Paul R. Smith

Managing your company’s workforce takes careful planning and thoughtful administration. Paul works with companies to ensure they have appropriate terms, conditions, and policies governing their employees. This often takes the form of reviewing, drafting, and revising employee handbooks and employment agreements, including non-solicitation and non-compete agreements. Paul helps employers navigate difficult employment situations, including by providing real-time counsel and, when appropriate, performing internal investigations into claims of harassment, discrimination, and other alleged violations of the law and company policy. Paul also frequently provides trainings for HR managers, supervisors, and employees at every level regarding various topics, including harassment, discrimination, conflicts of interest, hiring procedures, and remote-work and social-media policies.

While planning and administration are crucial steps in managing workforce, they’re not enough by themselves—employers also need to protect themselves. Paul regularly defends companies against discrimination, retaliation, and wrongful termination claims brought under the ADA, FMLA, ADEA, USERRA, Title VII, and state law. Sometimes this means simply responding to demand letters; other times it’s participating in administrative investigations brought by the EEOC and its state counterparts; often it’s defending against claims brought in state or federal court. Paul has experience at every stage of defense. But sometimes the best defense is a good offense. When former employees violate their non-solicitation or non-compete obligations, Paul assists companies in enforcing those obligations—from drafting cease and desist letters to filing and prosecuting lawsuits.

Paul’s experience includes representing companies in other litigation contexts, ranging from general commercial and contractual disputes, to enforcing creditors’ rights in the bankruptcy context, to protecting intellectual-property rights. While Paul has years of experience litigating at the trial-court level in state and federal court, he also has considerable experience at the appellate level, briefing and arguing cases before the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals, the Utah Court of Appeals, and the Utah Supreme Court.

Paul grew up in the Sugarhouse area, where he attended Highland High School. He then graduated from the University of Utah, receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering. Paul received his juris doctorate from the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University. He now lives in Farmington with his wife and three kids (and dog named Sandra Day O’Connor). Paul enjoys golfing, camping, fishing, playing guitar, sketching, reading, and traveling.