Lee Mickus

Position: Partner
Phone: +1-303-656-2199
Email: lmickus@efsmmlaw.com
Categories: Appeals, Automobiles, Commercial Litigation, Discovery, Mass & Toxic Torts, Product Liability
Location: Denver

Lee Mickus defends manufacturers and other business interests in product liability and tort lawsuits around the country, guiding cases through the discovery, trial, and appeal stages. He has successfully tried cases to juries in Colorado, Texas, California, New York, Puerto Rico, Montana, and several other states. Lee has handled cases involving a wide variety of industries and products, including automobiles, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, industrial machinery, wine, and recreational equipment. Lee has made court appearances, argued appeals, and submitted amicus briefs in numerous jurisdictions across the country.


  • Practice Areas

    Consumer and Industrial Products
    Mass & Toxic Torts
    Appeals
    Discovery
    Automobiles
    Commercial Litigation
    Discovery


  • Education

    The University of Virginia School of Law (J.D., 1993)
    Williams College (B.A. cum laude, 1990)
    Exeter College, Oxford University (1988-1989)


  • Court/Bar Admissions

    United States Supreme Court
    Supreme Court of Colorado
    Supreme Court of Montana
    Supreme Court of Texas
    Supreme Court of Wyoming
    United States District Court, District of Colorado
    United States District Court, Eastern District of Arkansas
    United States District Court, Western District of Arkansas
    United States District Court, Central District of Illinois
    United States District Court, Montana
    United States District Court, Eastern District of Texas
    United States District Court, Northern District of Texas
    United States District Court, Southern District of Texas
    United States District Court, Western District of Texas
    United States District Court for Wyoming
    United States Court of Appeals, 5th Circuit
    United States Court of Appeals, 6th Circuit
    United States Court of Appeals, 9th Circuit
    United States Court of Appeals, 10th Circuit
    United States Court of Appeals, 11th Circuit


  • Publications

    Federal Rule of Evidence 702: A Practitioner’s Guide to Understanding the 2023 Amendments

    “Georgia Supreme Court’s Doubts on Seat Belt Gag Rule’s Constitutionality Puts Legislature on Notice,” Washington Legal Foundation Legal Opinion Letter (July 29, 2022).

    “Trial Court’s Evidentiary Ruling in ‘Natural Vanilla’ Class Action Reflects Need for Changes to Rule 702,” Washington Legal Foundation Legal Opinion Letter (November 12, 2021).

    “Stop Calling Them ‘Daubert Motions’: Federal Rule of Evidence 702 and Why Words Matter,” Washington Legal Foundation Working Paper No. 221 (August 2021) (with Abigail Dodd).

    “Gatekeeping Reorientation: Amend Rule 702 to Correct Judicial Misunderstandings about Expert Evidence,” Washington Legal Foundation Working Paper No. 217 (May 2020).

    “Follow Louisiana’s Lead: The Case for Eliminating State Gag Rules on Motorists’ Failure to Buckle Up,” Washington Legal Foundation Working Paper No. 219 (August 2020).

    “Iowa Limits Medical Expense Damages to the Sums Actually Paid to a Plaintiff’s Health Care Provider,” Washington Legal Foundation Legal Opinion Letter (June 26, 2020)(with Marc Beltrame).

    Opening the Courts to Seat Belt Non-Use Evidence,” Author, Law 360 Expert Analysis Online Website (December 24, 2015).

    “Fifty-State Compendium on the Law of Punitive Damages,” Contributing Author for Colorado, Defense Research Institute (2009).

    “New Statutes Change Civil Litigation in Colorado,” Co-Author, 33 Colo. Lawyer 65 (May 2004).

    “To Beep or Not to Beep: The Optional Equipment Defense,” Co-Author, 19 LJN’S Product Liability Law & Strategy 4 (April 2001).

    “Discovery of Work Product Disclosed to a Testifying Expert Under the 1993 Amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure,” Author, 27 Creighton L. Rev. 773 (1994) (cited in five published federal and state court cases and more than a dozen law review articles, and treatises).


  • Legal Memberships/Honors

    Colorado Civil Justice League
    President, 2009-2010; 2015
    Board of Directors
    Legal Advisory Board

    Lawyers for Civil Justice – Co-Chair, Rule 702 Committee

    International Association of Defense Counsel

    Defense Research Institute

    Colorado Defense Lawyers Association

    Lawyers for Civil Justice “Alfred W. Cortese Jr. Award,” given for “outstanding contributions to the promotion of excellence and fairness in the United States civil justice system” (2020)

    Lawyers for Civil Justice Outstanding Contributor (2017)

    Colorado Civil Justice League’s “Lawyer of the Year” (2005)

    The Best Lawyers in America® – Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants (2024)
    The Best Lawyers in America® – Production Liability Litigation – Defendants (2024)

    5280 Magazine Top Lawyers, Personal Injury: Defense (2015-Present)

    Colorado Super Lawyers®, Personal Injury Defense: Products (2009-Present)

    Martindale Hubbell, AV Rated