Jen Smith has joined Norton Rose Fulbright as a partner in the corporate, M&A and securities group in Austin after about five years at Latham & Watkins, where she helped that firm open its office in the Texas capital.
Norton Rose said in a news release that Smith is “a sought-after adviser for sponsors, portfolio companies and emerging growth businesses, guiding them from early-stage financings to exit.” She advises clients through platform acquisitions, take-private transactions, public offerings and cross-border sales.
“Jen is exactly the kind of lawyer we seek to attract to the firm: entrepreneurial by nature, admired in the market and committed to client service,” according to Jeff Cody, Norton Rose Fulbright’s global and U.S. managing partner. “Her deal acumen and practical judgment on complex matters reinforce our position as a destination for sophisticated transactional work.”
Gina Shishima, Norton Rose vice chair in the U.S., said the firm has been in Austin 50 years with many ties to the state capital city’s business and legal community.
“Jen’s arrival further elevates our corporate team, deepening the exceptional talent we offer clients throughout Texas, nationwide and globally,” Shishima said.
“Norton Rose Fulbright has long been one of the defining legal platforms in Texas, and the strength of its Austin office has always stood out to me,” Smith said in the release. “That local footprint, coupled with the firm’s broader capabilities, allows me to support clients through every stage of a matter and connect them with the resources they need to achieve their commercial objectives.”
Smith received a bachelor’s and master’s from Ohio State University and earned her law degree at the University of Texas School of Law. She started her law career at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati in Austin and spent six years with DLA Piper prior to helping Latham open an Austin office in August 2021.