Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, continuing to expand in the Midwest, has opened an office in Columbus, Ohio, where the firm’s newest shareholders are see growing employment litigation.

Led by shareholders Samuel Lillard and Mathew Parker, who joined from Fisher Phillips on Sept. 12, this marks the firm’s second Ohio location, after the firm’s Cleveland office. Currently, Lillard and Parker are the only attorneys in the office, but Lillard said the firm is looking to grow the office to eight to 12 employees “as quickly as we can.”

“Central Ohio and Columbus is becoming a hotbed of business growth,” Lillard said in an interview. “There’s a lot of activity. There’s a lot of understanding among businesses that central Ohio is a great growth opportunity given its potential and its location. Ogletree has recognized that there’s an opportunity here and we are excited about rapidly growing their new Columbus office right here in central Ohio.”