PRACTICE AREAS
Insurance Coverage, Construction Defect, Land Subsidence, Business Disputes, Mass Tort, Personal Injury, Environmental Contamination, Professional Malpractice
CONFLICT RESOLUTION EXPERIENCE
Mr. Smithson practiced in the private sector for nearly two decades with prominent Southern California and national law firms, including Parker, Stanbury, Shield & Smith, Cummins & White and Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi. He has a wide range of trial and arbitration experience. He tried the nation’s first “sick building syndrome” case in 1990. In 1994, he was appointed by the U.S. government to be lead counsel in the prosecution of a $500 million construction delay claim involving the most complex non-military building ever constructed in the nation. Mr. Smithson has represented many Fortune 100 companies in complex litigation involving aggregate claims of several billion dollars.
As a mediator, Mr. Smithson recently settled a very contentious, high-profile U.S. District Court lawsuit involving a prominent animal rights advocacy group that sued the trainer of chimpanzees used in the entertainment industry.
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ORGANIZATIONS & ACHIEVEMENTS
 Volunteer Mediator, Los Angeles County Superior Court since 1998
ADR Neutral Service Award, 1999, 2001, 2006, 2008.
Member, Southern California Mediation Association
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EDUCATION & TRAINING
J.D., 1984, Boston College Law School
B.S., 1980, University of Oregon (Political Science)
Mr. Smithson is available throughout the U.S..
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