Terrence Smith
Co-Founder & Partner
Terry is a co-founder and a Partner of Willis & Smith Capital. He has spent his career helping companies with a wide variety of business transactions through their entire lifecycles, from formation, through investment and growth, to eventual exit. He brings substantial legal and executive business experience, and has frequently acted as general counsel to portfolio companies. He serves on the Board of Directors of Performance Stamping, LLC; J&E Companies (J&E Manufacturing LLC and R&B Grinding, LLC); and TPE Midstream, LLC, the recapitalization of which won Willis & Smith Capital and its partners the Energy Deal of the Year award at the M&A Advisor's 20th annual M&A Awards.
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Prior to co-founding Willis & Smith Capital, Terry spent seven years working at BRADY, a leading San Diego based lower-middle market engineering and construction firm then owned by its original founder, Rick Brady, who now serves as the Engineering Advisor to Willis & Smith Capital. As Chief Operating Officer & General Counsel, Terry led a successful divestiture of its construction business, conducted a concurrent company-wide restructuring, and substantially improved strategic focus and financial performance. Shortly after, the executive team received and evaluated various acquisition offers, and the firm was acquired in a private equity transaction in 2018, providing liquidity to the founding shareholder, and a committed financial and operating partner.
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Previously, he worked as a contract negotiator for Bank of America, frequently assigned to its Fortune 100 clients, with whom he negotiated hundreds of commercial contracts.
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He began his career as a corporate & securities attorney with Cooley LLP, an AM LAW 100 global law firm, where he was involved in numerous M&A transactions, commercial contract negotiations, and general corporate legal matters.
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He holds an LL.M.,with distinction, in Securities & Financial Regulation from Georgetown University Law Center, and B.B.A. and J.D. degrees from the University of San Diego.
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