Christopher Massaroni is a trial attorney with experience in many substantive areas, including complex commercial disputes, personal injury and product liability cases, class action litigation, employment matters, construction claims and challenges to the authority of New York State officials. He has successfully litigated cases in federal and state courts throughout New York State, and in numerous other states and he often appears before New York State agencies and investigative bodies.
Chris regularly represents businesses, individuals, public officials and governmental entities in sensitive and contested matters, involving novel cases presenting unique issues of law. His class action experience includes the defense of data breach claims, claims against retailers, and wage and hour claims. He often addresses insurance issues, including coverage disputes and claims of bad faith, and represents a major New York medical malpractice insurance carrier.
Chris has extensive experience in the litigation of corporate disputes, including those involving claims of shareholders, ownership disputes, allegations of breach of fiduciary duty and intellectual property issues. He also represents management in a variety of labor and employment matters, including discrimination and wrongful termination claims, grievances and claims of unlawful union activities.
In the personal injury field, Chris has been selected by many national corporations to handle their self-insured personal injury defense claims in Upstate New York, including mass tort and complex product liability cases. He also represents accident victims in wrongful death and major injury cases, and has recovered many millions of dollars on behalf of those clients.
Chris is a contributing author to a Matthew Bender publication, Personal Injury Defense Techniques. Because of his expertise in the areas of litigation, trial techniques, corporate disputes and employment matters, Chris is often a speaker at continuing legal education seminars on these topics.
Prior to joining Hodgson Russ, Chris was a shareholder at the law firm of McNamee Lochner.
Some of Chris's representative work includes:
- Deceptive Sales Practices: Representation of a retail company in the defense of class action claims alleging deceptive sales practices. (NYS Supreme Court, Kings County). Matter handled prior to joining Hodgson Russ.
- Litigation Involving Replacement of Bridge: Representation of a New York State-based project financing board and its members in litigation relating to the funding for the replacement of a bridge located in New York City. (NYS Supreme Court, Albany County). Matter handled prior to joining Hodgson Russ.
- Major Injury Case: Representation of a teenager who suffered a traumatic brain injury in a major automobile crash (settlement in excess of $1 million). Matter handled prior to joining Hodgson Russ.
- Representation of Nursing Home in Enforcement Proceeding Before New York State Health Department: Hodgson Russ represented a New York nursing home in an enforcement proceeding before the New York State Health Department arising out of the actions of one of its professional staff members. We marshalled the evidence, represented the nursing home in an administrative hearing before the Health Department and submitted post-hearing briefing on the legal issues. The matter represents a case of first impression in New York relating to the authority of the Health Department to assert civil penalties against a nursing home on a theory of vicarious liability, based solely on the actions of a noncompliant staff member, and under circumstances in which the facility itself complied with the regulatory requirements.
- Share Ownership Dispute: Representation of the trustee of a testamentary trust in a dispute as to the ownership of shares of a long-time family business. (NYS Supreme Court, Appellate Division, Third Department). Matter handled prior to joining Hodgson Russ.
- Trademark Infringement Matter: Representation of a technology company in the prosecution of claims of trademark infringement, cyberpiracy and unfair competition. (U.S. District Court, Northern District of New York). Matter handled prior to joining Hodgson Russ.
- Wage and Class Hour Class Action Matter: Representation of a company and its owners in defense of class action claims accusing the company of violating federal and state wage and hour laws. (U.S. District Court, Northern District of New York). Matter handled prior to joining Hodgson Russ.
Recognitions
- Listed, Best Lawyers in America (Commercial Litigation) 2015 - 2024
- Listed, Upstate New York Super Lawyers (Business Litigation) 2010 - 2023
- Fellow, New York State Bar Foundation
- Martindale Hubbell AV Rating
News & Insights
Professional
- New York State Bar Association
- American Association for Justice
- New York State Trial Lawyers Association
- National Association of Dealer Counsel
- Federation of Defense & Corporate Counsel
Highlights
- AlertWordle vs. Worldle: Trademark Infringement Isn’t Just a Word Game
- AlertUsing a Printed Publication to Attack a Patent? Recent Decisions Underscore Importance of "Public Accessibility"
AlertSupreme Court Resolves Split Among The Circuits: No Time Limits on Monetary Recovery for any Timely Copyright Infringement Claim