Christopher "Smitty" Smith

Christopher “Smitty” Smith is a litigator and trial lawyer with extensive experience handling complex litigation and regulatory proceedings involving environmental, commercial, industrial, real estate, and product liability issues. Clients rely on him to prosecute and defend claims involving these issues through trial in federal and state courts. His experience is particularly deep in environmental disputes stemming from industrial operations and real estate development. These matters typically involve permitting, reporting, compliance, and liability issues enforced by agencies ranging from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (ACE) on a federal level, to state and local interests in California, including the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC), the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle), the Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR), California Regional Water Quality Control Boards (RWQCBs), the California Air Resources Board (CARB), the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD), and other local state environmental agencies (LEA and CUPA).

Smitty handles disputes arising under statutes including the:

• Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA or Superfund)
• Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
• Clean Water Act (CWA)
• Oil Pollution Act (OPA)
• Hazardous Substances Account Act (HSAA)
• Proposition 65 (Prop 65)
• California Senate Bill 54 (SB54)
• California Senate Bill 343 (SB343)
• California Civil Code 1750 (CLRA)
• California Business & Professions Code 17200 (Unfair Business Practices)
• California Business & Professions Code 17500 (False Advertising)

Smitty has a proven track record of representing a diverse clientele including commercial and residential property owners and developers, waste management companies, public utilities, transportation companies, consultants, manufacturers and distributors, metal manufacturers and recyclers, aerospace equipment manufacturers, automobile parts manufacturers, and pesticide manufacturers and distributors.

Additionally, Smitty advises and defends clients who produce or distribute products in California on compliance issues involving Proposition 65, extended producer responsibility, recyclability, chemicals, product liability, false advertising, unfair business practices, and greenwashing.

In addition to his environmental law practice, Smitty represents clients in a broad range of commercial litigation, as well as provides counseling on real estate transactions, commercial agreements, and industrial health and safety compliance.