area since the 1980s.
Has the firm handled U.S. Supreme Court cases?
Yes. Edward Gilbert argued before the U.S. Supreme Court on February 26, 2025, in Case No. 23-1039, with assistance from the University of Virginia law school clinic.
Does the firm represent employers or employees in employment matters?
The firm handles both employment litigation on behalf of individual plaintiffs and human resource advisory work for employers and organizations. The litigation practice is primarily plaintiff-side.
What estate planning documents does the firm prepare?
The firm prepares wills, durable powers of attorney, healthcare powers of attorney, living wills, and real property transfer documents. Probate is also handled.
What is the NAACP Legal Redress Committee and what is Edward Gilbert’s role?
The Legal Redress Committee of an NAACP branch is the body that receives and evaluates civil rights complaints from community members and determines what legal or advocacy action is appropriate. Edward Gilbert has served as chairman or past chairman of the Legal Redress Committee across multiple northeastern Ohio NAACP branches and has served as their legal counsel.
Closing
Edward Gilbert’s record in civil rights law, from a landmark 1984 jury verdict in Ohio to oral argument before the U.S. Supreme Court in 2025, runs through more than four decades of plaintiff-side representation in Akron and across northeastern Ohio. The scholarship he endowed at Akron Law and his sustained NAACP service across eight chapters reflect a practice that has remained anchored in the same communities it litigates to protect.