Judge Knepp has served as a U.S. Magistrate Judge for the Northern District of Ohio since 2010. He began his legal career as a law clerk to District Judge John W. Potter (ND Ohio) and was then an attorney in Toledo for 16 years. While in private practice, Judge Knepp had substantial general litigation experience in federal and state courts, including successful trial and appellate level defense of class action litigation and significant exposure tort cases. His experience also included commercial, employment, products liability, and environmental litigation. Additionally, he served for several years as national counsel for the locomotive video evidence program of a class 1 railroad. Having gained a reputation as an effective mediator, Judge Knepp has conducted hundreds of settlement conferences for other judicial officers as well as in his own cases. Additionally, he supervises the grand jury in the western division and has presided over numerous jury and bench trials in both civil and criminal matters. Judge Knepp currently serves as president of the Morrison R. Waite Inn of Court and as chair of the Ohio State Bar Association Federal Courts and Practice Committee.