Christopher J. Jahr - Wicker, Smith, O'Hara, McCoy & Ford, P.A.

Profile

Christopher J. Jahr is a partner in the Ft. Lauderdale office and represents clients in state and federal court with cases involving aviation, product liability, personal injury, wrongful death, breach of contract, premises liability, insurance coverage, interpleader and other matters.

Mr. Jahr is a Board Certified Specialist in Aviation Law and also an active instrument-rated airplane pilot. Board Certification is the highest level of evaluation by The Florida Bar of not only specialization within an area of law but also professionalism and ethics in the practice of law. Only about seven percent (7%) of eligible Florida Bar Members are board certified.

Mr. Jahr was honored to have been appointed by the President of The Florida Bar to serve on the Aviation Law Board Certification Committee for the 2019-2021 term. In that capacity, Mr. Jahr helped draft the Aviation Law Board Certification test administered by The Florida Bar. Mr. Jahr has also been selected by the President of The Florida Bar to serve on the Aviation Law Committee of The Florida Bar from 2016 to present. The scope and function of the Aviation Law Committee is to study recent developments of law, legislation and regulations in the field of aviation law and inform members of the Bar of significant developments.

Mr. Jahr regularly represents major airlines, aircraft operators, fixed base operated, and aviation product manufacturers in litigation. He also regularly works with air carriers, maintenance facilities, and manufacturers during NTSB investigations following aircraft accidents. Mr. Jahr has written and lectured on various aspects of aviation law including: Federal Preemption; Frequently Violated Federal Aviation Regulations – from a Pilot’s Perspective; When Can an Air Carrier Refuse Transport to a Passenger with a Communicable Disease?; The Small Airplane Revitalization Act; and various topics of civil litigation and trial practice.

In his non-aviation work, Mr. Jahr represents both life insurance and liability insurance carriers in coverage and interpleader matters. He also regularly defends non-aviation clients in premises liability, automobile negligence, and other types of litigation. He has successfully defended businesses and corporate executives against claims of slander, defamation, conversion, tortious interference, and alleged violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act. He has also worked on appeals to multiple appellate courts including The Florida Supreme Court and even The United States Supreme Court.

Mr. Jahr graduated cum laude from the University of Florida Levin College of Law and he received his undergraduate degree magna cum laude from Tulane University.

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Credentials

Education

University of Florida (J.D., cum laude, 2009)
Epic Aviation (Private Pilot, Instrument Rating 2005)
Tulane University (B.S., magna cum laude, 2004)
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (Class of 2001)

Representative Matters

Summary Judgment Upheld on Appeal for Major US Airline

Plaintiff sued our client, a major Atlanta-based airline, in federal court and alleged she suffered a compression fracture in her spine as the result of a hard landing on a flight from Fort Lauderdale to Raleigh. The defense of this case was initially problematic because Plaintiff produced medical records showing she was diagnosed with a compression fracture of her spine shortly after the landing and she ultimately underwent spinal surgery to correct the condition.

After disclosing the opinions of defense experts, our team moved for summary judgment and established there was no evidence of a “hard landing”. In a series of Court Orders, the trial court granted our motion to strike the Plaintiff’s piloting expert and also granted our motion for summary judgment.

Plaintiff appealed these decisions. The Appellate Court affirmed summary judgment and adopted the arguments and law from our appellate brief. This opinion from the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit will now provide helpful legal precedent on these issues moving forward.

Dismissal of All Claims Upheld on Appeal

We defended an aircraft repair facility against claims of corrosion that allegedly occurred due to routine aircraft cleanings. We successfully obtained a dismissal of all claims against our client and the dismissal was affirmed on appeal by Florida’s Fourth District Court of Appeal.

Summary Judgment in Case Involving Intoxicated Passenger

We successfully defended a major Atlanta-based airline in this federal court lawsuit in which Plaintiff was denied boarding privileges because she appeared intoxicated. The Plaintiff claimed she was not intoxicated, but had recently chipped a tooth, leaving it difficult for her to speak clearly, and she claimed to have a blister on her foot, which made it difficult for her to balance. The trial court granted our motion for summary judgment. This published opinion has been cited multiple times and continues to serve as helpful precedent in Florida for air carriers.

In re: International Air Crash Litigation

We have represented several major air carriers throughout the years with accident investigation and litigation arising from the Montreal Convention and Warsaw Convention for aircraft accidents occurring both within and outside the United States.

Aviation Practice Team has Trial Court’s Summary Judgment Ruling Affirmed by the U.S. Court of Appeals

FORT LAUDERDALE – NOVEMBER 29, 2022 – Wicker Smith’s Aviation practice team, led by Fort Lauderdale partner Christopher Jahr, recently had a trial court’s summary judgment ruling affirmed by the United States Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit. The subject case arose from a negligence claim made against our client, a major Atlanta-based airline. Plaintiff sued our client in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida, alleging that she suffered a compression fracture in her spine as the result of a hard landing during a 2019 flight from Fort Lauderdale to Raleigh. The defense of this case was initially problematic because Plaintiff produced medical records showing she was diagnosed with a compression fracture of her spine shortly after the landing and she ultimately underwent spinal surgery to correct the condition. Our aviation-litigation team immediately went to work assembling an excellent team of expert witnesses. The scope of expert testimony included a biomechanical engineer, an orthopedic surgeon, and a piloting expert who worked together to prepare opinion testimony that the impact during the landing was normal and the landing could not have medically caused the claimed injuries. The biomechanical engineer based his analysis, in part, on the lack of any “hard landing” data reported by the aircraft. The lack of “hard landing” data enabled him to conclude the vertical force was less than 2.1 g and within the tolerances of a normal landing. In addition, the orthopedic expert interpreted the MRI taken two (2) weeks after the subject landing to show an “age indeterminate” fracture that was consistent with osteoporosis – and not caused by trauma. Adding to the complexity of this defense was that all of the above experts were retained and prepared in less than thirty days so as to comply with the incredibly tight time limitations provided in the original Trial Order. After disclosing the above expert opinions, our team moved for summary judgment and argued there was no evidence of a “hard landing” and there was no evidence the alleged “hard landing” caused the claimed injuries. Plaintiff opposed the summary judgment by untimely disclosing a single “piloting expert” and improperly relying upon medical records to establish medical causation. In a series of well-reasoned Court Orders, the trial court granted our motion to strike the Plaintiff’s piloting expert and also granted our motion for summary judgment. In her appeal, Plaintiff argued that the trial court erred in striking her piloting expert because he was “of the utmost importance” to her case. She also argued the trial court improperly denied her attempt to extend the pre-trial disclosure deadlines. However, the appellate court found these arguments unpersuasive and irrelevant. The appellate court affirmed summary judgment and referenced the arguments in our motion for summary judgment that Plaintiff had failed to disclose or present any admissible evidence that the “hard landing” medically caused her claimed injuries. This opinion from the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit will now provide helpful legal precedent on these issues moving forward. Congratulations to the Aviation team on this important victory. For more details, read the full opinion here: Opinion - Affirmance (PDF). Follow Wicker Smith on LinkedIn for more updates on the firm.

Practices

Education

University of Florida (J.D., cum laude, 2009)
Epic Aviation (Private Pilot, Instrument Rating 2005)
Tulane University (B.S., magna cum laude, 2004)
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (Class of 2001)

Honors

Parkway Christian School, School Board Member, 2019-2021
Florida Bar, Aviation Law Board Certification Committee, 2019-2021
Parkway Christian Church, Personnel Committee, 2017-2018

Credentials

Admitted to Bar

2009, The Florida Bar
2016, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
2014, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Florid
2012, U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida
2011, U.S. District Court, Southern District of Florida

Professional Affiliations

Aviation Law Committee of The Florida Bar
Political Action Committee of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA)
Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA)
Instrument Rated Pilot
Broward County Bar Association
Parkway Christian School, School Board Member, 2019-2021
Florida Bar, Aviation Law Board Certification Committee, 2019-2021
Parkway Christian Church, Personnel Committee, 2017-2018
First Presbyterian Church of Fort Lauderdale, Elder, 2012 – 2014
Chairman, First Presbyterian Church of Fort Lauderdale Scholarship Committee, 2013 – 2014

Christopher Jahr

Christopher Jahr - Partner

Christopher Jahr

Partner

Profile

Education

Representative Matters

Summary Judgment Upheld on Appeal for Major US Airline

Dismissal of All Claims Upheld on Appeal

Summary Judgment in Case Involving Intoxicated Passenger

In re: International Air Crash Litigation

Aviation Practice Team has Trial Court’s Summary Judgment Ruling Affirmed by the U.S. Court of Appeals

Practices

Education

Honors

Credentials

Admitted to Bar

Professional Affiliations