William G. K. Smoak

Bill Smoak is a shareholder with Alvarez, Thompson & Smoak, P.A. and helps lead our Tampa office. He is a very experienced trial attorney whose practice is focused primarily in the areas of commercial transportation law, negligent security/premises litigation, food safety, product liability law, and professional malpractice matters. Mr. Smoak also provides legal advice for business owners and litigates disputes between businesses.

Bill regularly manages catastrophic losses from the time of occurrence and investigation up through and including verdicts and post-trial appeals.Alvarez, Thompson & Smoak, P.A. provides its clients with 24/7 coverage for such catastrophic losses and Bill is integral in managing such exposures for the firm’s clients.

Following his enlisted service in the United States Marine Corps as an assault amphibious vehicle crewman, Bill received a B.A. from the University of South Florida double major in psychology and criminology. While completing his undergraduate education, he worked as a complex litigation paralegal in defense of silicone breast implant manufacturers. He attended Cumberland School of Law at Samford University, where he was a Senior Editor of the American Journal of Trial Advocacy. He also was a member of Cumberland’s perennially nationally ranked trial team, having won several trial competitions. Bill also obtained his master’s in business administration from Samford University. After receiving his Juris Doctor degree, he worked as a litigation associate with an insurance defense firm in Alabama. Ultimately, Bill returned to Florida and joined a well-known insurance defense firm in 2001.

Bill has tried many cases involving wrongful death, quadriplegia, brain injury and other serious injuries resulting from catastrophic transportation accidents, negligent security, premises liability, Sarbanes-Oxley Act/Florida Whistle Blower, age, and racial discrimination matters to verdict in Florida, Indiana, and Alabama.

Bill is a proud member of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), the American College of Transportation Attorneys (ACTA) and the Trucking Claims Bootcamp.

Bill lectures around the industry regularly regarding transportation law. Bill is a member of the Transportation Insurance Defense Association (TIDA) and has been for several years a part of several industry lobby groups to address changes in Florida trucking litigation and tort reform. Bill has been involved in addressing numerous issues having a wide-ranging impact upon the transportation industry, including damages issues, jurisdictional issues and legislative changes.

Bill is a proud 6th generation native of St. Augustine, Florida. He is a private pilot, who holds an instrument and commercial pilot rating.