Denise M. Hasbrook
Of Counsel
One SeaGate
Suite 1700
Toledo, OH 43604
P 419.254.5243
F 419.242.0316
P 419.254.5243 | F 419.242.0316
Overview
Denise has handled multiple trials to verdict in numerous Ohio trial courts and argued dozens of appeals in state, federal and the Ohio Supreme Court. She focuses her practice on commercial business disputes involving torts, unfair competition, real property disputes, contracts, employment claims and shareholder disputes. She has substantial experience obtaining and defending claims for injunctive relief. For more than three decades, she has devoted a significant portion of her practice to issues facing the electric public utility industry. She also regularly counsels and defends national and small businesses in employment matters, contract disputes, and other issues facing their businesses.
Experience
- Lead trial counsel in dozens of jury and bench trials involving employment, business disputes and torts of all kinds
- Lead counsel in a case that established a bright line test for the age difference of a significantly younger employee in age discrimination; the decision was selected by Ohio Lawyers Weekly and Michigan Lawyers Weekly as one of the six most important judicial decisions in federal courts in Ohio and Michigan that year
- Argued over 40 cases in multiple Ohio appellate district courts and at the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals
- Participated in oral arguments and briefing on 5 occasions at the Ohio Supreme Court including a key decision defining the jurisdiction of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio for service related issues
- Assisted on litigation team obtaining successful result for Northwest Ohio hospital system in Federal Court antitrust litigation
- Successfully defended a claim by a former employee of publicly traded company seeking millions of dollars for indemnification for legal fees to defend his own criminal charges
- Successful results obtained in numerous disputes involving fiduciary duties owed to minority shareholders
- Multiple favorable outcomes on contractual disputes for businesses through settlement, motions for summary judgments, injunctive relief, trial and appeal
- Injunctive relief obtained in multiple cases for one of nation’s largest public utilities seeking to site and maintain transmission lines
Services
- Oil, Gas & Mineral Rights
- Construction & Real Estate Litigation
- Liability Defense
- Business and Commercial Litigation
- Appellate
Industries
Education
- The University of Toledo College of Law, J.D.
-
The University of Toledo,
B.S.B.A.
- magna cum laude
Credentials
Bar Admissions
- Ohio
Court Admissions
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Claims, Washington, D.C.
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of Indiana
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of Indiana
- U.S. Supreme Court
Clerkships
- Judicial Law Clerk, Lucas County Ohio Common Pleas Court
Recognitions
- Served as in-house counsel for 15 years for the nation's fourth largest public utility; supervising its legal team in NW Ohio
- AV® Preeminent™ rating from Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory
- Named to The Best Lawyers in America® for Employment Law - Management (2012-2025)
- Named Toledo "Lawyer of the Year" by The Best Lawyers in America® for Employment Law - Management (2019, 2021, 2025)
- Selected as an "Ohio Super Lawyer" by Ohio Super Lawyers magazine (Most years since 2005)
- Toledo Women's Bar Association, Arabella Babb Mansfield Woman of the Year Award (1999)
Affiliations
Community Affiliations
- Mercy Health, NW Ohio Region - Board of Trustees (Toledo, Ohio 2006–2018) operating seven hospitals, including the largest Level I trauma hospital in NW Ohio (now known as Bon Secours Mercy Health), Board Chair 2015-2017
- Member, Mercy Health – Toledo Foundation Board of Trustees, Corporate Board Liaison (2017 – 2019)
- Member, Bon Secours Mercy Health Audit & Corporate Responsibility Committee (2017–2022). Bon Secours Mercy Health (Marriotsville, MD) operating 43 hospitals with over 57,000 employees across 7 states
- Member, Lucas County, Republican Ohio Judicial Selection Advisory Committee (2020-present)
- Member, Notre Dame Academy Board of Trustees (2011-2017)
- Member, Sunshine Inc. of NW Ohio Foundation Board of Trustees (2019-2023) serving individuals with special needs
- Member, Bittersweet Farms Inc. Board of Trustees (2000-2009) impacting lives of people with autism. Foundation President (2006-2009)
- YWCA, Board Member (1995-2001), President (1997-1999)
Insights
Alerts
Litigation Impacts that Ohio HB 606 Will Have on Helping Ohio Businesses Defend against COVID-Related Transmission (Oct 26, 2020)
Supreme Court of Ohio Tolls Litigation Deadlines and Timelines (Mar 29, 2020)
New Ohio Law Tolls Statutes of Limitations and Deadlines in Civil Lawsuits Due to COVID-19 (Mar 27, 2020)
Coronavirus Business Interruption (Mar 13, 2020)
Federal Appeals Court Strikes Down Key Obamacare Rule (Dec 19, 2019)
Articles
Indemnity in Construction Agreements: Preserving the Site Owner's Rights - Tort Law Journal of Ohio (2006)
Partnering for Success in Employment Cases: The Attorney's Role - Aspatore Books (2006)
Presentations
“2017 Roetzel Labor & Employment Law Breakfast Briefings” - Roetzel's Labor & Employment Law Seminar Series (2017)
"The ADA: An Update & a Warning" - American Payroll Association (2016)
"Defining Leadership in the Law" - Toledo Women’s Bar Association Spring CLE (2015)
"Emerging Trends in ADA" - Lawline (2014)
“The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 Twenty Years Down the Road” - American Payroll Association (2013)
Firm News
Nine Roetzel Attorneys Named Best Lawyers 2025 “Lawyer of the Year” (Aug 15, 2024)
100 Roetzel Attorneys Named 2025 Best Lawyers®, “Ones to Watch” (Aug 15, 2024)
Roetzel & Andress Earns Recognition in 2024 Best Lawyers (Aug 17, 2023)
Roetzel Attorneys Recognized in 2023 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America® (Aug 18, 2022)
74 Roetzel Attorneys Named 2022 Best Lawyers in America®; 18 Recognized as Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch (Aug 19, 2021)
Services
- Oil, Gas & Mineral Rights
- Construction & Real Estate Litigation
- Liability Defense
- Business and Commercial Litigation
- Appellate
Industries
Overview
Denise has handled multiple trials to verdict in numerous Ohio trial courts and argued dozens of appeals in state, federal and the Ohio Supreme Court. She focuses her practice on commercial business disputes involving torts, unfair competition, real property disputes, contracts, employment claims and shareholder disputes. She has substantial experience obtaining and defending claims for injunctive relief. For more than three decades, she has devoted a significant portion of her practice to issues facing the electric public utility industry. She also regularly counsels and defends national and small businesses in employment matters, contract disputes, and other issues facing their businesses.
Experience
- Lead trial counsel in dozens of jury and bench trials involving employment, business disputes and torts of all kinds
- Lead counsel in a case that established a bright line test for the age difference of a significantly younger employee in age discrimination; the decision was selected by Ohio Lawyers Weekly and Michigan Lawyers Weekly as one of the six most important judicial decisions in federal courts in Ohio and Michigan that year
- Argued over 40 cases in multiple Ohio appellate district courts and at the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals
- Participated in oral arguments and briefing on 5 occasions at the Ohio Supreme Court including a key decision defining the jurisdiction of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio for service related issues
- Assisted on litigation team obtaining successful result for Northwest Ohio hospital system in Federal Court antitrust litigation
- Successfully defended a claim by a former employee of publicly traded company seeking millions of dollars for indemnification for legal fees to defend his own criminal charges
- Successful results obtained in numerous disputes involving fiduciary duties owed to minority shareholders
- Multiple favorable outcomes on contractual disputes for businesses through settlement, motions for summary judgments, injunctive relief, trial and appeal
- Injunctive relief obtained in multiple cases for one of nation’s largest public utilities seeking to site and maintain transmission lines
Education
- The University of Toledo College of Law, J.D.
-
The University of Toledo,
B.S.B.A.
- magna cum laude
Credentials
Bar Admissions
- Ohio
Court Admissions
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Claims, Washington, D.C.
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of Indiana
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of Indiana
- U.S. Supreme Court
Clerkships
- Judicial Law Clerk, Lucas County Ohio Common Pleas Court
Recognitions
- Served as in-house counsel for 15 years for the nation's fourth largest public utility; supervising its legal team in NW Ohio
- AV® Preeminent™ rating from Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory
- Named to The Best Lawyers in America® for Employment Law - Management (2012-2025)
- Named Toledo "Lawyer of the Year" by The Best Lawyers in America® for Employment Law - Management (2019, 2021, 2025)
- Selected as an "Ohio Super Lawyer" by Ohio Super Lawyers magazine (Most years since 2005)
- Toledo Women's Bar Association, Arabella Babb Mansfield Woman of the Year Award (1999)
Affiliations
Community Affiliations
- Mercy Health, NW Ohio Region - Board of Trustees (Toledo, Ohio 2006–2018) operating seven hospitals, including the largest Level I trauma hospital in NW Ohio (now known as Bon Secours Mercy Health), Board Chair 2015-2017
- Member, Mercy Health – Toledo Foundation Board of Trustees, Corporate Board Liaison (2017 – 2019)
- Member, Bon Secours Mercy Health Audit & Corporate Responsibility Committee (2017–2022). Bon Secours Mercy Health (Marriotsville, MD) operating 43 hospitals with over 57,000 employees across 7 states
- Member, Lucas County, Republican Ohio Judicial Selection Advisory Committee (2020-present)
- Member, Notre Dame Academy Board of Trustees (2011-2017)
- Member, Sunshine Inc. of NW Ohio Foundation Board of Trustees (2019-2023) serving individuals with special needs
- Member, Bittersweet Farms Inc. Board of Trustees (2000-2009) impacting lives of people with autism. Foundation President (2006-2009)
- YWCA, Board Member (1995-2001), President (1997-1999)
Insights
Alerts
Litigation Impacts that Ohio HB 606 Will Have on Helping Ohio Businesses Defend against COVID-Related Transmission (Oct 26, 2020)
Supreme Court of Ohio Tolls Litigation Deadlines and Timelines (Mar 29, 2020)
New Ohio Law Tolls Statutes of Limitations and Deadlines in Civil Lawsuits Due to COVID-19 (Mar 27, 2020)
Coronavirus Business Interruption (Mar 13, 2020)
Federal Appeals Court Strikes Down Key Obamacare Rule (Dec 19, 2019)
Articles
Indemnity in Construction Agreements: Preserving the Site Owner's Rights - Tort Law Journal of Ohio (2006)
Partnering for Success in Employment Cases: The Attorney's Role - Aspatore Books (2006)
Presentations
“2017 Roetzel Labor & Employment Law Breakfast Briefings” - Roetzel's Labor & Employment Law Seminar Series (2017)
"The ADA: An Update & a Warning" - American Payroll Association (2016)
"Defining Leadership in the Law" - Toledo Women’s Bar Association Spring CLE (2015)
"Emerging Trends in ADA" - Lawline (2014)
“The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 Twenty Years Down the Road” - American Payroll Association (2013)
Firm News
Nine Roetzel Attorneys Named Best Lawyers 2025 “Lawyer of the Year” (Aug 15, 2024)
100 Roetzel Attorneys Named 2025 Best Lawyers®, “Ones to Watch” (Aug 15, 2024)
Roetzel & Andress Earns Recognition in 2024 Best Lawyers (Aug 17, 2023)
Roetzel Attorneys Recognized in 2023 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America® (Aug 18, 2022)
74 Roetzel Attorneys Named 2022 Best Lawyers in America®; 18 Recognized as Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch (Aug 19, 2021)