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Ted Smith is a partner in Drinker Biddle's Commercial Litigation Practice Group and is based in the Florham Park Office. Since joining the firm in 1984 following a federal clerkship, Ted has been involved in commercial litigation and arbitration in the areas of construction, real estate, product liability, aviation, automotive, financial institutions, pharmaceutical R&D, environmental remediation and business torts.
Construction Law. Owing to his background in architecture and construction, a significant portion of Ted's practice has been in construction law. This includes the litigation, arbitration and mediation of complex construction disputes, the drafting and negotiation of all forms of construction, architectural and engineering agreements and the counseling of clients in project management and dispute avoidance while construction projects are ongoing. Ted is the co-chair of the firm's Construction Real Estate and Land Use Litigation Team.
Construction Clients and Projects. Ted has represented owners, developers, contractors, subcontractors, equipment suppliers, architects, engineers, construction managers and operators in all phases of the design and construction process on a wide range of office, commercial, industrial and residential projects and their component systems, including: mechanical and fire protection systems in office/warehouses, electrical work at Terminal A of Newark Liberty Airport, a cogeneration plant fueled by a landfill gas collection system, a coal-fired electrical power plant and an electrostatic precipitator, a major data processing facility with an under-floor condenser system, an electronic facilities management system for a school, a pharmaceutical manufacturing facility in Singapore, SCR emission control systems at power plants located throughout the United States, a municipal sludge processing facility, a public rail equipment maintenance facility, electronic systems installed at the New York City subway, electrical work for the World Trade Center reconstruction and structural failures of a wastewater treatment tower, a golf course detention basin dam and a church roof.
Claims and Issues. Ted has prosecuted and defended claims in construction and real estate disputes in arbitration tribunals and in federal and state courts throughout the country. The claims and disputes range from personal injury and property damage claims to complex, multiple party construction disputes, including claims based on delay and disruption, extended project overhead, lost productivity, disputed change orders, default and termination, defective specifications, design errors, performance guarantees, negligence, workplace accidents, building code violations, improper pre-purchase due diligence and architectural copyright infringement among others.
Professional. After obtaining undergraduate degrees in architecture and business management, Ted worked in construction project management before attending the University of Pennsylvania Law School. Following law school, he clerked for United States District Court Judge Frederick B. Lacey in the District of New Jersey. Ted has served as an arbitrator for the American Arbitration Association and has been a member of the ABA Construction Industry Forum. He is an associate member of the American Institute of Architects. | 