Practice Description

Mr. Winslett handles complex insurance litigation, professional liability defense (including lawyers, engineers, architects and insurance agents), products liability defense, toxic torts, catastrophic injury and wrongful death, construction/surety cases and first party property claims.

Representative Experience

Representation primarily on defense side, but also represented plaintiff-insurers in complex commercial and insurance litigation.

Chair of the firm’s Professional Liability Practice and Insurance Practice Groups.

Faculty member of numerous NITA-sponsored trial advocacy programs.

Handled virtually every type of insurance based litigation in courts throughout the United States.

Awards & Honors

“Texas Super Lawyers” (Texas Monthly magazine, 2004-2013)

“Texas Top-Rated Lawyers” (Dallas Morning News & The Wallstreet Journal, 2013)

“Top 100 Texas Lawyers” (Texas Monthly magazine, 2006)

AV ® PREEMINENT Martindale-Hubbell rating

Selected Publications, Seminars and Cases

Frequent lecturer in seminars sponsored by State Bar of Texas including “The Ultimate Insurance Seminar.”

Hanson v. Greystar Development & Const., LP, 317 S.W.3d 850 (Tex. App. — Fort Worth 2010, pet. denied)

Lennar v. Great American et al, 2005 WL 1324833 (Houston [14 Dist] 2005)

Insurance Bad Faith: The Insurer’s Prospective.

Roberts v. Healy, 991 S.W.2d 873 (Tex. App. Houston [14th Dist.] 1999)

Universal Life Ins. Co. v. Giles, 950 S.W.2d 48 (Tex. 1997)

U.S. Fire v. Williams, 955 S.W.2d 267 (Tex. 1997)

Stephen Ferguson v. Mt. Hawley Insurance Co., Civil Action No. 2:03-CV-381 (Eastern District of Texas – Marshall Division) (2004)

Bayou Bend Homes v. Scottsdale Insurance Co., 2006 WL 2037564

TIG Ins. Co. v. North America Van Lines, 170 S.W.3d 264 (Tex. App. – Dallas 2005, no pet.)

RLI Ins. Co. v. Maxxon Southwest, Inc, 265 F. Supp. 727 (N.D. Tex. 2003)

Pierre v. Newman, Davenport & Epstein, 2006 WL 1522613 (Tex. App. – Dallas)

Mt. Hawley Ins. Co. v. Wright Materials, Inc., 2005 WL 2805565 (N.D. Tex. 2005)

West American Ins. Co. v. RLI Ins. Co., 698 F.3d 1069 (8th Cir. 2012)

Scottsdale Ins. Co. v. Mt. Hawly Ins. Co., 2011 WL 9169946 (5th Cir. 2012)

Practice Description

Mr. Smith represents clients in a variety of litigation matters including commercial and personal injury disputes. Primary focus is complex insurance litigation including coverage disputes, insurance “bad faith” litigation and first party property claims as well as the defense of insureds in a variety of business and personal injury disputes.

His practice also includes professional liability cases, including the defense of attorneys, insurance agents/brokers and other professionals. Although primarily on the defense side, practice includes representation of plaintiffs in complex commercial and insurance litigation.

Representative Experience

Has represented clients in a variety of litigation matters, including commercial and personal injury disputes.

Selected Publications, Seminars and Cases

United National Ins. Co. v. Mundell Terminal Services, Inc., 740 F.3d 1022 (5th Cir. 2014)

Dyess v. Harris — S.W.3d —-, 2009 WL 3462053 (Tex. App.-Houston [1st Dist.] 2009, review denied)

Universal Underwriters Ins. Co. v. New Braunfels Trans, Inc., 2006 WL 2707003 (Tex. App.-Austin, September 20, 2006)

Bergenholtz v. Cannata, 200 S.W.3d 287 (Tex. App.-Dallas 2006)

El Dorado Motors, Inc. v. Koch, 168 S.W.3d 360 (Tex. App.-Dallas 2005)

Prieto v. John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Company, et al., 132 F. Supp. 3D 506. Aff’d 35 Fed Appor. 390 (5th Cr. 2002).

“ Spoliation of Evidence” – Texas Independent Insurance Adjusters’ Association, Annual Meeting (November, 1999).

“ Inverse Condemnation Based on ‘Bad Faith’ Delay”, Defending Governmental Entities symposium (December, 1995).

Awards & Honors

“Texas Super Lawyers” (Texas Monthly magazine, 2004-2010, 2012)

“Texas Top-Rated Lawyers” (Dallas Morning News & The Wallstreet Journal, 2013)

AV ® PREEMINENT Martindale-Hubbell rating