Practice Summary
Chris has more than 20 years of successful experience vigorously defending employers and individuals in litigation and other adversarial proceedings. He has represented private, public, and non-profit employers of all sizes:
- Against public entities and private businesses, as well as individual employees and classes of employees
- In hearings, trials and appeals in state and federal courts
- In investigations and administrative proceedings before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the U.S. Department of Labor, the Colorado Civil Rights Division, the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, and other agencies
- In a variety of industries, from health care; to software, telecommunications and other technologies; to manufacturing; to construction
- In mediations and arbitrations
He has defended employers regarding state and federal claims against them for:
- Wrongful discharge
- Sexual, racial, age, national origin, disability, and handicap discrimination, harassment under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 , the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1991, and 42 U.S.C. § 1981, and state law
- Violation of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993
- Unfair labor practices under the National Labor Relations Act
- First Amendment retaliation and Fifth Amendment Due Process violations under 42 U.S.C. § 1983
- Violations of whistleblower protections
- Violation of state and federal wage and hour laws
- Invasion of privacy
- Assault and battery
- Breaches of employment contracts
Representative Cases that Chris has handled include:
- Christie v. Loomis Armored US, Inc. (D. Colo. 2013)
Granting summary judgment to client/employer on claims of sex, age, and disability discrimination, retaliation, and wrongful discharge. - Arakawa v. Carestream Health, Inc. (D. Colo. 2012)
Granting summary judgment to client against current employee for alleged national origin, race and age discrimination. - Murphy v. TXI, Inc., 2006 WL 827308 (D. Colo. 2005)
Granting summary judgment for employer regarding claims under 42 U.S.C. S. 1981, race discrimination, and outrageous conduct; EEOC dismissed its companion case. - Selenke v. Medical Imaging of Colorado, 248 F.3d 1249 (10th Cir. 2001)
Upholding summary judgment for employer/client regarding claims for disability discrimination and failure to accommodate, retaliation,and wrongful discharge. - Robbins v. Jefferson County School Dist. R-1 et al., 186 F.3d 1253 (10th Cir. 1999)
Upholding summary judgment for employer in retaliation claim upholding order of attorney’s fees against plaintiff and her counsel. - Lewis v. Dept. of Health and Hospitals, 1999 WL 448814 (10th Cir. 1999)
Upholding summary judgment for employer in claim for constitutional due process violation. - Palochko v. Manville Corp., 21 F.3d 981 (10th Cir. 1994)
Upholding summary judgment for employer in ADEA reduction-in-force case. - Wolenski v. Manville Corp., 19 F.3d 34, 1994 WL 89797 (10th Cir. 1994)
Upholding summary judgment for employer in ADEA reduction-in-force case.
In addition, he has handled hundreds of disputes that he has helped resolve favorably for his clients, whether before or during litigation.