Jeffrey P. Downer

Jeffrey P. Downer is past president of Lee Smart, P.S., Inc. He graduated from the University of Washington School of Law in 1982 and was admitted to the Washington State Bar that year. He joined Lee Smart as an intern in 1980 and as a lawyer in 1982. Jeff has a diverse litigation practice that includes professional liability defense, especially for lawyers and real estate brokers, insurance-coverage and bad-faith claims, appellate practice, premises liability, and product liability. Jeff has been “AV” rated by the Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory since 1994. His peers have named him a Washington Super Lawyer for 17 of the past 18 years. He has been listed in Best Lawyers in America for the past decade. Best Lawyers also named him a 2020 Lawyer of the Year in the practice area of Professional Malpractice Law – Defendants. He has successfully tried and arbitrated countless cases, including personal-injury cases, insurance-coverage matters, and professional-liability actions against lawyers and real estate professionals. He has served on the Washington State Bar Association’s committee on pattern jury instructions for legal-malpractice cases. Jeff has been Costco Wholesale Corporation’s national coordinating counsel in defense of claims across North America rising from allegations of E. coli O157:H7 infection and other claims of foodborne illness and food contamination. He has spoken at continuing legal education seminars regarding claims of professional liability, foodborne illness, and other aspects of defense litigation.

Jeffrey’s experience includes these notable cases:

• Piris v. Kitching, 185 Wn.2d 856, 375 P.3d 627 (2016) (legal malpractice).
• Kenco Enterprises Northwest, LLC v. Wiese, – 172 Wn. App. 607, 291 P.3d 21 (2013) (legal malpractice).
• Jackowski v. Borchelt – 174 Wn.2d 720, 278 P.3d 1100 (2012) (real estate professional liability).
• Verbeek Properties, LLC v. GreenCo Environmental, Inc – 159 Wn. App. 246 P.2d 205 (2010) (applicability of arbitration clause).

University of Washington School of Law, J.D. cum laude 1982

University of Washington, BA cum laude 1979

Washington State Bar

Washington State Supreme Court

U.S Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit

Washington State Bar Association