SUSAN K. SMITH
A native of Arizona, Susan was educated at the University of Arizona, Principia College (B.A., 1969); University of Virginia (M.A., 1970); and Arizona State University (J.D., 1975). She was elected to Alpha Lambda Delta and Phi Eta Sigma honoraries and also received the J. P. Walker American History Award and the State Bar of Arizona Ethics Award. She was admitted to the Arizona Bar in 1976, U.S. Tax Court in 1977, and U.S. Supreme Court in 1980.
Susan has been a member of the Executive Council of the International Academy of Estate and Trust Law. In addition, Susan was a State Chair for five years and a Regent for six years in the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel and the Chair of that College’s Business Planning Committee for three years. Susan has served on the Editorial Advisory Board of the Practical Tax Lawyer and has lectured frequently on behalf of the State Bar of Arizona, ALI-ABA, and most of all the major national tax institutes. She has authored numerous books and articles, including the Estate Planning Practice Manual for the State Bar of Arizona.
Susan has been extremely active in many organizations since her admission to the Bar: State Bar of Arizona (Chairman, Section of Taxation); Central Arizona Estate Planning Council (Director); American Bar Association's Section of Taxation (Chairman, Economics of Tax Practice Committee); American Bar Association's Section of Real Property, Probate and Trust Law); Member of the American Law Institute and served for several years as a Director for the Arizona Community Foundation. Susan is an Accredited Estate Planning Specialist by the National Association of Estate Planners & Councils and has served on the Tax Advisory Commission for the Board of Legal Specialization for the State Bar of Arizona and as a member of the Board of Directors of the Samaritan Foundation where she served as Vice Chair and Chair of the Foundation's Gift Planning Advisory Committee. Susan is past Chair of the Valley Estate Planners where she was elected its first Lifetime Member in recognition of her contributions to the organization and the general field of Estate Planning.
In addition to being a fellow in the American College of Tax Counsel, Susan is a Certified Specialist in both Tax Law as well as the Estate and Trust Law by the Arizona Board of Legal Specialization. In 2011, Susan was named Phoenix’s Lawyer of the Year in trusts and estates by Best Lawyers. Susan has also has been listed in Who's Who in American Law, Who's Who of American Women, the Southwest's Top 50 Super Lawyers and in The Best Lawyers in America.