Brian Patrick Kopp
Attorney Brian Kopp, one of the founders of Betras, Kopp & Harshman, LLC, serves as managing partner of the firm’s Litigation Department. A native of Youngstown, Ohio, Atty. Kopp is now based in the firm’s Tampa, Florida office.
A Magnum Cum Laude graduate of Bethany University, Brian holds a BS Degree in Mathematics. He earned his Juris Doctorate at Capital University in Columbus, Ohio and participated in Ohio University’s honors program in Sports Administration. Upon graduating from Capital, Brian was offered and accepted a clerkship in the office of U.S. District Court Judge Peter Economus.
Following his clerkship, he began working as an associate attorney in the office of the law firm that would eventually become Betras, Kopp & Harshman. During his first month of practice he served as lead counsel and won a case against All State insurance in Federal Court. In 1999, at the age of 29, Attorney Kopp won his first wrongful death verdict in the case Katherine Biles v. Warren General Hospital.
From 1999-2009 Attorney Kopp amassed an impressive record of success in a number of legally significant cases including United States vs. Russell Saadey, Jr., Mays vs Allstate, The Estate of Daniel Aldrich vs. American Manufacturers, The Estate of Darlene Ross vs. St. Elizabeth Hospital, The Estate of Victoria Rendano vs. St. Elizabeth Hospital, and Randy Graham vs. Werner Enterprises. A number of these cases resolved disputed principles of law within their respective jurisdictions. The monetary awards obtained in Ross, Rendano, and Graham rank among the largest in cases of their kind in Northeast Ohio. Over the past 18 months, Atty. Kopp has secured settlements exceeding $16,000,000 for BKH clients.
Along with his work in the personal injury field, Attorney Kopp has successfully represented various business entities in cases brought by the United States Justice Department and State Attorneys General.
Attorney Kopp also gained extensive sports law experience while working as an executive officer and Authorized House Counsel for DeBartolo Sports from 2007 until 2012. During his time at the company, which was founded by former San Francisco owner Edward DeBartolo, Jr. in 2005, Brian handled the sale of various divisions of the company and aided in the acquisition of entities that are now the foundation of DeBartolo Sports and Events. Today, his sports law practice is focused on negotiating contracts for college and professional football coaches.
As managing partner of BKH’s litigation department, he is responsible for the preparation and presentation at trial of the firm’s most challenging and complex cases as well as related appellate work. He has argued before the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, Ohio’s Seventh and Eleventh District Courts of Appeals and has been admitted pro hoc vice for litigation purposes in Michigan, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and California.
Attorney Kopp has been the recipient of numerous honors and awards. In 2000 he was named Trial Lawyer of the Year for Mahoning and Trumbull counties in Ohio. In 2004 his work on Graham vs. Werner was the subject of a feature story in Lawyers Weekly. That same year he was listed as one of America’s Top 100 Lawyers by the American Trial Lawyers Association.
Attorney Kopp is a member of the American Bar Association, the Florida Bar Association, the Ohio Bar Association and the Ohio Academy of Trial Lawyers. He has also been selected on two occasions to serve on the Merit Selection Panel for United States magistrate judges for the Northern District of Ohio.
Attorney Kopp, his spouse Lori and their seven daughters Julia, Ally, Olivia, Emma, Ava, Audrey, and Amelia reside in the Tampa area.
Areas of Practice
- Complex Business and Civil Litigation
- Personal Injury
- Medical Malpractice
- Wrongful Death
- Sports Law
Education
- Capital University Law School, Columbus, Ohio, 1995
- Juris Doctor
- Honors: Joint Program, Capital University School of Law Ohio University, 1996
- Honors: Joint Program, Ohio University’s School of Sports Administration
- Major: Sports Administration
- Major: Facility Management Bethany College, 1992
- Bachelor of Science
- Honors: Magna Cum Laude
- Major: Mathematics
Court Admissions
- Florida State Courts
- U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio
- U. S. District Court of the Southern District of Ohio
- Ohio State Courts
Honors and Awards
- 2000: “Trial Lawyer of the Year”, Mahoning-Trumbull Counties Academy of Trial Lawyers
- 2004: Listed as one of America’s Top 100 Lawyers by the American Trial Lawyers Association
Professional Associations and Memberships
- American Bar Association
- Florida Bar Association
- Ohio Bar Association
- Ohio Academy of Trial Lawyers
- American Association for Justice
- Mahoning-Trumbull Counties Academy of Trial Lawyers
Past Employment Positions
- U.S. District Judge Peter C. Economus, Federal Law Clerk
- Betras & Dann, Associate Attorney
- Austintown Fitch High School, Quarterback Coach
- Athletic Department at Youngstown State University, Temporary Special Legal Assistant