Page 26 - Palm Beach Vol 6 No 4
P. 26

2017 South Florida Superstar
Scott B. Smith
Fighting the Good Fight
By Susan Cushing
Growing up in Palm Beach County, Scott B. Smith made the decision early to enter the  eld of law. “I was fortunate to be able to meet and interact with driven and successful trial attorneys,” he says. “ eir commitment to  ghting for their respective clients was inspiring.”
While certain that law would be his chosen profession, it was a devastating event that solidi-  ed in his mind precisely what direction his career would take. It was 1994 in Tallahassee and Smith was the driver of his friend’s car when they were in- volved in a formidable crash. Rear-ended by the vehicle be- hind them and pushed into
oncoming tra c, Smith’s life would be altered forever.
“My friend passed away from injuries sustained in that crash, and I struggled to stand up for nearly a week,” he recalls. Smith describes being physically and mentally beat up by the crash and its painful a ermath, but completed the fall semester and graduated timely with his class. “I have never forgotten. Once in law school, I knew right away that I wanted to be a litigator and, speci cally,  ght for those that may not have the needed voice of their own.”
For nearly two decades, that’s exactly what he has done. As a managing partner in the West Palm Beach law  rm of Lytal, Reiter, Smith, Ivey & Fronrath, Smith provides aggressive rep- resentation of individuals and families who have been injured in accidents. He also represents
those injured by defective prod- ucts and families in wrongful death matters who have lost a loved one due to someone else’s negligence. Smith has resolved hundreds of cases by settlement or jury verdict, with dozens of cases resulting in compensation in excess of a million dollars. He has successfully concluded more than 10 of those in excess of $5 million, including a land- mark wrongful death resolution of $46 million.
Motivated by his passion to help others, Smith acknowledg- es that the hardest part of his job is witnessing the su ering of his clients. “It is impossible to say what tragedy is worse than any other,” he says. “However, the cases that I have handled involving a seriously injured child are the saddest and most di cult for me to see. No child should ever be injured like so
many that I’ve represented, let alone then have to endure the di cult legal process. Yet, I am committed to  ghting for them and ensuring that they obtain maximum compensation for all of their losses.”
Not surprisingly, Smith is highly respected by his clients and the legal community at large. He retains a consistent AV rating in Martindale-Hub- bell’s peer review rating process. Smith has also been listed in the Top 100 Plainti  ’s Lawyers in Florida, and has been featured several times in Top Verdicts & Settlements in Florida. In 2017, he was recognized by Best Lawyers as the top plainti  ’s personal injury lawyer in West Palm Beach.
A true student of life, Smith says that he’s gleaned knowl- edge and insight from virtually every experience, but is particu-
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