Bart L. Greenwald

A man in a suit and tie is smiling for the camera.

In Memoriam: Bart L. Greenwald


It is with deep fondness and admiration that we remember our friend, colleague, and founding Member, Bart L. Greenwald, whose leadership, integrity, and commitment to the legal profession helped shape Duncan Galloway Greenwald PLLC from its very beginning.


Bart was a Louisville native and a seasoned litigator who brought a successful commercial litigation practice from an AM Law 200 firm to become a founding Member of Duncan Galloway Greenwald PLLC.


Throughout his career, Bart counseled local, national and international corporations in matters involving breach of contract, fraud, negligence, the UCC, defamation and sales disputes, representing both plaintiffs and defendants. His experience also included complex arbitration

and mediation matters, where he represented Fortune 500 companies as well as local small and medium-size businesses.


Bart was a trained mediator who successfully completed an AOC-sanctioned 40-hour course in the facilitation method of mediation. He brought that training, along with his considerable experience in negotiation and evaluative mediation techniques, to the many matters in which he served his clients.


At DGG, Bart led the firm’s litigation practice. Earlier in his career, he served as Vice Chair of Frost Brown Todd’s Complex Litigation Group and Chair of the firm’s Financial Institutions Litigation Group. His leadership extended well beyond the firms where he practiced. At the national level, prior to his passing, Bart was one of only two Kentucky lawyers serving in the leadership of the American Bar Association Section of Litigation, having been elected by his peers to the organization’s governing board. He was also elected by his peers to serve as chair of the Kentucky Bar Association Civil Litigation Section. Among his many professional honors, Bart was also named the University of Louisville Brandeis School of Law Alumni Fellow (Alumni of the Year) in 2021.


Bart believed deeply in giving back to his community, particularly through the legal profession. In 2015, he founded Project H.E.L.P. – Louisville, a program that trains, funds and mobilizes local attorneys to assist people experiencing homelessness with their legal needs. That work

earned him recognition as a 2015 Outstanding Volunteer Lawyer by the Legal Aid Society of Louisville. Bart later served as Board Chair of the Legal Aid Society, continuing his commitment to ensuring that members of the community had access to legal assistance.


Bart’s impact reached far beyond his work as a lawyer. He was a mentor, colleague, advocate and friend to many, and he brought the same commitment and generosity to his relationships that he brought to his practice. His contributions to DGG, the legal profession and the Louisville community will endure, as will the memory of the person behind them.


Remembering Bart –by Amrbose “Abe” O’Bryan


There are people you will meet in the course of your life and then forget. Bart Loveman Greenwald was not that person. You met him once and somehow you were pulled into his orbit. A gift, a knack, whatever you want to call it, Bart had an innate ability to connect with people. It was a currency he valued more than money, and he spent it generously on everyone who crossed his path.


He was a talented lawyer, a consummate litigator and truly one of the best many of us will ever work beside. But if you only knew him as a lawyer you did not really know Bart. He cared about his clients, yes, but he also cared about the overworked colleague, the young associate who

needed help or an opportunity to prove themselves, the paralegal who didn’t know how to do something, or the friend going through a hard stretch.


But beyond the law, Bart cared deeply about the stranger who needed help and had no one else to ask. He encouraged others to care about that stranger, and it was never just talk. Bart didn’t just write checks and move on hoping for the best. He gave his time and his talents to help organizations like Court Appointed Special Advocates, Legal Aid, and Project H.E.L.P. grow and thrive because he believed in their missions. He was never just a name on a letterhead or a face at a gala. He was a doer.


He loved golf, Louisville athletics, a good cup of coffee and rest assured that whatever Bart did he did it all the way and brought people along with him. He loved few things as much as he loved showing someone else how to have a good time or giving them all the tips and tricks to having a perfect vacation. He loved life and knew how to enjoy it.


He adored his family. He was madly, unmistakably, and hopelessly in love with his wife, Deborah. He was a doting father to Walker, ever-present, always proud, and always willing to indulge.


For those of us he mentored, and there are many, Bart was the person who believed in us before we had done anything to earn it. He gave people their start, he stayed in their corner, and he made us better lawyers. More than that, he showed us the kind of people we ought to

try to be.


We love him and we will miss him every day. The truest tribute any of us can pay to Bart is to pay it forward in the same currency he cherished and to care for people the way he did. That’s a heavy lift but even making the effort to do so would make this community, and the world, a better place.


Bart will be sorely missed but his legacy lives on not only in the work he accomplished, but in the people he inspired, the lives he touched, and the example he left for all of us to follow.

REPRESENTATIVE CASES


Capital Holdings 234, LLC v Advocate Consulting Group, PLLC (E.D. KY 2017), Won full dismissal by U.S. District Court in breach of contract and professional malpractice matter. Decision helped establish precedent concerning claims made outside of contract pursuant to “independent duty” rule and how to avoid such claims.


Butchertown Neighborhood Ass’n et al. v. JBS USA, LLC, et al., Kentucky Court of Appeals 2015). Affirmed lower court decision for client pork- producing plant against neighborhood association that upheld grant of modified conditional use permit.


Ragle v. Monticello Banking Company (W.D. KY 2014). Won full dismissal on summary judgment for community bank on claims of bank mishandling account funds, including violations of Reg O, Unfair and Deceptive Practices Act, RESPA and UCC.


Cogent Solutions Group, LLC v. Hyalogic, LLC, 712 F.3d 305 (6th Cir. 2013). Won U.S. District Court opinion and 6th Circuit appeal in breach of contract action against product manufacturer, including award of attorney fees.


Carmical v. Home Federal Bank, Harlan Circuit Court. Jury Trial (2013). Won directed verdict for community bank in tortious interference and fraud action. Upheld by Kentucky Court of Appeals (discretionary review denied by Kentucky Supreme Court).


Camp v. The Muhammad Ali Center, 2012 Jefferson Circuit Court. Won full summary judgment dismissal in breach of contract action against international non- profit agency.


Nelson v. Baker, Kentucky Court of Appeals, 2011. Won reversal for local Baptist church in case involving constitutional law questions regarding church membership and disclosure issues.


Western Kentucky Coca-Cola Bottling Co. v. Red Bull North America, 2010 WL 65029 (W.D. KY. 2010).

Won full summary judgment dismissal for international beverage manufacturer against former distributor in $14 million breach of contract and fraud action.


Sutton v. Hopkins County, 2009 WL 3834069 (W.D. Ky. 2009). Secured a $3 million settlement on behalf of former county inmates who alleged they were improperly strip searched upon entry and release from jail.


Ford v. Beasley, 148 S.W.3d 808 (Ky. Ct. App. 2004). Won breach of contract action to enforce settlement agreement; upheld by Kentucky Court of Appeals (established precedent in Kentucky regarding attorney’s role in settlement negotiations).


Rivermont Inn, Inc. v. Bass Hotels Resorts, 113 S.W.3d 636 (2003) Won full dismissal, which was held up on appeal, in a fraud, promissory estoppel and breach of contract case involving a hotel chain and a potential franchisee (established precedent in Kentucky regarding promissory estoppel issues).


Western Funding, Inc. v. Franklin Career Services, U.S. District Court, Las Vegas, Nevada (2002). Trial. Defense verdict in $1 million breach of contract action between funding source and proprietary school.


Jeffrey v. KFC Foodservice Purchasing Co-op, Jefferson Circuit Court, Jury Trial (2000). Defense verdict in $10 million breach of contract/fraud action against national food purchasing cooperative.


Mall St. Matthews v. DeGrella Tile, Co., Jefferson Circuit Court, Jury Trial (1997). Plaintiff’s verdict in large construction dispute.


PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

  • Duncan Galloway Egan Greenwald, PLLC – January 2016-2026
    Founding Partner, Emeritus
  • Frost Brown Todd, LLC, Louisville, Kentucky – 1994-2015
    Partner 2001-2015
    Associate 1994-2000
  • Sarasota Herald-Tribune, Bradenton, Florida – 1990-1991
    Reporter
  • Bradenton Herald, Bradenton, Florida- 1987-1990
    Reporter


EDUCATION

  • Louis D. Brandeis School of Law, University of Louisville, 1994, J.D., cum laude
  • University of Maryland, College Park, 1987, B.S., Journalism and English


BAR & COURT ADMISSION

  • Kentucky, 1994
  • Sixth Circuit of Appeals, 1998
  • Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, 2003

U.S. District Court

  • Western District of Kentucky, 1995
  • Eastern District of Kentucky, 1995
  • District of Nevada, 2002


PRESENTATIONS AND PUBLICATIONS

  • “‘Good Faith” in the Binary World – American Bar Association, June 2015
  • Practical Tips for Jury Selection in Civil Litigation – Kentucky Bar Association, Louisville, KY, October 2014
  • Rantings of A Partner … and Pushback from the Associate – Editor. ABA Publishing, 2011
  • Directors and Officers Liability: Are you at risk? – Kentucky Bankers Association Spring Convention, April 2010
  • Directors and Officers Liability: A Refresher Course – Louisville Bar Association, February 2010
  • CEO and CFO Banking College – Kentucky Bankers Association, October 2009
  • Harnessing the Winds of Change to Bring Balance and Meaning to the Workplace
  • ABA Annual Conference, New York, NY, August 2008
  • Hiding the Ball – Preparing Expert Reports
  • ABA Annual Conference, San Francisco, CA, August 2007
  • Beyond Zubulake: The Brave New World of Electronic Discovery Revisited
  • ABA Section of Litigation Annual Conference, New York, April 2005
  • Hot Topics in Business Litigation
  • American Bar Association Corporate Counsel Meeting, February 2004
  • Electronic Discovery in Litigation
  • Louisville and Kentucky Bar Associations, June 2002
  • Legal Obligations for Conducting a UCC Search Kentucky Bankers Magazine, March 2008
  • Fidelity Bonds and Manifest Intent Kentucky Bankers Magazine, October 2006
  • A Bank’s Bond Claim: Proving Manifest Intent Can be a Matter of Fact
  • ABA Commercial and Business Litigation Journal, Summer 2003
  • A Bank’s Bond Claim: Proving Manifest Intent Can be a Matter of Fact
  • Kentucky Bankers Magazine, October 2003
  • Trust or Fiduciary: Sallee Give the Courts Good Ammunition to Rule as a Matter of Law
  • Kentucky Bankers Magazine, Summer 2002 Equitable or Promissory Estoppel: An Important Distinction
  • ABA Commercial and Business Litigation Journal, Summer 2001


RECOGNITION

  • AV® Preeminent™ Rated, Martindale- Hubbell®
  • The Best Lawyers in America©, 2012 – 2015
  • Kentucky Super Lawyers®, 2013 – 2023
  • Legal Aid Society of Louisville Outstanding Volunteer Lawyer – 2015


CIVIC/CHARITABLE ORGANIZATIONS & PRO BONO ACTIVITIES

  • The Greenwald Family Endowed Scholarship for Legal Aid – 2019 to present
  • Project H.E.L.P. (Homeless Experience Legal Protection) Louisville – founder, 2015 – present
  • Legal Aid Society of Louisville, Board of Directors, 2016 -present Board Chair 2023 – present
  • Louisville Collegiate School, Board of Trustees, 2008 – 2017
  • Kentucky Derby Festival, Board of Directors, 2006 – 2013
  • Jewish Hospital Healthcare Services, Board of Directors, 2004 – 2006; 2007 – 2012
  • Jewish Heritage Fund for Excellence, Board of Directors, 2012 – 2013
  • Jewish Hospital/Four Courts Senior Center, Board of Directors, 2002 – 2006
  • Leadership Louisville, Class of 2002
  • Leadership Louisville, Board of Directors, 2002 – 2003
  • CASA Project of Jefferson County, President, 2002 – 2003; Vice President, 2001; Board of Directors, 1995 – 2004; Volunteer, 1992 – 2002
  • Louisville Theatrical Association, Board of Directors, 2000 – 2002