Former Texas State Representative Terral R. Smith Joins Greenberg Traurig's Austin Office

AUSTIN, Texas, July 8 /PRNewswire/ -- The international law firm Greenberg Traurig LLP announced that Former Texas Representative Terral R. Smith has joined its Austin office as an of counsel in the governmental affairs practice group.  

His practice is focused on state and federal legislative and administrative matters.  Smith has been active in politics for more than 30 years.  He was elected to the Texas House of Representatives in 1980 and served as Chairman of two House Committees: the Criminal Jurisprudence Committee (1985-1987) and the Natural Resources Committee (1987-1991).  From 1996 to 2001, Smith served as Governor Bush's legislative director.

Prior to his political career, Smith focused on business litigation in private practice.  He was a partner at a large Texas firm where he served as the Chair of the Public Law Section at the firm's Austin office.  In addition, he was the Co-Chair of the firm's political action committee.  In 2003, Smith established a government consulting firm.  In 2008, he sold the firm and took the position of Chief of Staff to the Speaker of the Texas House of Representative.  He served in that capacity until 2009.

"Terral is one of the wise men of the Texas Capitol," said Demetrius McDaniel, head of the Greenberg Traurig's Texas Governmental Affairs practice.  "His experience as a state representative and a senior staff member to a Texas governor and speaker of the house gives him an extraordinary understanding of how Texas government functions.  He is keenly aware of what is necessary to produce good public policy which will be a great asset to our law firm and our clients."

"We are very excited to add Terral to the Austin office.  His experience in Texas politics and his reputation for understanding governmental affairs will serve our clients well," said Barry Senterfitt, Managing Shareholder of Greenberg Traurig's Austin office.

In addition to its federal governmental affairs practice, Greenberg Traurig supports clients with state and local practices in strategically located offices throughout the U.S.  "The addition of Terral further expands our platform of serving clients by having former elected officials and advisors as part of our national team," said Fred W. Baggett, chair of Greenberg Traurig's national Governmental Affairs Practice.  "Our federal, state, and local teams work closely together to provide clients with a wide range of services and resources across the country."

Smith received a J.D. from The University of Texas School of Law in 1973 and a B.A. from Texas Tech University in 1968.

About Greenberg Traurig, LLP

Greenberg Traurig, LLP is an international, full-service law firm with approximately 1800 attorneys serving clients from more than 30 offices in the United States, Europe, and Asia.  In the U.S., the firm has more offices than any other among the Top 10 on The National Law Journal's 2009 NLJ 250.  For additional information, please visit www.gtlaw.com.

SOURCE Greenberg Traurig LLP