Login | December 05, 2025
Akron Bar President discusses ongoing initiatives and changes
SHERRY KARABIN
Legal News Reporter
Published: December 5, 2025
With the dual goal of increasing membership numbers among younger attorneys and engaging existing members, Akron Bar Association President Brian J. Moore is focused on ushering in new initiatives and overseeing the return of popular ones as he seeks to demonstrate the organization’s ongoing value to members of the legal profession.
“I want to ensure that the bar association continues to thrive by making sure that both existing and prospective members understand the many benefits of membership,” said Moore, a shareholder at Roetzel & Andress.
“In this age of social media and so many other distractions, I am working hard to reach new attorneys in particular, who may not see the bar association’s relevancy in their careers,” said Moore.
“The association has so much to offer, and I want our newest colleagues to experience the camaraderie and fellowship that membership provides.”
Moore began his one-year term on July 1, taking the reins from retired Summit County Common Pleas Court Judge Thomas Teodosio, who supported Moore’s selection as his successor to the board of directors.
“I think very highly of Brian, who has an excellent reputation in the legal community,” said Teodosio, now immediate past president. “He has built up an impressive transactional practice at Roetzel & Andress, where he handles matters such as real estate, banking and financial services.
“I believe those skills will benefit the bar association tremendously, given that we own our building and need to manage our finances carefully,” said Teodosio. “He also has extensive experience on the boards of local nonprofit organizations.
“The bar association is on solid ground, and I have no doubt that Brian will continue to grow the organization as president.”
President-Elect John F. Martin, a member at Brennan Manna Diamond has known Moore since the mid- to late-1980s.
“We have worked together on a number of real estate or financing transactions over the years, and I was always happy to find Brian on the other side of a deal because I knew he would be thorough, reasonable and pleasant to work with,” said Martin.
The two are also neighbors; their kids went to school together and their wives are friends.
They were both members of the bar association’s search committee, which selected the new chief executive officer Cate Kurela.
“Brian provided significant leadership and input,” said Martin, adding he continues to do a “great” job as president.
“He gets to the point of every issue very quickly and is very considerate of all of our members’ thoughts, values and positions,” said Martin.
Born and raised in Dunkirk, New York, Moore majored in music and political science at the State University of New York (SUNY) at Fredonia.
“I did not know what I wanted to do initially,” said Moore. “In high school, I sang and performed in all the plays and musicals so when I first started college I majored in music, but midway through college I added political science as a second major.
“During my fourth year at SUNY, I did an internship in Washington, D.C. at the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities,” he said. “I met a lot of political types at the commission and other students in other internships who were planning to attend law school. That planted the seed in my head that perhaps I should consider law school.
“As someone who sang in choirs before large and small crowds, I learned when to lead and when to follow and ultimately that became a valuable skill as a lawyer and during nonprofit board service.”
After earning his juris doctor from The University of Akron School of Law in 1984, he began his career as an associate at Conway, Barclay, Deyo and Kurant in Cleveland.
“It was a boutique business law firm, and I learned a lot about transactional work,” said Moore.
In 1988 he moved to Roetzel & Andress, and he’s been at the firm ever since.
During his lengthy tenure at Roetzel & Andress, he served as chair of the real estate practice and did a stint as Shareholder-in-Charge of the Akron office.
A longtime member of the Akron Bar Association, Moore has served on the board of directors and as chair of what’s now called the Real Property & Environmental Law Section. He’s also a former member of the grievance investigative subcommittee and is an Akron Bar Foundation fellow.
In addition to the Akron Bar, Moore is a member of the Ohio State Bar Association (OSBA) and was a member of the OSBA Real Property Law Section Council.
Outside of the legal profession, Moore has held various board and officer positions at countless nonprofit organizations.
Some of his current commitments include the Akron Community Foundation (board secretary and co-chair of the community investment committee); Northern Ohio Golf Charities and Foundation (board member and past president); Summit Choral Society (board member and vice president); Downtown Akron Partnership (executive committee and former board chair); Grace House Akron (founding board member and board secretary) and The Sisler McFawn Foundation (distribution committee).
He's also previously served in various capacities at organizations such as Bluecoats Inc. of Summit County, the Red Cross, United Way, the Greenleaf Family Center, Akron Civic Theatre and the Portage Country Club, among many others.
A graduate of Leadership Akron Class 10, he’s been presented with a number of accolades for his efforts including the Leadership Akron Lieberth Community Vision Award, the American Red Cross of Greater Akron and the Mahoning Valley H. Peter Burg Community Leader Award and Greenleaf Family Center’s Betty Dalton Community Service Award.
A resident of Copley Township, Moore and his wife Diana, a retired attorney who last worked as in-house counsel at Summa Health System, have two adult children, both of whom were adopted from Russia.
He sings with the Summit Choral Society and is a cantor at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in Cuyahoga Falls.
As Akron Bar president Moore has welcomed the return of the Perantinides & Nolan Leadership Academy for practicing attorneys.
“The Leadership Academy works generally with younger attorneys to train and support them with valuable skill sets and experiences as they advance to leadership positions in their respective communities,” said Moore.
Another initiative he oversees is the Pathfinders program, which matches law students with volunteer attorney mentors, who work with them one on one and host them at bar association events.
The bar association now offers a single membership plan that includes a variety of benefits ranging from unlimited online and in-person continuing legal education to access to an extensive events calendar.
“They used to offer tiered memberships based on what an attorney was interested in,” said Moore. “I think the jury is still out on whether this format will be more successful, but it certainly does provide a comprehensive set of benefits.”
Moore is also working with the board of directors to explore opportunities to rent excess space to outside tenants within the association’s headquarters, a former historic fire station.
“We have a fair amount of unused space, and this could be a chance to bring in more revenue to support the association,” he said.
The bar features quite a few in-person events for its members, including the very popular “Bocce with the Bar” started by Teodosio about five years ago.
“The bar association is celebrating its 150th anniversary this year and we just held a fun recognition event at the Himelright Lodge in Cascade Valley Metro Park,” said Moore. “It had an Octoberfest theme.”
The 150th celebrations will end with the annual bar foundation gala and raffle, which takes place on Feb. 6, 2026.
Moore said it’s “always a wonderful event” that raises funding so the foundation can continue its “good” works.
“I started this year as president of the association finding myself tasked with filling the position of a wonderful executive director who decided to retire and knowing that we were also celebrating an auspicious 150th anniversary of our founding,” said Moore.
“I credit my predecessor Judge Tom for putting together a wonderful search committee that found the right person in Cate, our new executive director.
“We also set out to continue our engagement with the Akron U law school and its students and looked forward to the rebirth of the Leadership Academy generously supported by and bearing the name of the law firm of Perantinides & Nolan,” said Moore. “That has launched with a tremendous group of attorneys.
“We knew we wanted to celebrate our 150th anniversary in grand style and have done so thanks to the efforts of staff and so many members that have stepped up.”
With about half a year remaining on his term, Moore said he looks forward to continuing to promote the association and its priorities with “the welcomed assistance of Judge Tom and our next president John at my side and with Cate at the helm.
“I really feel that the association has its house in good order!”