Michael W. Ellison

Practice Areas: Insurance Coverage, Business Litigation, Intellectual Property

Mr. Ellison, the President of Smith Ellison, specializes in handling intricate business litigation cases on behalf of clients. His primary focus is on lawsuits concerning insurance coverage linked to environmental sites. He has represented both insurance companies and policyholders in numerous cases involving thousands of environmental sites and substantial alleged response costs, with over a dozen sites individually entailing alleged response costs exceeding one hundred million dollars. Additionally, Mr. Ellison regularly represents businesses in diverse complex insurance coverage disputes, copyright matters, and various other intricate business litigation issues. These encompass representing companies in class actions, including securities and consumer class actions, as well as handling cases involving contract disputes, business tort claims, and unfair competition suits among others.

Before joining Smith Ellison, Mr. Ellison was a member of the Litigation Department at the global law firm Latham & Watkins. He is authorized to practice in all state and federal courts in California, along with several United States District Courts in different states.

Mr. Ellison earned his J.D. cum laude from the University of Michigan and holds an M.A. in Philosophy from Rackham Graduate School at the same university. He also underwent mediation training at Harvard Law School’s Program on Negotiation. Prior to pursuing his graduate studies, he achieved a B.A. cum laude in Chemistry and Philosophy from Cornell University. During his time at Cornell, he engaged in research related to thermal analysis of polymers at the Institute of Materials Science of the University of Connecticut and worked on nuclear waste issues at the Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory. In addition to his legal career, Mr. Ellison has served as an adjunct Professor of Philosophy of Law. He is affiliated with the State Bar of California, the Orange County Bar Association, the Association of Business Trial Lawyers, and is a founding member of the Celtic Bar Association of Orange County. He has held positions such as Chair of the Orange County Bar Association’s Pro Bono Committee and has been involved in various committees and associations related to law and ethics. Currently, he is a member of the OCBA’s Diversity & Inclusion Committee. Beyond his professional pursuits, Mr. Ellison finds enjoyment in activities like soccer, lacrosse, golf, riding supersport motorcycles, and spending quality time with his wife, adult children, and Irish wolfhounds.