Professorship established in honor of Judge Donald L. Smith

Income from the fund will be awarded to a faculty member in the Wake Forest School of Law, with preference for a scholar who teaches constitutional law or public law.

The fund, which will have a value of at least $250,000, is part of the law school portion of the $600 million “Honoring the Promise” capital campaign at Wake Forest, which is primarily focused on raising support for scholarships and faculty development.

A native of Sampson County who grew up in Lumberton, Smith is an emergency recall judge for the North Carolina Court of Appeals and an emergency special Superior Court judge in the state. Smith, a 1964 graduate of the Wake Forest School of Law who lives in Raleigh, was an attorney associated with Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice from 1989-1994.
In addition, he served as a Superior Court judge from 1973-1987, a North Carolina Court of Appeals judge in 1988, town attorney for Cary from 1970-1973, and city attorney for Raleigh from 1968-1970.

“Donnie has been a trusted friend for many years,” said Boyce, a Raleigh resident and former colleague with Smith at Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice. “This fund is a fitting tribute which recognizes his interest in Wake Forest and in constitutional issues.”

Keith Vaughan, managing partner at the law firm, acknowledged Smith’s part in a number of important cases during his tenure at the firm.

“Donnie played a key role in the success of several landmark cases during his association with our firm,” Vaughan said. “We are pleased to take part in honoring him in this way.”

Smith is a member of the N.C. State Bar, the N.C. Bar Association, the N.C. Judicial Conference, the N.C. Conference of Superior Court Judges, the N.C. Judicial Conference, the Bar of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, the U.S. Court of Appeals 4th Circuit Bar, and the Bar of the Supreme Court of the United States. He served on the Governor’s Law and Order Committee from 1973-1976 and the Governor’s Standards, Polices and Goals Commission from 1986-1988.