R. Harrison Smith, III

Harrison is a Shareholder and Chair of the Firm’s Compliance and Risk Management group, a multidisciplinary team that provides assessment, advisory, and incident response services designed to enhance organizational value and resilience.

Harrison's practice focuses on designing and implementing corporate governance, risk, and compliance programs, which has included serving as the acting general counsel or compliance officer at several multinational companies. Harrison has also handled a wide range of criminal and civil litigation matters, and he has extensive experience performing pre-transaction due diligence and conducting internal corporate investigations, including international investigations in Asia, Africa, Europe, and South America. Harrison also regularly counsels clients on cybersecurity and privacy matters.

Prior to joining Maynard Nexsen, Harrison served as a law clerk to Judge Gerald Tjoflat of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and practiced with the law firm of Williams & Connolly in Washington, D.C.

• Served as the general counsel of a multinational transportation management and logistics company
• Served as the general counsel of a multinational software company
• Served as the compliance officer of a multinational cybersecurity company
• Designed and implemented governance, risk, and compliance programs for clients in the health care, defense, technology, manufacturing, higher education, insurance, logistics, and financial services industries
• Conducted pre-investment compliance due diligence on behalf of a global private equity firm in connection with multiple investments ranging from $100 million to $1 billion
• Performed numerous portfolio company risk assessments on behalf of multiple private equity firms
• Conducted internal corporate investigations for clients in North America, Central and South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East
• Defended a Fortune 500 company in a global DOJ and SEC investigation involving allegations of money laundering, wire fraud, and violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act
• Defended a Fortune 500 company under investigation for alleged violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and the U.K. Bribery Act
• Defended a Fortune 500 financial institution in a securities fraud class action
• Defended a Fortune 500 telecommunications company in a multi-million dollar breach of contract action
• Defended a Fortune 500 pharmaceutical company in a multi-district product liability action
• Defended hospitals, pharmacies, and other health care organizations under investigation by the DOJ and Office of Inspector General for alleged violations of the Health Care Fraud Statute, False Claims Act, Stark Law, Exclusion Provisions, and the Anti-Kickback Statute
• Defended a defense contractor and financial services firm in connection with a False Claims Act suit and criminal investigation involving multiple U.S. Army contract awards
• Defended a national higher education institution in connection with a False Claims Act suit and government investigation involving alleged violations of Department of Education regulations
• Defended individuals in federal and state prosecutions involving allegations of securities fraud, mortgage fraud, bank fraud, health care fraud, mail/wire fraud, tax fraud, theft, and public corruption

Recognition

• The Best Lawyers in America© for Litigation - Health Care, Health Care Law (2023 - present) and Corporate Compliance Law (2025)