James F. Smith is a Partner at Butler Pappas.
He concentrates his practice in litigation, intellectual property matters and corporate counseling. Jim has practiced in numerous litigation areas including professional malpractice liability (including engineers, architects, attorneys and other professionals), casualty defense, director and officer liability, commercial and contract disputes, employment matters and subrogation. His experience includes trademark, copyright and patent litigation, focusing on ownership of various marks, words and inventions. Jim's practice has included both the prosecution and defense of improper conduct through computer systems and the internet, including spamming, cybersquatting and domain name disputes. He has also litigated in numerous jurisdictions as a plaintiff and defendant on behalf of carriers and their insureds who have sustained significant damages as a result of fires, explosions and other large losses.
Jim has secured numerous successful settlements for his clients, both as defense and and plaintiff's counsel. His largest jury trial success to date was a $29 million jury verdict which was subsequently affirmed by the Missouri appellate court. The jury ruled in favor of Mr. Smith's client Newell RubberMaid, Inc against lighting installer Efficent Solutions, Inc for a fire caused by an improperly hung light fixture which fell and caused a large fire, destroying playground equipment.
Jim is a Brigadier General in the United States Air Force Reserve. He attended the Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island from August 1999 through June 2000 and earned an M.A. in National Security and Strategic Studies. General Smith is currently assigned as the Mobilization Assistant to the Deputy Chief of Staff, Strategic Plans and Programs, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C. Jim has served in numerous assignments stateside and overseas, including several years at the Pentagon and deploying to Sarajevo, Bosnia as the Senior Military Advisor to the Commander, Stabilization Forces from July to December 2004.