J. S. "Chris" Christie Jr. - Lawyer in Birmingham, AL

At Bradley, Chris Christie served as leader of Bradleys Insurance Litigation Group, is a member of its Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation, Healthcare, and Litigation Practice Groups, and serves as Co-Chair of its Pro Bono Committee. The American College of Employee Benefits Counsel selected him as a Fellow.

Chris Christie represented fiduciaries, plans, and insurers in ERISA and other employee benefits litigation, as well as represents healthcare providers and managed care organizations. He has handled numerous class actions, False Claims Act cases, multi-district litigation (MDL) cases, and other complex litigation. Many of his cases have involved financial, valuation or statistical experts. Chris also advises clients on matters related to COBRA, HIPAA and other similar laws.

Recent specific matters include the following:

? A judgment in favor of our healthcare provider client after 39 days of trial, where the federal government sought $202,000,000 in trebled damages plus additional civil monetary penalties, having alleged violations of the False Claims Act merely on differences of subjective opinion between the treating physicians and a government paid physician.

? An $18,900,000 settlement representing a class of state employees participating in a 457 plan, working with the Alabama State Personnel Board, where an insurance company allegedly had provided about $13,000,000 in undisclosed payments to the state employees union in exchange for being selected as the plans exclusive investment and administrative services provider.

? A defense verdict in a JAMS arbitration arising from the sale of an insurance company, including a discretionary award of $200,000 as attorneys fees in favor of the firms client and against the insurance company purchaser, where the purchaser alleged the former shareholders had manipulated reserves to inflate the sales price.

? A defense verdict following a trial involving a dispute as to the value of stock purchased by a retirement plan, which included testimony from 27 witnesses and 12 expert witnesses.

? A plaintiffs verdict for $294,000, including $50,000 in punitive damages, against the other physicians in the group practice and in favor of the physician who was squeezed out of the practice.

? A defense judgment following a TRO hearing, a preliminary injunction hearing, and an administrative hearing contesting a hospital CEO's termination for fraud and abuse compliance violations.

? A $30 million settlement following a creative alternative dispute resolution process in which the federal government had calculated compensatory damages, without statutory penalties, as ranging between $150 million to $170 million.

? A new trial for a death row inmate who had spent 24 years on death row.