Mediator

Chris is a certified Major Claims Unit trial attorney for several national insurance companies and corporations, and has successfully tried dozens of cases during his 13-year career. He is senior partner with one of Oklahoma’s fastest-growing law firms. Chris is AV® rated by Martindale-Hubbell, and concurrently serves as Adjunct Settlement Judge for the federal court in the Northern District of Oklahoma.

At age 17, Chris sustained a back injury during a sporting event and has been a paraplegic for more than 24 years. His personal experience with a tragic injury, combined with his professional experience of litigating claims with major accidents makes him a highly effective mediator in cases involving significant injury.

Areas of Expertise

  • Personal Injury
  • Product Liability
  • Construction Defect and Construction Site Accident
  • Employment Discrimination (Title VII, ADA, ADEA, FMLA)
  • Business Litigation

Education

  • University of Oklahoma–College of Law, Norman, OK
    Juris Doctor, 1995
  • Oral Roberts University-School of Education, Tulsa, OK
    M.Ed. linguistics, 1992
  • Oral Roberts University-Seminary (honors), Tulsa, OK
    M.A. biblical literature, 1991
  • Oral Roberts University, Tulsa, OK
    B.A. theology, 1989

Law School Honors and Awards

  • Order of Barristers
  • National Moot Court Team
  • National Trial Team
  • Jessup International Moot Court Team
  • Assistant Note Editor, American Indian Law Review
  • Instructor, Legal Research and Writing Program–University of Oklahoma College of Law
  • American Inns of Court

Federal Judicial Clerkship

  • 1995-1996 Hon. Jimm L. Hendren, United States District Court,
    W.D. Arkansas, Ft. Smith, AR (Fayetteville Division)

Seminars (Featured Speaker)

  • 1997 OU-Texas Annual Dallas Claims Seminar: “Developments in Bad Faith Law in Oklahoma”
  • 1998 OU-Texas Annual Dallas Claims Seminar: “Insurer’s Duty to Defend”
  • 1999 Dallas Area Employment Seminar: “An Employee’s Right to Privacy in the Workplace”
  • 2000 Lorman Business Institute Seminar: “Current Employment Law”
  • 2000 Annual Oklahoma Claims Adjuster’s Convention: “A Broad Overview of Federal Employment Law”
  • 2000 OU-Texas Annual Dallas Claims Seminar: “What Constitutes Deceptive Acts and Unfair Trade Practices in the Insurance Industry under Texas Law?”

Professional Affiliations

  • Oklahoma Bar Association
  • Tulsa County Bar Association
  • Defense Research Institute (member, construction law committee)
  • Oklahoma Association of Defense Counsel
  • Tulsa Area Human Resources Association
  • American Inns of Court (Hudson Hall Wheaton)

Bar Activities and Awards

  • Recipient, 2001 Oklahoma Bar Association President’s Award for Outstanding Service to the Bar
  • Founder and creator, Lawyers with Physical Challenges, a new section of the Oklahoma Bar Association, 2001 to present

Martindale-Hubbell Rating

  • AV® Peer Review Rated

Published/Reported Cases

  • First Marine Insurance Co. v. Scott et al., 2000
    U.S. App. LEXIS 23452, 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, September 18, 2000
  • Nautilus Insurance Co. v. 8160 South Memorial Drive, L.L.C., 2000
    U.S. App. LEXIS 2570, 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, February 2, 2006

Published Work

  • Co-Author, Is Direct-To-Consumer Advertising Eroding the Learned Intermediary Doctrine? Vol. 41 No. 12 “For The Defense,” published by Defense Research Institute, December, 1999
  • Co-Author, Oklahoma Tort Reform:  Re-form Over Substance?, Okla. Bar Journal, Vol. 76, No. 12, Page 891, April 9, 2005
  • Author, Lawyers with Physical Challenges:  New Committee Moves Forward, Okla. Bar Journal, Vol. 72, No. 26, Page 2495, September 8, 2001.