Arizona Lawyers

Personal Injury Law

13514 E Del Timbre Dr., Scottsdale, AZ 85259

Area of Practice: Police & Public Safety Law Founding Partner Sean Smoot is a subject matter expert on policing and public safety and the Managing Partner of 21CP. Building on a 30+ year career in law and policing, he now consults internationally on issues related to Constitutional Policing, Public Employment Labor Law, Pension & Benefits Law, Section 1983 Civil Rights Litigation, Body Worn Cameras, Use of Force, Supervision, Officer Safety & Wellness, Recruiting, Retention, and Hiring. Mr. Smoot was a police and public safety advisor to the Obama-Biden Presidential Transition Teams and a Member of President Obama’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing. He also was part of the Executive Session on Policing and Public Safety at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government from 2008 to 2014. He is a member of several national boards and committees, and regularly speaks at conferences, meetings, and forums on topics related to public safety, police-community relations, and law enforcement agency operations. He has appeared on CNN, C-SPAN, and several national news affiliates discussing critical issues in modern policing. Mr. Smoot’s career in law enforcement labor relations and legislative advocacy began in Illinois and he remains the Emeritus Director and Chief Counsel of the Police Benevolent & Protective Association of Illinois. He also is the Area 4 Vice-President of the National Association of Police Organizations (“NAPO”), a national law enforcement advocacy group representing over 250,000 police officers across the United States. Other noteworthy service in his native state includes his 2015 appointment to the Illinois Commission on Police Professionalism by then-Governor Bruce Rauner, and his current role on the Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board (ILETSB). First appointed to ILETSB in 2020 by Governor J.B. Pritzker, he was elected Chairman of the Board in 2023. As ILETSB’s Chairman, he is responsible for the oversight and training of more than 35,000 sworn law enforcement officers and over 6,500 sworn correctional officers across the state. Mr. Smoot also spent 12 years as an elected alderman and ten years as the police commissioner in Leland Grove. Mr. Smoot holds a BS in Criminal Justice Sciences from Illinois State University and a JD from the Southern Illinois University School of Law, where he served as the Business Editor of the SIU Law Journal.

Personal Injury Law

2355 E Camelback Rd #335, Phoenix, AZ 85016, USA

Steve Jones is a widely recognized trial lawyer with extensive experience and success representing individuals and families in catastrophic injury and wrongful death cases in Maricopa County, Pima County, Pinal County and throughout Arizona. Mr. Jones was recently nominated and accepted for membership in Lawyers of Distinction, an exclusive national group whose lawyers are amongst the “best of the best” in their respective areas of practice. He has also been named one of Super Lawyers’ Rising Stars for multiple consecutive years. Originally from upstate New York, Steve earned his bachelor’s degree from the University at Buffalo before he went on to attend law school at Widener University School of Law. There, he graduated with Summa Cum Laude honors and was ranked first in his graduating class of 99 law students. He also earned several accolades as an editor of the Widener Law Journal. Following law school, Steve received his license to practice law in New York and New Jersey. He accepted a position with a well-known defense firm in Buffalo, where he practiced insurance defense litigation for over a year. He relocated to Arizona in 2013, and joined Phillips Law Group, an Arizona personal injury firm. As a partner at Phillips Law Group, Steve focused his practice exclusively on fighting for injured people against those who negligently caused harm, corporations, and insurance companies. Mr. Jones has a proven track record of helping those who have been harmed by negligence, wrongful conduct, violations of safety rules, and dangerous premises conditions. Mr. Jones possesses a particular interest in helping people involved in motorcycle, bus and truck collisions. He also has a passion for representing individuals who suffered Traumatic Brain Injury, Post-Concussion Syndrome and Spinal Cord Injury. Steve has obtained some of the largest jury verdicts and settlements in the State of Arizona in these types of cases. Mr. Jones led the trial team in Roaf v. Stephen S. Rebuck Consulting, et al that resulted in a $4.625 million verdict – the 5th Largest Arizona Verdict in 2022. Mr. Jones has received multiple landmark seven figure settlements in Arizona.

Civil Litigation

650 N 3rd Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85003, USA

Teri Rowe was born in New York and has lived in Arizona since high school. She attended the University of Arizona, earning degrees in Physics and Astronomy, and interned with NASA. She spent two years working with the National Science Foundation teaching second and third grade science at underprivileged schools in Southern Arizona. She also taught professional development courses in science to elementary school teachers throughout the state. Teri began her career as a Systems Engineer for Raytheon in Tucson with the team designing the TOW Fire & Forget anti-tank missile system. After some time with Raytheon, she found that engineering work didn’t satisfy her need to connect with people or her desire to help others. She left the field of engineering and took a job as a paralegal at a personal injury firm hoping to get some exposure to the practice of law, and quickly discovered that she found the work fulfilling and rewarding. Teri went on to attend law school at Arizona State University, where she was a senior editor of Jurimetrics: The Journal of Law, Science and Technology. Upon graduation, Teri began her legal career focused on representing those injured and victimized by others. For the first ten years of her practice, she worked at a small firm where she represented victims of catastrophic injuries and wrongful death. She also worked in criminal defense, defending those charged with felony and misdemeanor crimes, served as a victim advocate for crime victims, and handled probate cases for minors and vulnerable adults. Teri joined Miller Kory Rowe in 2014 and has since dedicated the majority of her practice to representing the victims of nursing home abuse and neglect, as well as medical malpractice. She also continues to represent those catastrophically injured in construction accidents, tractor-trailer collisions, pedestrian, bicyclist and motorcycle collisions, assaults, and claims against government entities and schools. She has tried both jury and bench trials to verdict. She has achieved excellent results for her clients and is proud of the gratitude and loyalty those clients have expressed. Teri has not completely left her prior career as an engineer behind. Her engineering and math background, as well as her teaching experience, has proved valuable in understanding the corporate structures and accounting systems of national nursing home chains, as well as explaining accident dynamics in collision and construction cases. Teri is uniquely skilled at combining the math and physics involved in her cases with her teaching experience, and often uses those skills to create visual displays and exhibits for trial. Outside of her career, Teri is a soccer mom and regularly road trips and camps with her children who have set a goal to visit every national park in the United States. She is also a certified yoga instructor and has maintained a regular yoga practice since 2004. She is an avid distance and trail runner, completing half and full marathons. Teri grew up adventuring in the outdoors and spends her free time backpacking, hiking, and exploring wherever she goes.

Insurance Law

4745 N 7th St #210, Phoenix, AZ 85014, USA

As recommended by his peers in the ABA and the State Bar of Arizona, Troy Froderman is once again Tier 1 in Chambers for best insurance lawyer representing policyholders for Five consecutive years. He is a trusted and experienced trial lawyer with over 75 jury trials under his belt. For over 29 years, he has represented clients in state and federal courts throughout the United States. This breadth of experience makes him one of the nation’s leading lawyers for insurance coverage disputes. He has also been named Benchmark Litigation Star (2012-present), one of Arizona’s Finest Lawyers (2014-present), and Super Lawyers (2011-present). After graduating cum laude from DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana, Troy continued to Vanderbilt University Law School in Nashville, Tennessee – graduating with a Juris Doctorate Degree in May 1989. Having been an equity shareholder in both regional and national Am Law 100 law firms like Polsinelli PC and Bryan Cave LLP, Troy has seen a wide cross-section of the legal landscape. While he enjoyed the high energy environment of large corporate firms, he wanted to build deeper relationships with his clients. This is one of the driving forces behind Troy’s partnership with Scott and the formation of FR Law Group PLLC. Troy also serves on the Board for the American College of Coverage and Extracontractual Counsel, the Maricopa County Volunteer Lawyers’ Program, and the Pinewood Country Club.

Corporate and Transactional Law

1400 E Southern Ave suite 1020, Tempe, AZ 85282, USA

Area of Practice: Asset Protection Law With more than a decade of experience, John Skabelund has adeptly protected a diverse range of clients’ estates, ranging from $500,000 to over $100 million. His clientele spans real estate investors, business owners, executives, and professionals in various fields, including medicine, law, sports, and technology. John skillfully creates comprehensive estate plans tailored to each client’s unique needs, ensuring their legacy can be preserved for generations. He also has represented clients in the buying and selling of businesses across a multitude of industries. Furthermore, as an outside general counsel, John has been instrumental in developing succession plans and buy-sell agreements for business owners.