James T. Smith

About James T. Smith

Jay Smith advises clients on a wide range of state and local tax matters, with a focus on multistate income and franchise tax, gross receipts tax, and sales and use tax. He regularly counsels multinational corporations, private equity sponsors, and emerging companies on the tax implications of complex transactions, including mergers, acquisitions, and cross-border restructurings.Jay has significant experience guiding clients through voluntary disclosure agreements and resolving historical tax exposure across jurisdictions. He also advises on nexus and apportionment issues, local business tax compliance, and the treatment of digital assets and cloud-based services under evolving tax regimes. In addition to his SALT practice, Jay is expanding his international and partnership tax capabilities and has worked on matters involving foreign-to-U.S. asset transfers, treaty planning, and Subpart F/GILTI analysis.Jay earned his J.D, cum laude, from Temple University Beasley School of Law, where he served as Managing Editor of Temple Law Review (Vol. 94) and was awarded the Joseph W. Marshall Scholarship for outstanding performance in tax law. During law school, he also served as a judicial extern to the Honorable Mitchell S. Goldberg of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

Experience

1. Tax Associate

   DLA Piper

   Jul 2024 — Present · San Francisco, CA, US

Education

• Penn State University

  Bachelor's degree, International Relations and Affairs

  2015 — 2019

• Penn State University

  Minor, Spanish Language and Literature

  2015 — 2019

• Temple University - James E. Beasley School of Law

  Doctor of Law - JD

  2019 — 2022