Craig Smyser

Craig Smyser tries and appeals a broad range of complex business and personal injury cases.

Mr. Smyser has tried more than 50 cases to a jury verdict, with trials in both state and federal courts.
Mr. Smyser has arbitrated dozens of cases, domestic and international.
Mr. Smyser has recovered verdicts and settlements in excess of half a billion dollars

Mr. Smyser’s current and recent representations include:

McKesson Corporation – Lead Counsel in the Texas opioid litigation; Texas MDL Liaison Counsel for entire Distributor Defendants’ group.
BNSF Railway Co. – Lead Counsel as plaintiff in multiple arbitrations with an integrated retail and power generation company.
Shell Offshore, Inc. – Lead Counsel in accounting and contract disputes with other major oil companies over operation of offshore drilling platforms in the Gulf of Mexico.
Cheniere Energy, Inc. – Lead Counsel as plaintiff and defendant in a dispute with Parallax Enterprises, Inc., Tellurian, Inc., and certain related individuals regarding breach of a note and tortious interference with a contract.
Black Elk Litigation Trustee – Lead Counsel as plaintiff in multiple lawsuits in multiple jurisdictions to recover, among other damages, more than $100 million fraudulently transferred to Platinum Partners and others.

Mr. Smyser has been lead counsel in some of Houston’s – and the nation’s – largest, most important and heavily publicized matters.

Lead counsel for former Enron CFO Andrew Fastow in more than 100 civil cases around the country.
Lead counsel for Yukos International UK B.V., the international arm of the former Russian oil company, Yukos Oil, dismantled by the Russian Government after Yukos’ CEO Mikhail Khodorovsky became a political opponent of Vladimir Putin, in various matters in the United States.
Lead trial counsel for Schlumberger Technology Corp in action against former in-house counsel for breach of contract, misappropriation of trade secrets, misuse of confidential information, and breach of fiduciary duty.
Co-lead counsel for David’s supermarkets case against a Fortune 50 company. Obtained a $450 million jury verdict.

Mr. Smyser is a member of the American Law Institute, the International Society of Barristers, and has been designated as a “Super Lawyer” every year since 2003, making the list of “Top 100 Houston Super Lawyers,” and “Top 100 in Texas.” He has also served as the President of the Houston Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates as well as President of the Texas Association of Civil Trial and Appellate Specialists. The United States District Judges for the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas appointed Mr. Smyser to the SDTX Attorney Admissions Committee in 2012 and have since reappointed him twice to serve as Chair.

Mr. Smyser has authored numerous articles on contracts and commercial litigation and co-authored a text book on Texas Contract Law with Professor David Dow.

Some Significant Current Representations

Mr. Smyser’s current and recent representations include:

McKesson Corporation – Lead Counsel in the Texas opioid litigation; Texas MDL Liaison Counsel for entire Distributor Defendants’ group.
BNSF Railway Co. – Lead Counsel as plaintiff in multiple arbitrations with an integrated retail and power generation company.
Shell Offshore, Inc. – Lead Counsel in accounting and contract disputes with other major oil companies over operation of offshore drilling platforms in the Gulf of Mexico.
Cheniere Energy, Inc. – Lead Counsel as plaintiff and defendant in a dispute with Parallax Enterprises, Inc., Tellurian, Inc., and certain related individuals regarding breach of a note and tortious interference with a contract.
Black Elk Litigation Trustee – Lead Counsel as plaintiff in multiple lawsuits in multiple jurisdictions to recover, among other damages, more than $100 million fraudulently transferred to Platinum Partners and others.

Mr. Smyser has been lead counsel in some of Houston’s – and the nation’s – largest, most important and heavily publicized matters.

Lead counsel for former Enron CFO Andrew Fastow in more than 100 civil cases around the country.
Lead counsel for Yukos International UK B.V., the international arm of the former Russian oil company, Yukos Oil, dismantled by the Russian Government after Yukos’ CEO Mikhail Khodorovsky became a political opponent of Vladimir Putin, in various matters in the United States.
Lead trial counsel for Schlumberger Technology Corp in action against former in-house counsel for breach of contract, misappropriation of trade secrets, misuse of confidential information, and breach of fiduciary duty.
Co-lead counsel for David’s supermarkets case against a Fortune 50 company. Obtained a $450 million jury verdict.

Major LNG Terminalling and Breach of Contract Dispute

Mr. Smyser and SKV partner, Justin Waggoner represented an energy company primarily engaged in the Liquefied Natural Gas business in a dispute with one of the world's largest integrated energy companies. In an International Centre for Dispute Resolution arbitration, SKV’s client won a complete victory involving a $2 billion contract. The three-member arbitration panel unanimously agreed with SKV's client's positions, rejected all contrary claims, and awarded SKV's client all costs, including SKV's attorney's fees.

Additonal Representative Matters

Named "America's Leading Lawyers for Business," Chambers USA.

Selected for inclusion in "The Best Lawyers in America."

Recognized by Benchmark Litigation for high quality of litigation work.

Named “Local Litigation Star” by Benchmark Plaintiff.

Named a “Super Lawyer” by Thomson Reuters.

Selected as a “Top 100 Houston Super Lawyer” by Thomson Reuters.

Designated as a “Top 100 Texas Super Lawyer” by Thomson Reuters.

Selected as one of the top attorneys in business litigation in the nationwide corporate counsel edition of Super Lawyers by Thomson Reuters.

Designated in the "Top Lawyers of Houston," H Texas Magazine.

Selected as one of "The Best Lawyers in America," Texas Best Lawyers.

Admissions:
State Bar of Texas
United States Supreme Court
United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
United States District Court for the Southern, Northern, Western, and Eastern Districts of Texas
United States Tax Court
Texas Supreme Court

Organizations:

Chair, Attorney Admissions Committee for the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas
American Law Institute, Member
International Society of Barristers, Member
Texas Association of Board Certified Civil Trial and Appellate Specialists, Former President
Texas Board of Legal Specialization, Board Certified in Civil Appellate Law
Texas Board of Legal Specialization, Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law
American Board of Trial Advocates, Member and Past President Houston Chapter
Texas Bar Association
American Bar Association
American Bar Foundation
Houston Bar Association
Houston Urban Debate League, Member, Board of Directors
Houston Tennis Association, 2007 Board of Directors

Former member and chair of the Board of Directors of the Houston City / Harris County Cultural Arts Council, Non-Profit Organization charged by the City of Houston and Harris County with allocating public funds to various area arts organizations.

Member and former President of the Board of Directors of Inprint, a non-profit organization dedicated to the support of writing in the Houston area.

Texas Contract Law
2005, West Publishing
Craig Smyser (co-authored with Professor David Dow)
PDF of Table of Contents and Chapter on Fraud and Misrepresentation

Speeches:

Venue and Forum - Federal and State Court Issues
January, 2012
Craig Smyser, Guest Lecturer
University of Texas Law School
Austin, Texas

Criminal Issues in Civil Cases
August 2006
Craig Smyser, Lecturer
with David Gerger, Lecturer
State Bar of Texas 29th Annual Advanced Civil Trial Course
Dallas, Texas
PDF of Article

New Chapter 74 and Old 4590i Compared
March 2005
Craig Smyser, Lecturer
State Bar of Texas Advanced Medical Malpractice Course
Austin, Texas and Santa Fe, New Mexico

Caps and Credits:
A Comparison of the Old and the New
March 2004
Craig Smyser, Lecturer
State Bar of Texas Advanced Medical Malpractice Course
San Antonio and Houston, Texas

The Ultimate Trial Notebook -
Preparing for Jury Selection in Advance:
Focus Groups and Other Jury Research
2004
Craig Smyser, Lecturer
State Bar of Texas Annual Meeting
Austin, Texas

Discovery Update and Rule 202 -
The Latest on the New Texas Rules
2002, 2003, 2004
Craig Smyser, Lecturer
Advanced Civil Trial Course
Dallas, Corpus Christi, Houston and San Antonio, Texas

Post Judgment Motions
February 1998
Craig Smyser, Lecturer
South Texas College of Law Advanced Litigation
Houston, Texas

Class Actions - (Plaintiff's View)
December 1997
Craig Smyser, Lecturer
Houston Bar Association Seminar
Houston, Texas

Advanced Business Litigation - "Fraud and Related Claims"
October 1997; September 1998; September 1999; September 2001
Craig Smyser, Lecturer
University of Houston Law Foundation
Houston and Dallas, Texas

Voir Dire: A Discussion, Demonstration and Workshop
August 1994
Craig Smyser, Lecturer
State Bar of Texas Seminar
Houston, Texas

Advanced Issues in Evidence and Discovery
1994-1995
Craig Smyser, Lecturer
Advanced Civil Discovery Seminar
Houston and Dallas, Texas

Cross-Examination of the Enemy Expert
1993
Craig Smyser, Lecturer
Medical Malpractice Conference
Houston, Texas

Advanced Strategies in Obtaining and Using Evidence
1992 - 1993
Craig Smyser, Lecturer
Houston, Texas

Selected Discovery Problems
April 1992
Craig Smyser, Lecturer
Medical Malpractice Conference
Houston, Texas

Discovery Issues - Defense Perspective
1991
Craig Smyser, Lecturer
Advanced Medical Malpractice Conference
Houston, Texas

Summary Judgments - Defense Perspective
November 1990
Craig Smyser, Lecturer
Advanced Medical Malpractice Litigation
Houston, Texas

Piercing the Corporate Veil
August 1990
Craig Smyser, Lecturer
State Bar of Texas Seminar
Houston, Texas

Advanced Settlement Techniques
1990
Craig Smyser, Lecturer
State Bar of Texas
Houston, Texas

Civil Discovery
June 1988
Craig Smyser, Lecturer
University of Houston Advanced Civil Discovery Seminar
Houston and Dallas, Texas

Personal Injury and Wrongful Death
1984
Craig Smyser, Lecturer
State Bar of Texas, Personal Injury and Wrongful Death Institute
Houston, Texas

Lecturer, State Bar of Texas, 29th Advanced Civil Trial Course - 2006
"Criminal Issues in Civil Cases"

Lecturer, State Bar of Texas Advanced Medical Malpractice Course - 2005
"New Chapter 74 and Old 4590i Compared "

Lecturer, State Bar of Texas Advanced Medical Malpractice Course - 2004
"Caps and Credits: A Comparison of the Old and the New"

Lecturer, State Bar of Texas Annual Meeting - 2004
"Preparing for Jury Selection in Advance: Focus Groups and Other Jury Research"

Lecturer, UH Law Foundation Seminar, 1997-2001
"Fraud and Related Business Torts"

Lecturer, Harris County Summer CJE Conference - 2009
"Expert Opinions, Practices and Issues"

Lecturer, State Bar of Texas, Advanced Trial Course - 2008-2009
"White Collar Crime and Civil Litigation"