Hare Wynn’s Tempe Smith Selected for Alabama State Bar Leadership Forum Class 14

Hare Wynn Associate, Tempe Smith, is among the 28 lawyers across the state named to Class 14 of the Alabama State Bar Leadership Forum.

Created in 2005, the bar’s Leadership Forum has produced 378 graduates. Participants will undergo a rigorous education and training process focusing on servant leadership, ethics and career development. Candidates are required to attend five separate sessions including a three-day orientation program.

“Tempe was selected for this honor because of her proven talent and ability as a lawyer,” said Leon Ashford, the firm’s managing partner. “Tempe’s tireless work ethic and dedication to her client’s cause are truly inspiring. We are proud to have her at Hare Wynn.”

While there is no age requirement, participants must have practiced law for at least five years and no more than 15 years. Candidates are selected based on demonstrated leadership qualities and service to their communities. Entry to the program is highly competitive, with approximately 40 percent of applicants selected to participate each year.

In 2013, the American Bar Association awarded the Alabama State Bar Leadership Forum with the E. Smythe Gambrell Professionalism Award, the nation’s leading award honoring the best professionalism programs and practices of law schools, bar associations, professional commissions and other law-related organizations.

About Tempe:

Smith joined Hare Wynn in 2015 and works primarily in the areas of class action and mass tort litigation. In 2017, she was a part of a trial team that successfully represented the nation’s corn growers in the first of eight-certified state class action lawsuits against Syngenta, resulting in a verdict of nearly $218 million.

Prior to working on behalf of America’s corn farmers, Smith worked as part of a team of Hare Wynn lawyers who represented a nationwide class of people and companies that were defrauded in the settlement of a class action. After 13 years of litigation, the Hare Wynn team obtained a $310 million settlement on behalf of the class.

Smith also has experience helping States’ Attorneys General seek justice on behalf of their citizens. She and several other Hare Wynn lawyers worked with the Attorneys General of Montana and Alaska to negotiate consumer protection settlements related to drug misbranding in both states. These settlements resulted in a payout of $15.25 million to the state of Alaska and $16.7 million to the state of Montana.

Contact: Rachel Olis; rachel@hwnn.com or 205.328.5330