In the first months of the coronavirus pandemic, Grandview Heights attorney Ed Hastie was overwhelmed by calls and messages from owners of bars and restaurants.
His clients were frantic as health orders and curfews began to restrict operations and cut into their already narrow profit margins. Uncertainty in all business tends toward mayhem, Hastie said. That mayhem eventually bled into his practice as eateries were forced to shut down, existing clients were unable to pay for his services and new business dried up. I brought in three new clients in 57 days, Hastie said. This year has been incredibly trying on me as a lawyer, both emotionally and financially. At the outset of the shutdown my work basically ceased.