Never Surrender: Stories of Fear, the Courtroom & Trial Lawyer Courage

Every trial lawyer eventually faces a case that others say cannot be won. In this Steven S. Kaufman Family Anatomy of a Trial Lecture, Steve Kaufman traces the experiences that shaped his resolve, from watching the televised trial of Adolf Eichmann to fighting for Cleveland’s steel industry during LTV’s collapse. Through courtroom stories involving property rights, lawyers’ duties, public trusts, and a contested airport expansion, he explores the pressure to surrender when powerful institutions seem certain to prevail. His message to the next generation of advocates is direct: your moment will come, and with courage, you can be prepared for it.


Meet the Speaker
A member of the CWRU School of Law’s prestigious Society of Benchers, alumnus Steven S. Kaufman (JD, ’75) has enjoyed a career as a top commercial litigator in Ohio, garnering extensive experience as lead trial counsel in both state and federal courts across the United States. Recently recognized by the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association with the “Living Legacy Award” for his leadership, innovation, and professional excellence, Mr. Kaufman began his career as an appellate law clerk before co-founding the Kaufman & Cumberland firm in 1982, a boutique business litigation firm of twenty lawyers that merged into Thompson Hine in 2002. Following the merger, Mr. Kaufman served on the firm’s Executive Committee and chaired firmwide business litigation. In 2011, Mr. Kaufman formed a new business litigation boutique, Kaufman & Company, which developed offices in Cleveland, Chicago, New York City, and Washington, DC. In January 2020, Kaufman & Company merged into the firm now known as UB Greensfelder, LLP, where Mr. Kaufman remains in service as Of Counsel.

Mr. Kaufman has also dedicated both his time and philanthropy to his alma mater, serving as an Alumni Association Participant and member of its Board of Directors, on the Inaugural Cabinet of the Dean’s Experiential Education Cabinet, as a Law Admissions Counselor, as a Law Career Counselor, and as an adjunct professor teaching a course on eminent domain trial practice, all in addition to his stalwart annual fund support, which has helped provide critical funding to experiential education opportunities through the Milton and Charlotte Kramer
Law Clinic, trial advocacy, and moot court participation, among other opportunities.

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The Steven S. Kaufman Family Anatomy of a Trial Lecture Series is an annual signature program at CWRU School of Law. The series attracts nationally recognized elite trial lawyers from around the country to teach master classes on the art and strategy in every phase of a jury trial. It is an immersive program that takes participants inside a trial attorney’s preparation and decision-making under immense courtroom pressure to understand the strategic and ethical choices that shape courtroom battles. The program is designed for law students, young lawyers, and experienced trial attorneys. Questions about the Kaufman Lecture Series? Contact Associate Dean for Experiential Education Laura McNally at lem20@case.edu.

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