Awards & Professional Recognition
A National Voice in Suicide Litigation
Attorney Skip Simpson has spent decades handling cases involving suicide, psychiatric malpractice, and mental health facility negligence, and the recognition he has earned reflects that focus. His work has shaped how these cases are understood and litigated nationally, and it has been acknowledged by legal rating organizations, academic institutions, and national news publications alike.
National Recognition in Civil Litigation
Attorney Skip Simpson has been recognized by The National Trial Lawyers Top 100 Civil Litigation since 2022. He holds a 10.0 Avvo rating, the highest score the platform awards, and he has also earned an AV Preeminent rating from Martindale-Hubbell, its highest peer-review rating for legal ability and ethical standards. His professional recognition also includes selection for membership in the Million Dollar Advocates Forum and Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum, organizations whose membership is limited to attorneys who have achieved qualifying million- and multi-million-dollar verdicts and settlements.
Featured by National News Organizations
Skip was profiled by The Wall Street Journal in 1997 for his early, pioneering work in suicide litigation. That same year, The National Law Journal recognized him for winning a case built on a new tort theory holding psychiatric clinicians responsible for failing to prevent deaths by suicide.
In June 1998, Lawyers Weekly USA featured his work in an article titled “Dallas Lawyer Sues Therapists for Suicide.” His work has also been examined by The Atlantic and The Dallas Morning News.
Academic Appointments in Psychiatry and Law
In 2003, Skip was appointed a Research Associate of the Program in Psychiatry and the Law at Beth Israel-Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School. He later served as a Clinical Instructor and then Adjunct Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio from 2004 through 2016, where he taught medical residents on the legal aspects of psychiatric care. Since 2019, he has served on the faculty of the National Suicidology Training Center.
Contributions to the Field
He has served on the Board of Directors of the American Association of Suicidology and has contributed to national guidance documents, including a consensus guide for emergency departments developed with the Suicide Prevention Resource Center and the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention. He has authored and co-authored numerous articles and book chapters on suicide risk assessment, clinician liability, and standards of care, published in journals including Behavioral Sciences and the Law, the Journal of Psychiatric Practice, and Psychiatric Times. His work is also featured in the book The Suicide Lawyers: Exposing Lethal Secrets.
A Background in Public Service
Before focusing his practice on psychiatric and psychological malpractice, Attorney Skip Simpson served as a U.S. Air Force Judge Advocate, including as a General Courts-Martial Judge, and later as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Northern District of Texas. In 1985, he was recognized as Texas’s top narcotics prosecutor by the Texas War on Drugs Committee, and he received a Certificate of Merit from the Dallas Police Department and a Certificate of Appreciation from the Drug Enforcement Administration that same year.
Professional Associations and Admissions
Attorney Skip Simpson maintains bar admissions and professional memberships that reflect a career spanning both civil and criminal law:
- State Bar of Texas: Admitted since 1975.
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit: Admitted since 1982.
- U.S. District Court, Northern, Eastern, and Southern Districts of Texas: Admitted across all three districts.
- American Association for Justice: Active member.
- Texas Trial Lawyers Association: Active member.
- American Association of Suicidology: Member, and former Board Member from 2015 to 2021.
- The QPR Institute, Inc.: Board member and faculty member.
Fighting for Families Who Deserve Answers
The recognition Skip has earned reflects decades spent understanding how these tragedies happen and holding providers accountable when standards of care are not followed. If a loved one died by suicide while under the care of a hospital, psychiatric facility, or mental health provider, The Law Offices of Skip Simpson is available to discuss the circumstances and help identify what options may be available. Contact us today for a free, confidential consultation.
