Christopher G. Mavros is the Chair of the Product Liability Defense Department and focuses his practice on complex civil litigation, both locally and throughout the United States. He routinely handles a wide array of catastrophic injury cases from inception through trial, primarily in the areas of construction, products liability, transportation, and premises liability. Chris is familiar with a broad range of companies of different sizes and specialties. He has represented a variety of companies in complex litigation, including the automotive, heavy equipment and insurance industries, in both state and federal courts.
Chris’ prior experience includes working as national and regional trial counsel for Ford Motor Company and American Honda Motor Co., Inc. on rollover cases and other complex product liability matters. Chris provided successful litigation defense in this capacity, ranging from crashworthiness claims to defective airbag, fuel system and brake system claims.
Chris also worked for several years at a well-respected civil defense firm in Philadelphia, where he acted as one of the lead attorneys of a National Coordinating Counsel team for a national insurance company’s Crane and Heavy Machinery Program. In this role, Chris defended cranes, heavy equipment, and construction companies nationwide by initially responding to the accident and assisting in the investigation, then defending the case through trial. Chris attributes much of his success and expertise in defending heavy equipment and crane companies to the fact that he has been certified in mobile crane operation and safety since 2007.
Chris’ experience also includes litigating advanced product failure claims involving a broad range of products, such as automobiles, medical devices, and industrial equipment. These cases include large scale fires, crashworthiness claims, and gas line explosions. With an extensive background in product failure cases, Chris has considerable knowledge of fire, electrical, and mechanical engineering issues.
Chris is also well experienced in representing businesses in a range of industries dealing with the U.S. Department of Labor in its investigation of reportable incidents such as fatalities and catastrophic injuries. Chris likewise assists businesses in other interactions with OSHA, which include announced/unannounced inspections and imposed citations. Chris is able to provide rapid 24/7 response to any OSHA investigation or inspection, coordinating with the client and acting on its behalf in advance of, during, and subsequent to any interaction with OSHA. Chris likewise represents businesses in the OSHA citation abatement process, where he works to reduce the associated monetary penalty, modify citation classifications, and even have specific citations deleted or vacated altogether. If such citations cannot be resolved informally, Chris handles the litigation of those citations against the Department of Labor to have them vacated, modified, or reduced.
Chris has been named to the Pennsylvania Super Lawyers from 2023 – 2026, the Pennsylvania Rising Stars in 2012 – 2017, and the New Jersey Super Lawyers Rising Stars in 2012. Each year, in both Pennsylvania and New Jersey, no more than 5% of lawyers receive the Super Lawyers distinction and 2.5% for Rising Stars.
Chris sits on the American Lung Association of Philadelphia’s Leadership Board. As a board member, Chris servers as an ambassador for the mission of the American Lung Association- to save lives by improving lung health and preventing lung disease through education, advocacy, and research.
Construction Site Death
Plaintiff was fatally electrocuted when the forklift he was operating at a construction site made contact with live power lines. Chris represented the subcontractor for the project that retained the company for which Plaintiff was employed. Faced with a seven figure settlement demand and allegations that Chris's client allowed hazardous conditions on the work site and did not do enough to ensure safe forklift operation, Chris focused discovery on demonstrating the distinct roles and responsibilities of the contractors and Plaintiff himself, which revealed his client's responsibilities were separate and apart from the forklift operation. This resulted in resolving the case for his client for a nominal amount.
Catastrophic Injury
Plaintiff suffered catastrophic injuries when she was struck by a commercial truck and pinned against another vehicle. Chris was brought in at the close of discovery to represent the owner and operator of the truck that struck Plaintiff. Plaintiff demanded punitive damages and an eight-figure settlement demand, which she increased to a nine-figure demand at the mediation. While liability against his client was very strong, Chris focused on the defense of punitive damages and the weaknesses of Plaintiff's experts during trial preparation and the filing of pre-trial motions. Days before trial, the case settled on favorable terms for Chris's client, more than 80% less than the demand at mediation.
& Events
2022 PLRB’s Eastern Regional Adjusters Conference, Understanding Premises Liability Claims
2022 National Business Institute’s Live Virtual CLE Seminar, ‘Gun Law in Pennsylvania- Session I. State and Federal Firearms Laws: What Attorneys Need to Know and Session II.Liability Concerns for Gun Dealers and Owners
2021 National Business Institute’s Live Virtual CLE Seminar, ‘Gun Law in Pennsylvania: Confidently Navigate the Complexities of Firearm Laws – From the Gun Show to the Holster‘
2020 National Business Institute’s Live Virtual CLE Seminar, ‘Auto Insurance Law 2020: Hot Topics, Trends, and Case Law‘
2018 National Business Institute’s Live CLE Seminar, ‘Damages in Personal Injury
2018 National Business Institute’s Live CLE Seminar, ’Guns, Marijuana, Opioids and Alcoholic Beverages’
2018 National Business Institute’s Live CLE Seminar, ‘Building Your Civil Litigation Skills’
2018 National Business Institute’s Live CLE National Teleconference, ‘Gun Injury and Firearm Accident Cases’
2018 National Business Institute’s Live CLE Seminar, ‘Auto Injuries: Advanced Litigation Strategies’
2018 National Business Institute’s Live CLE Seminar, ‘Gun Law in Pennsylvania – Regulatory and Liability Concerns for Firearms Manufacturers, Sellers and Owners’
2017 Presented to a National Claims Service Provider, ‘Current State of Crane Litigation’
2016 Article: ‘ALERT: The Changing Landscape of Crane Accident Litigation’
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania
U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania
U.S. District Court for New Jersey
Multiple cases by case Pro Hac Vice admissions in Delaware, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Georgia, South Carolina, Maryland, Indiana, Illinois, Virginia and Alabama
Pennsylvania
New Jersey
American Bar Association
Pennsylvania Bar Association
Philadelphia Bar Association
Defense Research Institute
Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law, J.D.
University of California at Santa Barbara, B.A.
Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas Arbitrator
Judge Pro Tempore, First Judicial District
Crane Institute of America, Certified in Mobile Crane Operation and Safety
Bar Association Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Section (TIPS)/ABOTA National Trial Academy