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Day Ketterer expands into Akron
SHERRY KARABIN
Legal News Reporter
Published: July 29, 2015
It’s happened again. Day Ketterer has added yet another office, this time in downtown Akron.
Located at 520 S. Main St., the office officially got up and running in June after the firm affiliated with the Brunsdon Law Office, owned by attorney Terri Brunsdon.
“The paperwork was in place on Jan. 1, but because it is a unique relationship it took some time to iron out all the details,” said Robert Roland, managing partner at Day Ketterer.
The office includes two attorneys, Terri Brunsdon, a tax attorney and certified public accountant and Ashley Raimondo, an associate.
Roland said the affiliation is all part of the full service law firm’s strategic growth plan as it seeks to expand throughout the state of Ohio.
“We have clients around the state, so the question is where do we put brick and mortar locations,” said Roland.
At the start of 2015, the firm officially merged with the boutique employment and workers’ compensation firm, Andrews & Wyatt, and opened an office in downtown Youngstown at 16 Wick Ave.
“The Akron/Canton area is growing quickly,” said Roland. “Although we now have a strong team of attorneys and paralegals in Hudson as a result of our merger with Andrews & Wyatt, we did not have a location in downtown Akron.
“We already had clients in Akron and wanted to better serve them. We were also in need of some tax depth since some of our well-established tax attorneys are working at their maximum capacity.
“Brunsdon Law served both of those purposes,” said Roland. “Terri is also very outgoing, which is what we need in a new location. Hopefully she will help to attract other attorneys to the office in the future.”
He said the plan is to eventually grow the office to 10 or 20 attorneys, which is what the firm also wants to do in Youngstown.
“The goal was to plant this seed and grow it as we have done in our other offices,” said Roland.
Brunsdon said the affiliation allows her to offer more comprehensive legal services to her clients.
“I handle all types of tax matters and provide business and tax planning advice to area businesses and their owners,” said Brunsdon. “I do not handle matters such as bankruptcies or family law, but with the new affiliation, I now offer those services through other attorneys at the firm.
So I’ve added additional layers of service,” said Brunsdon. “I’ve also freed myself from all the administrative work involved in running your own practice. I no longer have to handle billing and invoicing and, if I need administrative support, I have resources available. The hardest part of being a solo practitioner is the fact that everything falls on you.”
A native of West Virginia, Brunsdon moved to the Akron area in 1989. She received her master’s in tax and juris doctor degrees from The University of Akron. She also holds undergraduate degrees in accounting and computer programming from Fairmont State University in Fairmont, West Virginia.
In Raimondo’s case, she has a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a master of business administration in accountancy from John Carroll University in University Heights, Ohio. She graduated from The University of Akron School of Law last year.
“Ashley started working with me about two years ago,” said Brunsdon. “She is licensed in both Ohio and Pennsylvania so that expands Day Ketterer’s practice into Pennsylvania as well as in Akron.”
Brunsdon said Roland first approached her about affiliating in the summer of 2014.
“It took time to establish the relationship because it was during a busy time in my practice and I wanted time to consider its effect on my practice,” said Brunsdon.
“For a solo practitioner, your concern is potentially losing the freedom to control your practice. You are also concerned with losing the firm’s identity that has already been established and how your clients will respond to moving to a large firm. In our initial discussions, Rob emphasized that Day Ketterer’s goal is to enable an attorney to build on what is already working. They do not want to change the practice but rather build on the success it already has.
“I have found this to be the case,” said Brunsdon. “There is no one looking over my shoulder to micromanage my practice. I am continuing to practice law the same as before.
“Even better, my practice is now reaching a larger platform,” said Brunsdon. “I have greater freedom to focus my time on delivering client services and have not lost any of my established marketing reach.”
With the addition of downtown Akron, Hudson and Youngstown, Day Ketterer now has offices in five locations, including Canton and Toledo.
“This is a win-win situation for everyone’s clients,” said Roland. “We are looking forward to the many benefits that this relationship will bring to the firm, the Akron business community and our growing statewide practice.”