Christopher Tackett, Member

ChristopherTackett
Direct
T 614.229.3286
F 614.221.0479
Columbus Office
T 614.221.3155
F 614.221.0479

Chris represents businesses in a wide variety of complex commercial litigation, business negotiations, and employment advising. He is an experienced litigator and problem solver that takes pride in identifying and executing creative solutions to resolve complex issues. Chris frequently handles commercial litigation matters involving complex contract disputes, trade secrets and other types of intellectual property, including claims of copyright or trademark infringement, and other unfair competition matters, such as disputes regarding non-solicitation or non-compete agreements between businesses and high-level employees, as well as business breakups and various types of partnership/shareholder disputes. Also, Chris has significant expertise litigating class actions, having handled numerous class action cases and other types of procedurally complex litigation, including as lead counsel in the successful defense of a nationwide class action alleging violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA).

In addition to his experience in a wide range of complex business litigation, Chris developed a nationwide practice representing parties in the consumer extended warranty industry, handling litigation on all facets of the business, including disputes with vendors, defending multi-party or class action claims relating to the marketing of warranties, and defending consumer litigation.

In the course of his business litigation practice, Chris has represented companies in courts throughout the country, and in state and federal courts all across Ohio, as First-Chair counsel in numerous hearings on preliminary injunctions and other substantive evidentiary hearings, trials, and appellate oral arguments. Additionally, he represents businesses in arbitrations, including those administered through the American Arbitration Association (AAA) and Judicial Arbitration and Mediation Services, Inc. (JAMS). Chris has represented the interests of his clients before nearly every Ohio administrative agency, and he has represented clients in tax controversy matters before the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the Ohio Department of Taxation, the Ohio Board of Tax Appeals, and the U.S. Tax Court.

Chris is a frequent writer and lecturer on topics relating to business torts and unfair competition, employment litigation, and procedural issues affecting complex litigation and class actions, including numerous articles nationally published in periodical journals of the American Bar Association. Additionally, Chris has served as Editor of the Business Torts & Unfair Competition Quarterly Journal for the ABA's Litigation Section.

Publications & Speaking Engagements

  • Columbus Bar Association, presentation series – November 16, 2023 - Business Divorce: Session 3 – Splitting Up, Dispute Resolution, and Ethical Issues that Arise Along the Way
  • Cutting through the Noise: What Your Business Needs to Know About the FTC's Proposed Rule to Ban Non-Compete Agreements Nationwide -Columbus Bar Association, Legal Connections feature, published in the print edition of the Columbus Business First (February 17, 2023) (available at: legalconnections02172023.pdf  (cbalaw.org).
  • Five Tips for Protecting your Company’s Brand-Related IP from Unfair Competition - Columbus Bar Association, Legal Connections feature, published in the print edition of Columbus Business First (July 1, 2022) (available at: legalconnections070122.pdf (cbalaw.org)).
  • Why Do Non-Compete Agreements Get All the Press? Journal of the American Bar Association’s Business Torts and Unfair Competition Committee, Section of Litigation (Winter 2021 (Volume 29, Issue 1)).
  • Overview on the Restrictive Covenants that Are More Important for Protecting Your Business Than Contentious Non-Competes - Columbus Bar Association Legal Connections, published in the print edition of Columbus Business First (Dec. 10, 2021).
  • FTC Limits: Understanding Noncompete Agreements After President's Executive Order Columbus Bar Association Legal Connections, published in the print edition of Columbus Business First (Aug 26, 2021).
  • Lessons from COVID-Era Litigation at the Intersection of Price Gouging and Unfair Competition Relating to Medical Supplies - Journal of the American Bar Association’s Business Torts and Unfair Competition Committee, Section of Litigation, (Spring 2021, Volume 28, Issue 3) (Mar. 18, 2021).
  • Why Companies Must Ensure Their Non-Solicitation Agreements Are Fit for the Social Media Era - Journal of the American Bar Association’s Business Torts and Unfair Competition Committee, Section of Litigation, (Fall 2020, Volume 28, Issue 1 (Sep. 30, 2020)).
  • Directors & Officers May Face Personal Liability in Subsequent Litigation for Actions Taken During Company Insolvency - Columbus Bar Association Legal Connections, published in the print edition of Columbus Business First (Sep. 18, 2020).
  • The High Risks of Neglecting Fiduciary Duties in Start-Up Firms- American Bar Association Journal of the ABA’s Business Torts and Unfair Competition Committee (Summer 2020, Volume 27, Issue 3 (Aug 3, 2020)).
  • Rushed Transition to Work-from-Home Will Likely Lead to Increase in FLSA Wage-and-Hour Claims - Columbus Bar Association Legal Connections, published in the print edition of Columbus Business First (Jun 26, 2020).
  • Three Years into the Defend Trade Secrets Act, How Do Its Remedies Differ in Practice from the Uniform Act's Remedies? - Journal of the American Bar Association (ABA) Business Torts & Unfair Competition (Winter 2020).
  • Tips on Filing for Preliminary Injunction in Trade Secret Cases—Considerations when Seeking Emergency Injunctions - American Bar Association (ABA) Business Torts & Unfair Competition Practice Points (Sep 30, 2019).
  • "Legal Update: COVID-19's Impact on Federal Employment Laws and Best Practices for How Employers Can Stay Compliant"- Roetzel Webinar (November 2020)
  • Legal Legos: An Overview of the Essential Building Blocks for Startups - Atlas Innovation Summit at the Gateway Film Center, Columbus, Ohio (September 2019)
  • Defending Ohio Sales Tax Audits: Strategies to Avoid the Indirect Mark-Up Percentage Audit,
  • and to Attack the Mark-Up Audit on Appeal Committee (February 2017)
  • ABA's Sound Advice Podcast: Introduction on Converting Arbitration Awards into Judgments and Competing Actions to Vacate Awards (Apr 6, 2020)

Professional Recognition

  • Named to 2023 Columbus CEO Top Lawyers List for Commercial Litigation
  • Selected to Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch for Commercial Litigation (2022); Corporate Governance and Compliance Law (2022)
  • Selected as an "Ohio Super Lawyers - Rising Star" 2022, 2023, and 2024
  • Leadership Columbus, 2021 Graduate of Leadership Columbus Signature Program

Affiliations and Civic Involvement

  • Ohio State Bar Association
  • Columbus Bar Association
  • American Bar Association
    • Member of the Section of Litigation;  Committee Member and Vice Chair, Business Torts and Unfair Competition Committee
  • Human Resources Association of Central Ohio
    • Committee Member, Legislative Affairs Committee

 

Education

  • Bachelor of Arts: Ohio University (2008)
  • Doctor of Jurisprudence: Ohio Northern University—Claude W. Pettit College of Law (2011)

Bar Admissions

  • Ohio

Court Admissions

  • U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Southern District of Ohio
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, Federal Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit
  • U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio
  • U.S. District Court, Southern District of Ohio
  • U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York
  • U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania
  • .S. District Court, Western District of Texas
  • U.S. District Court, Western District of Washington
  • U.S. Tax Court