Butler Snow attorney Heather L. Smith recently received the One Coast Community Leader Award from the Mississippi Gulf Coast Chamber of Commerce at the One Coast Awards on April 15, 2025. The One Coast Awards event recognizes community leaders in the Gulf Coast area.
The Mississippi Gulf Coast Chamber of Commerce is an umbrella organization comprised of seven divisions. It is a membership organization made up of businesses throughout the Gulf South and strives to improve the business climate through fostering leadership, advocating for businesses and providing information to the community.
Smith is a member of Butler Snow’s Regulatory and Government group and practices in the firm’s Gulfport, Miss. office. Her primary practice focuses on public utilities and administrative law. She works primarily with local utility authorities, school boards and municipal governments on a multitude of issues. Smith also oversees a secondary practice in commercial real estate where she conducts multi-million-dollar closings.
Smith has been recognized by BL Rankings, The Best Lawyers in America® and Thomson Reuters Super Lawyers® for her work in municipal law and government relations. She earned the 2023 Women of Achievement Award from the Lighthouse Business and Professional Women foundation. In 2022, Gulf Coast Woman Magazine named her to its 9 Self-Made Women list, in addition to its 100 Successful Women to Know list in 2021 and 2022. She has served in leadership positions for the Hancock County Chamber of Commerce, including Vice President of the Board of Directors from 2022-2023. In 2019, the Mississippi Business Journal named Smith a Top Ten Finalist to its Top 50 Under 40 list.
Smith earned her bachelor’s degree from Mississippi State University and her Juris Doctor from Loyola University New Orleans College of Law.
