Barbara B. Edelman

Partner
P: (859) 425-1010
F: (859) 425-1099
Barbara Edelman has extensive complex litigation experience. She focuses on commercial litigation and many types of business disputes. The matters litigated include contract disputes, fiduciary duty claims, lender liability, fraud, negligent misrepresentation, trade secrecy and financial class actions in state and federal courts.  She also advises clients in employment-related matters, and has litigated many Title VII, wrongful discharge, non-competition and employment-related cases.

Over the course of her career, Barbara has appeared in all of the federal district courts in Kentucky, numerous Kentucky circuit courts throughout the state and in courts of other jurisdictions. She has tried more than 50 jury trials in state and federal courts and has handled more than 30 appeals to the Kentucky Court of Appeals, Kentucky Supreme Court and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.

Barbara is the 2012 recipient of the Fayette County Bar Association's highest honor, the Henry T. Duncan Award. This award recognizes a member of the bar whose integrity, leadership and professional conduct exemplifies the highest ethical and professional standards that benefit the community.

Barbara is listed in The Best Lawyers in America in appellate law, Bet-the-Company, and commercial litigation. She has also been selected by Chambers & Partners - Chambers USA in commercial litigation, Kentucky's Super Lawyers for 2011, Kentucky's Super Lawyers for 2011 Top 25 Women, Kentucky's Super Lawyers for 2011 Top 50 Lawyers in the State, and Benchmark Litigation as a "Local Litigation Star", as well as a Top 250 Women in Litigation in the nation. 

In 2009, she was selected as a "Leading Woman in Central Kentucky by Business Lexington, and the Lane Reports' "Top Women in Business." She is a frequent speaker on litigation and evidentiary issues. She also serves on the Joint Rules Committee for the Eastern and Western Districts of Kentucky and has previously served on the Merit Selection Panel for the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals to recommend nominees for the Bankruptcy Court of the Eastern District of Kentucky and on the Merit Selection Panel to select a federal magistrate judge for the Eastern District of Kentucky. She previously served as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky and served on the Department of Justice's Economic Fraud Commission. Barbara was also the head of the Coal Fraud Task Force for the Eastern District of Kentucky.

Memberships & Affiliations

  • Joint Local Rules Committee for the Eastern and Western Districts of Kentucky
  • Merit Selection Panel for the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals Bankruptcy Court
  • Merit Selection Panel for Magistrate/Judge for the Eastern District of Kentucky at London
  • Federal Bar Association
  • Supreme Court Historical Society
  • LexArts, Board Member
  • Kentucky Bar Association 2008 Convention Planning Committee
  • Kentucky Bar Association, Chairman of Marketing and Communications Sub-committee
  • Fayette County Women's Bar Association, former President
  • Kentucky Bar Association, former service on Code of Evidence Task Force, Convention CLE Committee, Law Day Committee, Instructions Committee, Judicial Evaluation Task Force
  • Kentucky Bar Association for Women, former Treasurer
  • Fayette County Bar Association, former service on Committee on Court Efficiency, Committee for Courthouse Building, Nominating Committee
  • University of Kentucky Law School Alumni Association, past President
  • Governor's Counsel on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Civil Remedies Committee, former member
  • Lexington Journal Club - 14 Attorney Membership
  • St. Ives Journal Club - 18 Attorney Membership - Chancellor

Distinctions

  • Recipient of the 2012 Henry T. Duncan Award, the highest honor of the Fayette County Bar Association
  • Named “Lawyer of the Year” in Lexington for Bet-the-Company Litigation by The Best Lawyers in America®, 2012, 2013 
  • Named to national "Top 250 Women in Litigation" by Benchmark Litigation
  • Peer Review Rated AV in Martindale-Hubbell
  • Listed in the Lane Report "Top Women in Business"
  • Listed in The Best Lawyers in America® since 1995
  • Selected for the Kentucky Super Lawyers® List
  • Selected Kentucky Super Lawyer Top 25 Women by Law & Politics since 2008
  • Selected Kentucky Super Lawyer Top 50 Lawyer by Law & Politics
  • Ranked in Chambers USA Guide to America's Leading Business Lawyers
  • Named a "Local Litigation Star" in Benchmark Litigation