Summers, David B.

Mr. Sullivan has been in the private practice of law since 1968. He has tried over 100 jury trials in state and federal courts in the Midwest. The subject matters of these trials concerned everything from product liability to first-degree murder. In later years his practice has centered on complex product liability defense, although he still is active in the trials of motor vehicle accidents and commercial torts. He has also recently tried several cases on behalf of personally injured plaintiffs.

He is active in the Iowa Academy of Trial Lawyers which is an invitational organization of plaintiff and defense trial lawyers limited to 250 members. In 1997 he served as President of the Academy. He is active in defending propane explosion cases and is a member of the Propane Defense Counsel Association. He has acted as counsel for lawyers in ethics matters and has served as an expert witness at trial on issues related to legal ethics and standards.

Mr. Sullivan was born in 1937. He was raised in Washington, D.C. While in high school his family moved to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, the home of his maternal grandparents. He graduated from high school in Cedar Rapids, and attended what were then known as Iowa State College and the State University of Iowa. He graduated from the latter in 1960. He was accepted to and attended law school at the Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, D.C. While in law school, he worked at night as a U.S. Capitol Policeman to finance his education.

After his June 1963 graduation from law school he took and passed the Iowa bar exam and the D.C. bar exam. He spent the next five years in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General Corps. During that period, he adjudicated serious personal injury and property claims against members of the U.S. Forces in Germany. He acted as General Court Martial Defense Counsel and Prosecuting Counsel. At the time he left active duty, he was a Major and the Chief of Military Justice for Fifth U.S. Army, then located at Fort Sheridan, Illinois.

He joined Jim Crawford in the practice of law in Cedar Rapids, Iowa in 1968. In August of 2003 he completed ADR training and has served as a mediator in a variety of cases, including motor vehicle accidents, legal malpractice, medical malpractice, employment law, construction disputes, architect malpractice, workers' compensation, sexual voyeurism, mechanic's lien foreclosure and breach of contract. The personal injury cases include death, emotional distress, very serious injury, and soft tissue injury. In July 2004 he completed complex litigation ADR training, and as part of his practice he continues to serve as a mediator.

His outside interests include travel, sports, wine and music. He has been active in political, church and charitable organizations. He lives with his wife, Dee, just outside of Cedar Rapids and has two daughters, Megan and Tricia. Megan is a Journalism graduate of the University of Iowa and is now a free-lance advertising consultant in Chicago. Tricia graduated in Psychology at the University of Iowa and received her Masters Degree at St. Louis University. She is a family and children's counselor at Mercy Hospital in Cedar Rapids.