Sherrese Smith

Sherrese Smith is the Managing Partner of Paul Hastings. As Managing Partner, Ms. Smith helps direct the growth, management, and strategy of the firm.

Ms. Smith previously served as the Vice Chair of the Data Privacy and Cybersecurity practice. She is known as one of the country’s preeminent Data Privacy and Cybersecurity and Media and Technology attorneys. Consistently ranked as a leading lawyer in Chambers USA and Legal 500, she is recognized throughout the legal, media, communications, and technology industries for her leadership, business acumen, and dedication to clients. Her work includes data privacy, cybersecurity and breach response issues, crisis response, regulatory investigations, and enforcement proceedings, as well as counseling on global privacy and cybersecurity matters.

Ms. Smith is also renowned for superior advisement on crisis issues and, as a result, is regularly sought after by corporate board members and the C-suite.

Before joining Paul Hastings, Ms. Smith served as Chief Counsel to Chairman Julius Genachowski at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). She was responsible for determining the agency’s business and policy agenda on a multitude of media and technology matters and for leading the FCC’s cross‑agency efforts to refine and implement new rules on data privacy and cybersecurity for multinational companies navigating complex data and privacy rules in the U.S., EU, and Asia. Ms. Smith’s work also involved extensive interaction with external stakeholders, including wireless, media, cable, and telecommunications companies; industry groups and trade associations; federal and state agencies; and Congress.

Prior to joining the FCC in 2009, Ms. Smith was Vice President and General Counsel of Washington Post Digital. She was in charge of all legal and policy matters across 10 different business units in this role.

Ms. Smith also serves on the Board of Directors of Gen (NASDAQ:GEN) and Cable ONE (NYSE: CABO). She is also member of the Northwestern University’s Law School board, a member of the University of Maryland’s Journalism School board as well as America’s Public Television Stations executive board.