Title: Founding Shareholder
Company: Smolker Mathews P.A.
Location: Tampa, Florida, United States
David Smolker, founding shareholder at Smolker Mathews P.A., has been recognized by Marquis Who’s Who Top Lawyers for dedication, achievements, and leadership in real estate, land use, and property rights litigation.
With four decades of experience, Mr. Smolker has built a distinguished legal career, focusing on real estate, land use, and property rights litigation. He has excelled as a founding shareholder at Smolker Mathews P.A. since 2021, specializing in litigation and administrative matters involving city councils and county commissions, property rights cases, and higher education law. Previously, he served as general counsel for New College of Florida between 2001 and 2023. He was a founding shareholder at Smolker, Bartlett, Loeb, Hinds & Sheppard P.A. from 1994 to 2021 and a principal and consciousness science researcher from 2005 to 2015. He also held roles as an adjunct professor of land use and environmental law at New College of Florida, a partner at Honigman Miller Schwartz & Cohn, and an associate and partner at Stearns, Weaver, Miller, Weissler, Alhadeff & Sitterson P.A. He began his career as an assistant and chief assistant county attorney for Pasco County, Florida, and as a city planner for Bradenton, Florida. Before embarking on his professional path, he earned a Bachelor of Arts in environmental studies and photography from the New College of Florida in 1977 and a Juris Doctor from the Fredric G. Levin College of Law at the University of Florida in 1982. He was subsequently admitted to the Florida Bar, the United States District Courts for the Middle, Northern, and Southern Districts of Florida, the Federal Court of Claims, the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, the Eleventh Circuit, and the Supreme Court of the United States.
In addition to his primary vocation, Mr. Smolker remains affiliated with various organizations. He has served as special counsel for Pasco County, Charlotte County, the Port of Tampa, the City of Gulf Breeze, and the Southwest Florida Water Management District. Additionally, he is a member of the Land Use and Environmental Law Section of the Florida Bar and the Hillsborough County Bar Association and served on the property rights subcommittee of the Real Property and Probate Section of the Florida Bar from 2005 to 2021. He has been on the board of directors and treasurer for the Andalucia Master Association and served in the Trial Lawyers Section and Eminent Domain Committee of the Florida Bar. His affiliations include the Administrative Law Section of the Florida Bar, the Section on State and Local Government Law of the American Bar Association, and the LANDS Committee of the National Association of Homebuilders. He has contributed to numerous creative works, including delivering presentations on wildlife corridors and authoring several publications, including “Regulatory Takings, Growth Management, and Environmental Permitting,” co-authoring “Challenges to Comprehensive Plan Amendments and Development Orders: Winning Strategies,” and “Drainage Rights and Remedies.” In addition, he authored “Development Exactions: The New Old Frontier” and “Kelo v City of New London, Growth Management and Environmental Permitting, “among others.
Mr. Smolker has accrued several accolades throughout his career. He was recognized as one of the Wall Street Journal’s Top Attorneys in Florida in 2013, Florida Super Lawyers’ Top Attorneys in Florida in 2010, and Tampa Bay Magazine’s Top Lawyers in 2010. One of his most notable accomplishments was handling a significant case involving public access to privately owned dry sandy beaches. He successfully lobbied for a bill clarifying that only courts could determine public use rights, not county commissioners. Representing nearly 100 parcel owners, he systematically dismantled the county’s case over three years, securing favorable evidentiary rulings. He attributes his success to his passion for his profession and unwavering dedication to his work. Looking ahead, he plans to scale back his legal practice to focus on personal endeavors. Despite diversifying his interests, he intends to stay active in his profession. Additionally, he has delved into research within the field of biophysics of consciousness and has upcoming speaking engagements with the American Planning Association and a group of lawyers to discuss significant property rights cases.
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