Pryor Cashman LLP announced today that leading corporate trust attorney David W. Smith has joined the firm, an addition that strengthens the firm's comprehensive legal capabilities to service its corporate trust clients. Smith brings more than a decade of experience representing banks and other financial institutions, including two years inside the corporate trust department of The Bank of New York Mellon. He joins the firm's New York office as counsel.

"David is widely regarded as one of the best front-end practitioners in the field," said Seth H. Lieberman, co-head of the firm's Corporate Trust Practice and partner in the Bankruptcy, Reorganization + Creditors' Rights Group. "We are very excited about the expertise he will bring to our corporate trust clients engaged in healthy deals. His practice offers an ideal complement to our existing strengths representing indenture trustees and agents in chapter 11 bankruptcies and out-of-court restructurings."

In the last year alone, Pryor Cashman has represented indenture trustees and agents in the bankruptcies of rue21, inc., 21st Century Oncology Holdings, Inc., Payless Holdings LLC, Vanguard Natural Resources, LLC and Caesars Entertainment Operating Company, Inc.

Over his career, Smith has regularly represented banks, trust companies and other financial institutions acting as trustees or agents in financing transactions. He immediately enhances Pryor Cashman's ability to serve clients on international and domestic financings, public and private debt financings and securitizations ranging from residential and commercial mortgages to royalty payments. As counsel with BNY Mellon from 2012-14, Smith worked extensively on both structured and unstructured transactions, including CDO, CLO, reinsurance trusts, asset-backed and mortgaged-backed securities. He has also served on numerous business acceptance and jurisdictional approval committees in the U.S. and abroad.

"Pryor Cashman has a history of superior work in this space," said Smith. "I am thrilled to join this highly respected corporate trust team, which now covers the waterfront in this area—and does so with the firm's relentless focus on client service."

In addition to his time at BNY Mellon, Smith previously worked at the law firms of Seward & Kissel and, most recently, Emmet, Marvin & Martin. He received his J.D. from the University of Wisconsin Law School and his B.A., summa cum laude, from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

About Pryor Cashman LLP

Pryor Cashman is a premier, midsized law firm with headquarters at 7 Times Square in New York and a West Coast office in Los Angeles. With broad and sophisticated transactional and litigation practices, Pryor Cashman provides a full range of services to meet the complex legal needs of institutions, mid-market businesses, bold emerging entities, entrepreneurs and individuals.