Christopher C. Esker

Of Counsel

Contact Us Today
Lisa Carey Dean

CHRISTOPHER CARL ESKER

Of Counsel


Phone: 330-434-3000

Fax: 330-434-9220

Christopher C. Esker 's practice is primarily focused on public finance, insurance defense, complex and commercial litigation, personal injury, and general appeals with Akron's Roderick Linton Belfance, LLP, and one of Northeast Ohio's most storied firms, founded in 1885.


Mr. Esker joined the firm in 2008 following a decade as a member of Buckingham, Doolittle and Burroughs’ litigation practice group and his dedicated public service as a Summit County Assistant Prosecutor and Judicial Attorney to Judge Mary Spicer, Summit County Court of Common Pleas, and Judge John W. Reece, Ohio Court of Appeals, Ninth Judicial District. Augmenting his litigation practice, he serves as District Counsel to the Akron, Bath and Copley Joint Township Hospital District in the area of public finance.


Mr. Esker has a depth of experience in courtrooms statewide, including municipal, state, and federal courts, and has served as a hearing officer, mediator, and arbitrator. He has represented clients in Ohio’s Northern and Southern Federal District Courts, in the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, and in the United States Supreme Court, as well as many of Ohio’s common pleas and appellate courts and before the Ohio Supreme Court. He has also served clients in venues beyond Ohio through pro hac vice admission in multiple courts and tribunals.


Mr. Esker has been honored by his peers through his Martindale-Hubbell AV® Preeminent rating and has been tapped as an Ohio Super Lawyer® every year since 2012. He has been recognized repeatedly Recognized by "Inside Business Magazine" as Leading Lawyer in Northeast Ohio as voted by his peers, and he has also been designated a Best’s Recommended Insurance Attorney annually since 2013.


Mr. Esker has been an active member of the American, Ohio State and Akron Bar Associations, and has served on many committees, including the Attorney Grievance, Common Pleas and Appellate Court, Continuing Legal Education, and Scholarship Committees, and has served on and chaired the Commission on Judicial Candidates. He is also an active member of the community at large, and has served as a member of the Bath Township Comprehensive Plan Review Committee, Bath Township Historical Preservation Committee, Copley Township Board of Zoning Appeals, Copley Township Audit Committee, Community Advisors for the Reserve, Copley, Ohio, and the St. Hilary School Board, served as president of the Summit County Farm Bureau Board of Trustees and the Weathervane Community Playhouse Board of Trustees, recently completed a three-year term as a member of the Board of Trustees for the Habitat for Humanity of Summit County, Inc., and currently serves as a member of the Board of Directors of the Summit County Historical Society.

Areas of practice

  • Litigation
  • Appellate Litigation
  • Insurance Defense
  • Personal Injury and Wrongful Death
  • Municipal Finance and Bond Financing

Admitted to practice

  • Ohio, 1988
  • U.S. Supreme Court, 2001
  • U.S. Court of Appeals 6th Circuit, 1997
  • U.S. District Court Northern District of Ohio, 1996
  • U.S. District Court Southern District of Ohio, 2003

Former

  • Ohio Court of Appeals, Ninth Judicial District, Akron, Ohio, Judicial Attorney - Judge John W. Reece
  • Summit County Court of Common Pleas, Akron, Ohio , Judicial Attorney - Judge Mary Spicer
  • Summit County Assistant Prosecutor - Maureen O'Connor, Prosecutor, 1995 to 1998
  • Buckingham Doolittle & Burroughs, LLP, 1998 to 2008

Education

  • University of Akron School of Law
  • J.D. - 1988
  • The University of Akron
  • B.A., Bachelor of Arts - 1983

Classes/Seminars

  • Adjunct Professor, The University of Akron School of Law Legal Writing Program, 1990 to 1991

Awards

Professional Memberships

  • American Bar Association, Member
  • Ohio State Bar Association, Member
  • Akron Bar Association, Member

Pro Bono Activities

  • Summit County Farm Bureau Board of Trustees – Board Member and Past President
  • Weathervane Community Playhouse Board of Trustees – Past Board Member and President
  • Bath Township Comprehensive Plan Review Committee – Past Member
  • Bath Township Historical Preservation Committee – Past Member
  • Copley Township Board of Zoning Appeals – Past Board Member
  • Copley Township Audit Committee – Past Member
  • Copley Community Advisors for the Reserve – Past Member
  • St. Hilary School Board – Past Board Member and Vice President
  • Habitat for Humanity of Summit County, Inc. Board of Trustees – Past Board Member

Representative Cases

  • Carver v. Mack, 2008-Ohio-2911, 2008, Ohio 5th District
  • Donofrio v. Winebrenner, 2003-Ohio-3317, 2003, Ohio 9th District
  • Ellwood Engineered Castings Co v. Zaino, 98 Ohio St.3d 424, 2003
  • Gottfried v. Medical Planning Services, Inc., 142 F.3d 326, 1998, 6th Cir.
  • Hamlin-Scanlon v. Taylor, 2008-Ohio-411, 2008, Ohio 9th District
  • Selander v. Erie Insurance Group, 85 Ohio St.3d 183, 1999
  • Shugarman Surgical Supply, Inc v. Zaino, 97 Ohio St.3d 183, 2002
  • Sprint Corp. v. Continental Cas. Co., 2004-Ohio-6298, 2004, Ohio 8th District
  • State ex rel. Beacon Journal Publishing Co. v. Whitmore, 83 Ohio St. 3d 61, 1998
  • United States v. Winkle, 477 F.3d 407, 2007, 6th Cir.

Representative Clients

  • CSL Behring, LLC
  • B. Schoenberg & Company, Inc.
  • Electric Insurance Company
  • Akron, Bath and Copley Joint Township Hospital District
  • S & L Flooring, Inc
  • Wilber Insurance Services Enterprises, Inc.
Share by: