Louann P. Smith, of counsel in the Chattanooga office, concentrates her practice in acquisitions and sales of businesses, business planning and organization and general business transactions.
Ms. Smith has experience as lead counsel on numerous complex transactions, including sales and acquisitions of businesses in the mining and quarry industry, water and wastewater treatment and distribution systems, manufacturing businesses and financially troubled businesses. Her experience includes the financing and real estate aspects of these transactions and the analysis and resolution of zoning and permitting issues. She has assisted businesses in obtaining PILOT agreements and other tax incentives from municipalities, counties and states. She has assisted businesses in the successful negotiation of many different kinds of contracts, including mineral leases, easement and access agreements, various provider and service agreements and manufacturing and product sales agreements.
Ms. Smith has also served in various roles on tax-exempt private activity bond transactions and 501(c)(3) bond transactions, including bond counsel, borrower's counsel and letter of credit bank counsel.
- Represented a private equity fund as lead counsel in multiple acquisitions of manufacturing businesses, most recently including cosmetics, construction components, packaging and food product businesses.
- Represented a publicly-traded construction aggregates company as lead counsel for numerous acquisitions over a five-year period of quarry sites and operations, ready mix concrete operations and asphalt operations in the southeastern and western United States.
- Represented a publicly-traded construction aggregates company as lead counsel for $350 million sale of assets over a two-year period, including quarry sites and operations, ready mix concrete operations and asphalt operations in the southeastern and western United States.
- Represented a wastewater service provider in the acquisition and development of three greenfield wastewater treatment and collection systems.
- Represented an investor-owned utility company in multiple acquisitions of water treatment and distribution systems from municipalities and utility districts.
- Represented management in the buy-out of an industrial piping business.
- Represented the developer as lead counsel for assemblage of properties and financing of three greenfield quarry developments.
- Listed in Best Lawyers in America® in the area of Structured Finance Law since 2008 and the areas of Mergers and Acquisitions Law and Public Finance Law since 2010
- Member – Chattanooga, Tennessee (Corporation and Business Sections) and American Bar Associations
- Member – National Association of Bond Lawyers
- Member – Tennessee Lawyers Association for Women
- University of Tennessee at Knoxville, J.D., 1983, magna cum laude
- University of Tennessee at Knoxville, B.A., 1976, summa cum laude