Christopher Rojao focuses a significant part of his practice on the defense of claims against clients in the medical device and pharmaceutical industries, as well as claims for professional negligence against laboratory and healthcare facilities. His experience includes defending these clients in multi-district (MDL) and multi-county (MCL) litigations across the country and in New Jersey. Chris is also a key member of the McCarter team that serves as national counsel for medical device product lines of a global life sciences company, defending against product liability claims in more than a dozen states, where he has been admitted pro hac vice. In his representation of these clients, Chris has defended against claims alleging product liability under the New Jersey Product Liability Act and other state equivalents, consumer fraud, breach of warranty, premises liability, public entity liability, professional negligence, wrongful death, survivorship, and wrongful birth and wrongful life.
Chris also represents public utility and energy clients in all aspects of litigation, including defending against product liability and negligence claims related to pipeline incidents and projects, markouts, solar photovoltaic systems, regulatory compliance, and energy rate setting. He utilizes a hands-on approach and has played a critical role in formulating strategic defense plans, which include visiting incident and equipment sites, communicating with client representatives to understand and appreciate the complexities of the business, equipment, and products, and retaining prominent and adept liability and damages experts to evaluate potential causes and exposures.
Further, Chris has built a robust commercial landlord/tenant practice and represents clients in state and federal courts with respect to complex lease issues, including prosecuting and defending against commercial evictions, litigating issues related to COVID-19, negotiating early terminations and buyouts, amendments to lease agreements, and the lawful scope of restrictive covenants. He also works with commercial landlords and tenants dealing with complex legal issues to devise pragmatic business strategies ranging from favorable pre-suit resolutions to high-stakes litigation.
Outside of his work as a litigator, Chris assists in conducting due diligence on behalf of life sciences clients involved in stock and asset purchase transactions. He also advises clients on state and federal regulatory issues, including writing opinion letters regarding potential product liability exposures, responding to CPSC complaints, and advising on communications with the FDA.
Before joining McCarter, Chris served as a judicial law clerk for the Honorable Susan L. Reisner, Presiding Judge in the New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division. As a law clerk, he prepared bench memoranda, processed emergent applications, and revised and edited judicial opinions for publication.
