Curriculum Vitae : Morgan C. Smith

Morgan C. Smith has worked with Bob Arns for over thirteen years. He is respected throughout California as an outstanding trial and appellate lawyer. His clients respect him because they know that he is not only down to earth but a champion for their case. In addition to his trial results, Mr. Smith has also settled many million and multi-million dollar cases. He participates in all work up of every major case in the office. This includes the examination of all legal and technical issues, as well as discovery plans, depositions, preparation for mediation, mediation and trial. Mr. Smith was a member of the Forum Editorial board as an editor for over four years. He is considered an expert in the area of construction litigation law and has written numerous articles on the the subject, with a specific emphasis on the passage of AB 1127 and OSHA into evidence. He also was asked by the California Consumer Attorneys to write the Amicus Briefs submitted in regard to the Hooker v. State of California and the McKown v. Walmart cases that defined Construction injury law by the Supreme Court. Recently, he also wrote the amicus brief for Elsner v. Uveges (2004) 34 Cal.4th 915, which was adopted by the Supreme Court as the basis for its discussion on duty under Labor Code §6400 et seq. He is regularly contacted by attorneys across the stated requesting information and analysis on construction injury law.

LEGAL CAREER

  • Partner The Arns Law Firm
  • Since 1993 has exclusively represented plaintiffs in personal injury, wrongful death cases, and class actions throughout the country.
  • Founding member of The Arns Law Firm in San Francisco in February 1997
  • 2006, elected one of the Super Lawyers in Northern California through peer review – this includes lawyers practicing in all specialties (over 90,000 lawyers in Northern California)
  • Board of Directors, San Francisco Trial Lawyers Association 2004-2007

EDUCATION

  • 1990 Graduated from U.C. Santa Cruz with BA in English
  • 1993 Graduated with distinction, McGeorge School of Law (J.D., with distinction, 1993)

BAR ADMISSIONS

  • California, 1993
  • U.S. Court of Appeals 9th Circuit, 1993

WORK HISTORY

  • 1997-Present, Partner and founding member of The Arns Law Firm
  • 1993-1997 Associate with the Law Offices of Stanley J. Bell.

MEMBERSHIPS

  • Consumer Attorneys of California,
  • Forum Magazine Associate Editor 2001-2005
  • San Francisco Trial Lawyers

MISC. CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

  • Trial of Becerra v. Jonce Thomas Construction, obtained over $1,000,000 result on a case with a $25,000 pre-trial offer.
  • Trial of England v. Swinerton in San Francisco resulted in a verdict of $21,000,000. (Offer before trial $2,500,000.)
  • Trial of Gorewitz v. Toyota in Alameda County resulted in a net verdict and judgment of $11,100,000.00. (Offer before trial $1,500,000.)
  • Trial of the Minert v. UCI Construction in Contra Costa county resulted in a verdict of $6,480,000.00. (Offer before trial $0.)
  • Trial of Vargas v. Carmel Development in Santa Clara County resulted in a Verdict of $10,500,000. (Offer before trial $2,500,000.)
  • Trial of Confidential Case in Stanislaus county resulting in a verdict of $7,500,000.00 and immediate confidential settlement. (Offer before trial $150,000.)
  • Trial of Molloy v. Anderson Liftkin in San Joaquin County resulting in a $1,750,000.00 verdict. (Offer before trial $700,000.)
  • Trial of Patterson v. RMC in Fresno County resulting in a verdict of $2,100,000.00 (Offer before trial $1,500,000.)
  • Trial of Sigfrid v. Bear High Reach in San Francisco County resulting in a $1,050,000.00 verdict. (Offer before trial $10,000.)

HONORS AND AWARDS

  • AV Rating Martindale-Hubbell -- means highest ability and highest ethics
  • Moot Court Honors Society
  • Traynor's Academic Honors Society, 1990 - 1993

ARTICLES

  • Author “Elsner v. Uveges and OSHA into Evidence” Forum Magazine, May 2005
  • Co-Author “The Short Life of a Tort: A Brief History of the Independent Cause of Action for Spoliation of Evidence in California” Morgan C. Smith and Alex Hansen, Forum Magazine , Oct. 2005
  • Author “Two-Year Statute of Limitations” Morgan C. Smith, Forum Magazine, April 2004
  • Co-Author “Where Workers’ Compensation Meets the FEHA” Morgan C. Smith and Jeremy Pasternak, Forum Magazine, Nov. 2004.
  • Author, “The Myths of the Medical Malpractice Insurance ‘Crisis’" Morgan C. Smith , Forum Magazine, April 2003
  • Author, “Current Construction Injury Law in California” Morgan C. Smith
  • Co-Author “Medi-Cal Liens: How to Satisfy Your Duty as an Attorney Regarding These Liens” Morgan C. Smith and Jennifer Sabo, Forum Magazine, Oct. 2003
  • Author “The Ins and Outs of Expert Disclosure under California Code of Civil Procedure § 2034” Morgan C. Smith , Forum Magazine March 2002.
  • Author “Hooker and McKown: The Supreme Court Goes Back to Basics For Construction Litigation Cases” Morgan C. Smith, Forum Magazine, April 2002
  • Author “Majority Rules: The Consensus on the Retained Control Doctrine” Morgan Smith, Forum Magazine, June 2001.
  • Author “Recent Developments Regarding AB 1127” Morgan Smith, Forum Magazine, Oct. 2000.
  • Author "AB 1127: Back to the Future for the New Millennium," Forum Magazine, Dec. 1999
  • Author "Admissibility Of Insurance / Indemnity Agreements," Forum Magazine, Nov.1999

APPELLATE AMICUS BRIEFS

  • Author of Supreme Court Appellate Brief on Behalf of California Consumer Attorneys, in Kinsman v. Unocal Corp. (2005) 37 Cal.4th 659
  • Author of Supreme Court Appellate Brief on Behalf of American Board of Trial Advocates “ABOTA”, in Grafton Partners v. Superior Court (PriceWaterhouseCoopers LLP) (2005) 36 Cal.4th 944
  • Author of Supreme Court Appellate Brief on Behalf of California Consumer Attorneys, in Elsner v. Uveges (2004) 34 Cal.4th 915.
  • Author of Supreme Court Appellate Brief on Behalf of California Consumer Attorneys, in Hooker v. Department of Transportation (2002) 27 Cal.4th 198.
  • Author of Supreme Court Appellate Brief on Behalf of California Consumer Attorneys, in McKown v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (2002) 27 Cal.4th 219.
  • Author of Supreme Court Appellate Brief on Behalf of California Consumer Attorneys, in Toland v. Sunland Housing Group, Inc. (1998) 18 Cal.4th 253.

APPELLATE PUBLISHED CASES

  • Represented plaintiff in underlying action and on appeal in Kinney v. CSB Construction, Inc. (2001) 87 Cal.App.4th 28
  • Represented plaintiff in underlying action and on appeal in Hartline v. Kaiser Foundation Hospitals (2005) 132 Cal.App.4th 458.