SGR’s Art Practice is multidisciplinary at its core, as the myriad of legal issues that are unique to the art world also permeate other areas of law, whether our clients require assistance with transactional, controversy or tax matters. Our practitioners routinely assist burgeoning and established artists, wealthy and novice private and institutional collectors, investors, galleries, dealers and auction houses and museums. SGR is uniquely positioned, with its broad array of practice groups and skilled attorneys, to be a one stop shop for virtually every legal aspect one can encounter as part of the global art scene. With a practical and… Read more
Practices
An SGR area of practice.
Advertising
Advertising review encompasses multiple and diverse areas of law, including: Copyright; Trademark; Licensing Rights; First Amendment; Trade Regulation, including state laws and regulations of the USDA, FDA, and FTC; Product Disparagement; Consumer Protection; Privacy and Data Security; Right of Publicity; and Unfair Competition. Our Intellectual Property attorneys offer extensive experience in these areas of the law. We assist our clients in navigating advertising compliance in both “old” and “new” media, including internet advertising and marketing through social networking.
Advertising Litigation
The National Advertising Division (“NAD”) of the Better Business Bureau (also known as Advertising Self-Regulatory Council, or “ASRC”) is a self-regulatory forum for advertising litigation between companies over their national advertising. The advertising and product promotions at issue can appear on the internet, on television, and in printed form. Participants in this self-regulatory process include virtually every major company that advertises products or services nationally to consumers, or that promotes products nationally to professionals. The NAD self-regulatory forum is highly valued by advertisers because it is a relatively cost-effective and faster alternative to difficult Federal Court litigation. SGR has deep experience… Read more
Antitrust and Trade Regulation
Smith, Gambrell & Russell, LLP helps its domestic and international clients to recognize, evaluate, and favorably resolve potential and active obstacles, and to identify and take advantage of antitrust opportunities. We advise clients so that they may take full advantage of antitrust and trade regulation laws and regulations for the benefit of their businesses and their business relationships, both in the United States and internationally. In litigation, we have successfully represented both plaintiffs and defendants at trials and on appeal. We have traditionally handled large cases and transactions including: Serving as lead counsel in class action lawsuits Advising clients about… Read more
Appellate Practice
The Appellate practice is a distinct discipline – a “last chance” to undo an unfavorable judgment or to preserve a hard-fought victory. SGR represents clients in appeals before the United States Supreme Court and federal and state appellate courts across the country. We serve existing clients, clients who come to us for the first time to handle their appeal and clients seeking to participate in appeals as “friends of the court” in the filing of amicus curiae briefs. Is trial advocacy different from appellate advocacy? Yes, the skills needed in a trial court are different from those needed on appeal…. Read more
Arbitration
In the traditional litigation process, too many times we see parties who win the battle, in that they proceed through a trial and receive a favorable outcome; however, in many ways these clients ultimately lose the war, when you consider the time, effort and expense required to litigate a case to its conclusion. Mediation and arbitration offer efficient and effective alternatives to litigation. Both may significantly reduce the cost of achieving a resolution of a dispute. Both may be conducted at any time, at any location, and at the convenience of the parties. Over the last several years, we at SGR… Read more
Banking / Financial Institutions
In the ever-changing world of financial institutions, it is vital to have the expertise of a knowledgeable legal professional by your side. Attorneys in the Banking / Financial Institutions Practice group of Smith, Gambrell & Russell, LLP are just such professionals. We have considerable experience in representing all types of financial institutions: bank holding companies, national and state-chartered commercial banks, federal and state-chartered thrift institutions and federally chartered credit unions. We represent our financial institution clients in all aspects of their business, including general corporate matters, regulatory compliance, interstate expansion, mergers and acquisitions, mutual-to-stock ownership conversions, capital formation including our… Read more
Bankruptcy / Creditors Rights
Smith, Gambrell & Russell, LLP represents creditors, lenders, debtors and trustees, providing the full spectrum of bankruptcy and creditors’ rights services. We seek practical business solutions while preparing fully for potential litigation. We draw on the firm’s experience in commercial lending transactions and general representation of commercial financial institutions as well as the capabilities of complementary practices such as real estate, litigation and securities. The broad experience of our attorneys regularly produces creative solutions to difficult problems. SGR’s combination in 2023 with Freeborn & Peters substantially broadened the geographic scope of our practice. Long known as a leading bankruptcy practice… Read more
Biotechnology / Life Sciences
While Smith, Gambrell & Russell assists clients with maneuvering through the complicated and volatile intellectual property landscape in all fields of technology, we have specific expertise in the biotechnology, pharmaceutical, and chemical arts. Biotechnology is a multidisciplinary field composed of complex sciences and technologies. However, while some firms carve biotechnology into specialized subgroups, such as pharmacology, vaccines, gene therapy, stem cells, diagnostics, immunology, medical devices, plant biology, biofuels, bioagriculture, pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals, biosynthetics, bioengineering, bioinformatics, pharmacogenomics, nanotechnology, personalized medicine, etc., SGR makes it simple as any subject matter relating to a living organism or a bioprocess is considered to be biotech… Read more
Bond and Public Finance Practice
SGR’s Bond and Public Finance Practice Group represents issuers, underwriters, trustees, local government authorities, borrowers, credit enhancers, lenders and purchasers in public finance transactions. Our attorneys have handled general obligation bonds, system revenue bonds, project revenue bonds, 501(c)(3) bonds, contract- and sales tax-backed obligations, tax anticipation notes, tax-exempt leases, and installment sales, certificates of participation, health care and housing bonds, private activity bonds, tax credit bonds, Build America Bonds and Recovery Zone Bonds. SGR has participated in virtually every type of public financing transaction including direct and conduit financings, pooled bonds, variable rate demand bonds and the various forms of… Read more