Joel K. Dayton
Partner

Education

• J.D., The Ohio State University, Cum Laude, 1977
• B.S., Business Administration, Weber State University, Magna Cum Laude, 1974

Joel Dayton is the Practice Area Coordinator of the firm’s Commercial, Creditors’ Rights, Bankruptcy & Workouts Practice Group, concentrating in the areas of commercial transactions, bankruptcy and creditors’ rights, and secured lending. He is recognized as one of the preeminent lawyers in his field, having been rated by his peers as among the Best Lawyers in America® 2008 - 2012 and has been named Best Lawyers’ 2012 Akron Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law Lawyer of the Year. In addition, Joel is recognized as an Ohio Super Lawyer for 2009 - 2012 and has received an AV® PreeminentTM Peer Review Rating from Martindale-Hubbell*.

During his years of practice, Joel has represented numerous businesses, financial institutions, secured creditors, unsecured creditors, bankruptcy trustees, creditors’ committees, receivers, lessors, debtors and other parties in many of the major commercial bankruptcy cases filed in the Northern District of Ohio and other jurisdictions. He has also served as counsel for numerous banks, businesses, creditors and court appointed receivers in various state court proceedings, both in and outside the State of Ohio. Joel has also lectured and authored materials on a variety of UCC, bankruptcy and creditors’ rights subjects and spoken before various organizations and bar associations, including the regional William J. O’Neill Bankruptcy Institute in Cleveland and the White-Williams Bankruptcy Institute in Akron-Canton.

Joel is a member of the Stark County, Ohio State and American Bar Associations; and for several years has served as a member of the Banking, Commercial and Bankruptcy Law Committee and Bankruptcy Subcommittee of the Ohio State Bar Association. He is also a member of the American Bankruptcy Institute. Joel has been an appointee to the Federal Court Panel of the ADR Program for the Northern District of Ohio for several years, where he has served as an arbitrator and mediator in commercial and bankruptcy related cases. In addition, Joel has served as a neutral arbitrator for the National Arbitration Forum to arbitrate business, commercial and consumer matters in the State of Ohio for several years.

Active in several civic and charitable organizations, Joel has served on the Boards for Habitat for Humanity of Greater Canton and Arts in Stark-The County Arts Council, and as a Trustee for the Canton Symphony Orchestra. Joel is also a 1992 graduate of Leadership Stark County (formerly Leadership Canton).

Direct Line
330.430.5073

Practice Groups

• Commercial-Coordinator
• Creditors’ Rights
• Bankruptcy & Workouts
• Lending
• Business

Admissions

• Ohio Bar, 1977
• U.S. District & Bankruptcy Courts, Northern District of Ohio, 1977
• U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit, 1984
• U.S. District & Bankruptcy Courts, Southern District of Ohio, 2004