P Kelly Tompkins

On a broader scale, Tompkins said he hopes the Association can foster collaboration among the various bar associations and legal service providers in the area to help raise awareness of the need to give back to the community. He noted that the Association is in active discussions with leading civic organizations to explore specific ways the Association can lend its institutional voice and the skills and experience of its members to address regional economic development and related government reform. To continue building on the Association's long tradition of civic contribution, Tompkins has tapped former president and Thompson Hine partner Steve Kaufman to help spearhead the organization's participation in broad-based, community-wide stakeholder dialogue programs. Tompkins is only the second corporate general counsel to serve as president in the Cleveland Bar Association's 132-year history. Previously, he served as president-elect (2004), vice president (2003-2004) and trustee (2000-2003). As a member of the executive, fiscal policy and planning committees, Tompkins led a successful capital campaign for the Association that raised funds to offset the cost of the move to its new office space in the Galleria. Tompkins also is a charter fellow and trustee of the Cleveland Bar Foundation, the nonprofit affiliate of the Association. His affiliation with the Association started early in his career, when he worked as a law clerk for the organization during law school. Since 2000, Tompkins has served on the visiting committee of the Cleveland-Marshall College of Law, which he has chaired since 2002. At the invitation of Cleveland State University President Michael Schwartz, Tompkins served on the search committee that recruited Geoff Mearns to be the new dean of the law school. Last month, Tompkins delivered the commencement address to the 107th graduating class of Cleveland-Marshall law school. His contributions to Cleveland State were recognized recently when he received the George B. Davis Award for distinguished service. Tompkins is active in the National Paint & Coatings Association (NPCA), which he serves as chair of the corporate counsel advisory group. In October 2003, he received an industry achievement award for his work in developing the Lead Exposure Warnings and Education and Training Programs Agreement among NPCA, industry and state attorneys general. He is a member of several other professional associations, and is a frequent speaker and panelist on a range of legal- and business-related topics. Tompkins lives in Westlake, Ohio, with his wife, Cathy, and their three daughters. For more information, contact P. Kelly Tompkins, senior vice president, general counsel and secretary, at 330-273-8883 or info@rpminc.com.