Corporate Law Legal Malpractice Law - Defendants Legal Malpractice Law - Plaintiffs Tax Law
Jeffrey M. Smith
Recognized in Best Lawyers since 1995 Awarded Practice Areas
Biography
Areas of Concentration
- Entertainment law
- Securities
- Legal malpractice
Overview
- University of Minnesota, J.D., graduated 1973
- Georgia, State Bar of Georgia
- Georgia, State Bar of Georgia
- University of Minnesota, J.D., graduated 1973
Client Testimonials
Awards & Focus
Named "Lawyer of the Year" by Best Lawyers® for:
- Legal Malpractice Law - Defendants, Atlanta (2025)
- Legal Malpractice Law - Plaintiffs, Atlanta (2020)
- Legal Malpractice Law - Plaintiffs, Atlanta (2018)
- Legal Malpractice Law - Plaintiffs, Atlanta (2014)
Recognized in The Best Lawyers in America® 2026 for work in:
- Corporate Law
- Legal Malpractice Law - Defendants
- Legal Malpractice Law - Plaintiffs
- Tax Law
Additional Areas of Practice:
- Legal Malpractice Law
Awards:
- AV Preeminent® 5.0 out of 5
- The American Lawyer, Top Legal Malpractice and Ethics Lawyers
- "Corpus Juris Award" for the Best Contribution to Legal Research, West Publishing Company, University of Minnesota Law School, 1972-1973
- "Service Award," University of Minnesota Law School Council, 1973
- "Vital Service Award," Atlanta Association for Retarded Citizens, 1979
- "Service Award," American Heart Association, Georgia Affiliate, 1982
- "ALI-ABA Special Award of Merit" for writing and lecturing in the areas of ethics and malpractice, 1984
- "Service Award," National Association of Chinese Americans, 2012
- Super Lawyers magazine, Georgia Super Lawyers, Securities Law, 2004, 2006, 2009-2013
- Who's Who in American Law, 1978-Present
- Who's Who in America, 1983-Present
- Who's Who in the World, 1992-Present
News & Media
Case History
Cases
- Significant Representations
- Represented leading entertainers and entertainment companies, including casinos, themed restaurants and hotels, computer game companies, record companies, and publishing companies in various securities, trademark-licensing and other financial transactions, including joint ventures, in which clients have included: Aerosmith, Jimmy Buffett, Alan Jackson, Michael Jackson Estate, Magic Johnson, Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, Def Leppard, Margaritaville Enterprises, Bob Marley Estate, Bret Michaels, Matt and Dean Serletic, George Strait, Justin Timberlake and Virgin Gaming.
- Represented sports-related individuals and entities, including Magic Johnson, Olympic speed skater Apolo Ohno, the National Basketball Association and various entertainers connected with sports, such as naming rights to the Miami Dolphins Stadium for Jimmy Buffett's LandShark Lager.
- Part 2
- Participated in traditional and nontraditional movie transactions, including:
- Negotiation of documents for the "Drumline";
- Negotiation of the documents for the "Being Bobby Brown" reality television show; and
- Renting Seaside, Florida to Paramount Pictures for the movie entitled "The Truman Show."
- Represented broker-dealers, including Oppenheimer & Co., Inc., FirsTrust (China) and Bear Stearns & Co., Inc.; corporations and securities matters, including General Steel Holdings, Inc. (China) and SGOCO Limited (China); insurers in securities matters, including Swiss Re and the Travelers; insurers, including Travelers, as well as banks and other companies involving directors and officers liability; law firms and accounting firms, including Deloitte & Touche LLP, in securities, quality control and ethics matters.
- Mediated and arbitrated in the areas of securities, legal malpractice and accounting malpractice.
- Provided expert witness services in securities and legal malpractice matters for plaintiffs and defendants, including for the FDIC and formerly for the RTC.
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