Attorney Tony Manna proud to be a leader of downtown revival at Carnegie Building
Success of law firm credited to specialists
By Katie Byard
Beacon Journal business writer
Published on Sunday, Jul 04, 2010
The 1904 Carnegie Building at East Market and North High streets in downtown Akron. (Phil Masturzo/Akron Beacon Journal)
Tony Manna is known for helping to bring the Aeros minor-league baseball team to Akron. But it is the quiet growth of the 10-year-old Brennan, Manna & Diamond LLC law firm — and its presence in downtown Akron — that Manna and other firm lawyers celebrated last week.
''Other law firms have moved out,'' said Manna, who opened the business-focused law firm July 1, 2000. He said he's told the firm's lawyers ''they will always be downtown.''
That promise is no small thing considering that in 2006, one of the area's highest-profile law firms, Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs LLP, moved to Fairlawn.
Manna said his firm, in the historic Carnegie Building across from the Akron Art Museum, began with seven attorneys and now has 50. That number includes those who work in Florida, in offices in Jacksonville and Bonita Springs.
In Akron, Manna and developer Michael Oravecz bought the stately sandstone Carnegie Building at East Market and North High streets in 1999 from the city for $2.5 million.
The city had obtained the 1904 structure — originally a Carnegie library —from law firm Roetzel and Andress, which moved to the nearby O'Neil's Building.
Now that the firm is established, the downtown locale is not as significant, Manna said. But early on, he said, ''it really benefited us. It helped put us on the map.''
Manna founded his firm with his mentor Akron entrepreneur David Brennan and Jack Diamond, an expert in health-care law who had been with Buckingham Doolittle. Brennan no longer practices law.
Manna and Diamond — who are neighbors — wanted to practice business law, as well as put together deals in which they and firm lawyers could participate.
''We don't do anything at all that competes with our clients,'' Manna said.
Manna said he and Diamond wanted to create investment opportunities for firm lawyers ''to build wealth — not just income.''
This emphasis on entrepreneurism, Manna said, helps firm lawyers ''understand the risks their clients are taking every day.''
Diamond said another plus is the firm gets some built-in clients.
He has ownership in hospitals, diagnostic facilities and surgery centers, including White Pond Surgery Center in West Akron.
Manna is chairman of Signet Enterprises LLC — a built-in client — that also is based in the Carnegie Building,
Signet is known locally for real-estate projects, including the SummaCare Health building at Main and Market streets downtown.
Manna credits a lot of the law firm's success to having specialists in a wide range of business/corporate areas and staying away from plaintiff work — such as divorce and personal injury cases.
The law firm's practice areas include environmental litigation, health care, hospital law, mergers and acquisitions and intellectual property.
Despite the recession, Manna said, the firm's revenues have increased each year; it has not had to trim personnel, as other law firms have done.
''It's been a lot of fun,'' Manna said. ''I take a lot of pride to see how it's growing in Akron.''
