DeMaurice F. "De" Smith (born February 3, 1964) is the former executive director of the
National Football League Players Association
The National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) is the labor unions in the United States, labor union representing National Football League (NFL) players. The NFLPA, which has headquarters in Washington, D.C., is led by executive directo ...
(NFLPA). He was elected unanimously on March 15, 2009. As executive director of the NFLPA during the
2011 NFL lockout, Smith played a major role in helping the players and NFL owners come to terms on a new
collective bargaining agreement
A collective agreement, collective labour agreement (CLA) or collective bargaining agreement (CBA) is a written contract negotiated through collective bargaining for employees by one or more trade unions with the management of a company (or with an ...
.
Smith was replaced by
Lloyd Howell Jr.
Lloyd Howell Jr. is an American businessman who is the executive director of the NFL Players Association. He previously worked for Booz Allen Hamilton and retired from his position in December 2022.
He graduated from the University of Pennsylvani ...
on June 23, 2023.
Education
Smith received his
J.D. from the
University of Virginia School of Law
The University of Virginia School of Law (Virginia Law) is the law school of the University of Virginia, a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Founded by Thomas Jefferson in 1819 as part of his "academical village", and now ...
and his
B.A.
A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree ...
degree in political science from
Cedarville University
Cedarville University is a private Baptist university in Cedarville, Ohio. It is chartered by the state of Ohio, approved by the Ohio Board of Regents, and accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.
Established in 1887, the school was origi ...
, a Baptist school in Ohio.
Career
Prior to his work with the
NFLPA
The National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) is the labor union representing National Football League (NFL) players. The NFLPA, which has headquarters in Washington, D.C., is led by executive director Lloyd Howell Jr. and president J ...
, DeMaurice Smith was a trial lawyer and litigation partner in the Washington, D.C. offices of
Latham & Watkins
Latham & Watkins LLP is an American multinational law firm. Founded in 1934 in Los Angeles, California, Latham is the second-largest law firm in the world by revenue. As of 2022, Latham is also one of the most profitable law firms in the world ...
and
Patton Boggs
Squire Patton Boggs is an international law firm with over 40 offices in 20 countries. It was formed in 2014 by the merger of multinational law firm Squire Sanders with Washington, D.C.–based Patton Boggs. It is one of the largest law firms in ...
, serving as the chair of the firm's government investigations and
white-collar practice group.
Smith previously served as counsel to then-deputy attorney general
Eric Holder
Eric Himpton Holder Jr. (born January 21, 1951) is an American lawyer who served as the 82nd United States attorney general from 2009 to 2015. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Holder was the first African Ameri ...
in the
U.S. Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the U.S. government that oversees the domestic enforcement of federal laws and the administration of justice. It is equi ...
before entering private practice.
He spent nine years with the U.S. Attorney's office and one with the Department of Justice, working on issues like national security and prison construction.
Smith has also represented
Fortune 500
The ''Fortune'' 500 is an annual list compiled and published by ''Fortune (magazine), Fortune'' magazine that ranks 500 of the largest United States Joint-stock company#Closely held corporations and publicly traded corporations, corporations by ...
companies, and argued numerous cases before the
U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit and the
District of Columbia Court of Appeals
The District of Columbia Court of Appeals is the highest court of the District of Columbia, the capital city of the United States. The court was established in 1942 as the Municipal Court of Appeals, and it has been the court of last resort ...
.
On March 15, 2009, Smith was elected unanimously by a board of active player representatives to become the executive director of the
National Football League Players Association
The National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) is the labor unions in the United States, labor union representing National Football League (NFL) players. The NFLPA, which has headquarters in Washington, D.C., is led by executive directo ...
(NFLPA). Although Smith lacked football experience, his ties to presidential power and business experts helped give him an advantage over other potential candidates like
Troy Vincent,
Trace Armstrong
Raymond Lester "Trace" Armstrong III (born October 5, 1965) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL) for fifteen seasons from the late 1980s to the early 2000s. He played c ...
, and sports attorney David Cornwell.
He was elected to his second and third terms in 2012 and 2015, respectively.
As executive director, Smith has emphasized that players need to take more control of their careers, educate themselves, and be more involved in the process.
Although his main role is to fight for better player salaries and improved safety, Smith has made it clear that long-term health care and increased benefits for tomorrow are just as important.
During Smith's first term as executive director of the
NFLPA
The National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) is the labor union representing National Football League (NFL) players. The NFLPA, which has headquarters in Washington, D.C., is led by executive director Lloyd Howell Jr. and president J ...
, the issue that dominated dialogue was the
2011 lockout.
With improved player safety, better player salaries, long-term health care, and increased benefits for retired NFL players in mind, DeMaurice Smith helped the NFLPA negotiate with the NFL owners and agree on a new
collective bargaining agreement
A collective agreement, collective labour agreement (CLA) or collective bargaining agreement (CBA) is a written contract negotiated through collective bargaining for employees by one or more trade unions with the management of a company (or with an ...
in July 2011.
Smith spoke at the
commencements for the
University of Virginia School of Law
The University of Virginia School of Law (Virginia Law) is the law school of the University of Virginia, a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Founded by Thomas Jefferson in 1819 as part of his "academical village", and now ...
in May 2015
and
University of Maryland
The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the Univ ...
in 2011.
In August 2017, he joined the Prince George's County Lacrosse Club Board of Directors.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Demaurice
1964 births
20th-century African-American people
21st-century African-American lawyers
21st-century American lawyers
African-American trade unionists
American lawyers
Cedarville University alumni
National Football League Players Association executive directors
Lawyers from Washington, D.C.
Living people
NFL executives
People associated with Latham & Watkins
Trade unionists from Washington, D.C.
University of Virginia School of Law alumni
Vice presidents of the AFL-CIO