What Smith Hulsey & Busey does

Smith Hulsey & Busey is a full-service business and commercial law firm headquartered in a single office in downtown Jacksonville, Florida (One Independent Dr., Suite 3300, Wells Fargo Center), tracing its origins to 1917 and operating continuously under the same independent, single-office model for more than 100 years. The firm fields approximately 34+ attorneys across 14 practice areas — Bankruptcy, Restructuring & Creditors' Rights; Complex Marital Dissolution; Corporate, Securities and Business Law; Eminent Domain; Environmental; Healthcare; Intellectual Property; Labor and Employment; Litigation; Mergers & Acquisitions; Real Estate and Land Use; Sports Litigation & Counseling; Tax; and Trusts and Estates — serving businesses across the lifecycle from start-ups to Fortune 500 companies, with a particular emphasis on healthcare providers, M&A and corporate transactional clients, and a niche sports-governance practice anchored by the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program drafted for the ATP, WTA, ITF, and Grand Slam Board.

The firm's underlying technology stack is modest and conventional for a professional-services firm: a WordPress-based public website with an attorney directory searchable by practice area and last name, an integrated LawPay online payments portal linked from the top navigation, and WCAG 2.1 Level AA accessibility infrastructure. The firm's primary strategic technology asset is the Meritas affiliation — the only North Florida member of a global network of 175+ independent commercial law firms with 7,000 attorneys serving 230+ markets — which provides the cross-border and cross-jurisdictional distribution that the single-office model otherwise cannot deliver.

Smith Hulsey & Busey operates a professional-services revenue model with engagement-based pricing (hourly and project-based fees) that is not publicly disclosed. The firm emphasizes that compensation is maintained 'at or above market norms for preeminent Jacksonville firms' and runs an 'entrepreneurial culture' tied to attorney origination. Aggregate M&A and financing transaction throughput was approximately $1.12 billion across 52 M&A/investment transactions and 8 financings in 2024, and approximately $860 million in M&A and financing transactions in 2025, with flagship matters including a $70 million Brooks Rehabilitation / Mayo Clinic Arizona joint venture and bond financings exceeding $1 billion for a large health system. Distribution is direct, relationship-led, and anchored in the Jacksonville office, with go-to-market supplemented by thought-leadership content (Insights hub, annual Healthcare Law & Management Symposium), peer-recognition directories (Best Lawyers, Chambers, Super Lawyers, Legal Elite), and the Meritas channel.

Name

Smith Hulsey & Busey

Legal name

Smith Hulsey & Busey

Website

https://smithhulsey.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1917

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Smith Hulsey & Busey is an independent, single-office full-service business law firm in Jacksonville, Florida, founded in 1917, with 34+ attorneys across 14 practice areas serving start-ups to Fortune 500 clients in healthcare, M&A, and sports governance, with national reach via Meritas.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Business Legal Services

NAICS

Offices of Lawyers (54111), Offices of Lawyers (541110)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111)

akta.pro primary industry

Employment & Labor Law (BPAHAAAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Family & Private Client (Trusts & Estates) Law (BPAHAAAK)

Keywords

• Business law services
• Healthcare legal counsel
• Mergers and acquisitions
• Bankruptcy restructuring
• Sports governance law

Headquarters

HQ city

Jacksonville

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Professional legal services (hourly and project-based fees): Primary revenue stream. Smith Hulsey & Busey operates as a full-service business law firm billing clients for legal services across 14 practice areas. As an independent firm with single-office economics, the firm maintains compensation 'at or above market norms for preeminent Jacksonville firms' and emphasizes an 'entrepreneurial culture' where billings are driven by attorney contribution. Engagements span day-to-day counsel, complex transactions, and litigation.
2. Online payment processing (LawPay): Client-facing electronic payment channel for invoices, integrated into the firm website. Represents a payment-rail layer of the professional-services revenue model rather than a discrete revenue stream.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion4 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Smith Hulsey & Busey is a full-service business law firm providing legal counsel across 14 practice areas, including healthcare, mergers and acquisitions, bankruptcy and restructuring, corporate and securities, litigation, sports law, environmental, real estate, tax, trusts and estates, labor and employment, intellectual property, eminent domain, and complex marital dissolution. The firm delivers services from a single Jacksonville, Florida office and extends its reach nationally and internationally via its North Florida membership in Meritas, a global network of 175+ independent commercial law firms.

Product overview

Smith Hulsey & Busey is a full-service business law firm (not a software product company) operating from a single independent office in Jacksonville, Florida. Its offering is a unified legal services portfolio organized as 14 distinct practice area modules: Bankruptcy, Restructuring & Creditors' Rights; Complex Marital Dissolution; Corporate, Securities and Business Law; Eminent Domain; Environmental; Healthcare; Intellectual Property; Labor and Employment; Litigation; Mergers & Acquisitions; Real Estate and Land Use; Sports Litigation & Counseling; Tax; and Trusts and Estates. The firm's M&A, Healthcare, and Corporate practices are highlighted as flagship integrated teams, supported by Litigation, Bankruptcy, and Sports practices (the latter notably drafted the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program and represents the International Tennis Integrity Agency). The firm delivers these services nationally and internationally via its exclusive North Florida membership in the Meritas affiliation of independent commercial law firms, and processes online client payments through the LawPay platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bankruptcy, Restructuring & Creditors' Rights Recognized Florida practice representing debtors and creditors in major business reorganizations, including Chapter 11 restructurings of NYSE-listed companies, creditors' rights enforcement, bankruptcy litigation, and out-of-court restructuring alternatives.
• Complex Marital Dissolution Limited-scope family law practice for high-net-worth clients, handling dissolution actions, prenuptial/postnuptial agreements, and business separations for corporate executives, closely held business owners, professional athletes, and family offices.
• Corporate, Securities and Business Law Broad corporate and securities practice advising public and private corporations, LLCs, and private equity groups on entity formation, private placements, financings, joint ventures, securities compliance, corporate governance, and succession planning.
• Eminent Domain Representation of property owners, businesses, and governmental entities in eminent domain proceedings throughout Florida, including valuation, land use, zoning, business damages, and related complex jury trials in state and federal court.
• Environmental Environmental law practice covering compliance, permitting and development, cleanup, litigation, strategic planning, transactions, and property management for businesses and individuals throughout Florida.
• Healthcare Integrated healthcare practice representing health systems, physicians, physician groups, and other providers, with focus areas including medical malpractice defense, M&A, joint ventures, clinically integrated networks, healthcare compliance, HIPAA, and fraud and abuse.
• Intellectual Property Intellectual property practice advising clients on trade secrets and confidential information, trademarks and copyrights, and licensing and distribution strategies to protect and grow IP portfolios.
• Labor and Employment Employment law defense practice providing HR compliance counseling, pre-separation planning, restrictive covenant negotiation, wage and hour advice, and litigation defense in discrimination, retaliation, wrongful termination, and FMLA/ADA matters.
• Litigation Business litigation practice trying complex, high-exposure cases before juries in state and federal courts throughout Florida, with focus areas including administrative and public law, antitrust, business torts, contracts, negligence, product liability, and professional liability.
• Mergers & Acquisitions M&A practice representing public and private companies, private equity and venture capital investors across the U.S. and internationally in mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, joint ventures, and strategic alliances ranging from six-figure deals to transactions approaching $1 billion.
• Real Estate and Land Use Real estate practice advising developers, investors, lenders, and business users on acquisitions, sales, exchanges, leases, development, joint ventures, financing, restructures, land use regulations, and title insurance throughout the Southeast.
• Sports Litigation & Counseling Sports law practice representing governing bodies, enforcement agencies, Olympians, and college athletes on league governance, anti-corruption (including drafting the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program for ATP/WTA/ITF/Grand Slam Board), arbitration, NIL counseling, and athlete rights.
• Tax Tax practice advising growing businesses, public corporations, individuals and families, and nonprofit organizations on tax audits, controversies, and planning, with established relationships with federal and state taxing authorities.
• Trusts and Estates Trusts and estates practice providing business organization, business succession planning, estate planning, gift/estate/income tax planning, and trust and estate administration for family-owned businesses, franchises, and high-net-worth individuals.

Quantifiable outcome

• Approximately $860M closed in M&A and financing transactions in 2025
• +12 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature5 records

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship / core strategic alliance, flagship / flagship specialty, flagship / core, major (brooks–mayo jv), project-specific (brooks–mayo jv), longstanding major client, committee leadership, industry group leadership, operational / supporting, professional community, professional community / regulatory and professional / regulatory.

• Meritasflagship / core strategic allianceStrategic or Co-development PartnerSmith Hulsey & Busey is the only North Florida member of Meritas, the world's premier affiliation of independent commercial law firms. Through Meritas, the firm provides its clients with national and international reach while maintaining the responsiveness, decision-making and cost-effectiveness of a local, independent firm. Meritas is a global network of more than 175 business law firms with 7,000 attorneys serving more than 230 markets. Every member has been rigorously pre-qualified and must adhere to a comprehensive Quality Assurance Program.
• International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA)flagship / flagship specialtyStrategic or Co-development PartnerSmith Hulsey & Busey represents the London-based ITIA (formerly the Tennis Integrity Unit) in arbitration proceedings involving professional tennis players who violate the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program (TACP). SHB attorneys regularly appear in arbitration proceedings in London and in appeals before the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland. Jeanne E. Helton chairs the Steering Committee for the Meritas Health Care Practice Industry Group, while Smith Hulsey sports lawyers drafted the TACP itself.
• Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) / Women's Tennis Association (WTA) / International Tennis Federation (ITF) / Grand Slam Boardflagship / coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe SHB Sports Litigation & Counseling group drafted the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program (TACP) — the uniform anti-corruption rules, procedures, penalties and investigative process for the governing bodies of professional tennis worldwide — and all four governing bodies (ATP, WTA, ITF, Grand Slam Board) have adopted the program. The firm was also retained by ATP Tour, Inc. to conduct the independent investigation of Alexander Zverev regarding allegations of domestic abuse.
• Mayo Clinic (Mayo Clinic Arizona)major (brooks–mayo jv)Strategic or Co-development PartnerJoint-venture partner with Brooks Rehabilitation on a $70 million, 60-bed inpatient rehabilitation facility on Mayo Clinic's Phoenix campus. SHB counseled Mayo on parceling its property, drafting leases, securing land permits, and negotiating agreements with Mayo Clinic, developer Anchor Properties, general contractor Kitchell, architect Hoefer Welker and civil engineer Kimley Horn. Opening planned for fall 2026.
• Anchor Properties / Kitchell / Hoefer Welker / Kimley Hornproject-specific (brooks–mayo jv)Implementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerProject counterparties on the $70 million Brooks Rehabilitation / Mayo Clinic Arizona joint venture: developer (Anchor Properties), general contractor (Kitchell), architect (Hoefer Welker), and civil engineer (Kimley Horn). SHB shareholder David Roberts negotiated the agreements with each of these counterparties.
• Baptist Healthlongstanding major clientStrategic or Co-development PartnerLongtime client of Smith Hulsey & Busey. Over many years, SHB has provided counsel on a wide variety of legal issues to Baptist Health. For more than three years, SHB represented Baptist Health in the sale/unwinding of the Jacksonville Orthopaedic Institute (JOI) acquisition, drafting all purchase and sale documents, fair market valuation, healthcare regulatory matters, continuation of physician noncompete covenants, and allocation of rehabilitation clinics and equipment.
• Meritas U.S. Leadership Committee (12-person)committee leadershipStrategic or Co-development PartnerJeanne E. Helton (SHB) is a member of the 12-person Meritas U.S. Leadership Committee and chairs the Subcommittee on International Engagements. She was appointed in 2021 to a three-year term. SHB also chairs the Meritas Healthcare Industry Practice Group Steering Committee for North America.
• Meritas Healthcare Industry Practice Groupindustry group leadershipStrategic or Co-development PartnerJeanne E. Helton chairs the Steering Committee for the Meritas Health Care Practice Industry Group for North America, working with other health lawyers around the United States and Canada on some client matters and planning educational programs and activities for the group.
• LawPay (secure.lawpay.com)operational / supportingTechnology or IntegrationSmith Hulsey & Busey uses LawPay as its secure online payment processor; the firm hosts a dedicated payment page at secure.lawpay.com/pages/smithhulseybusey/operating, linked from the top navigation of smithhulsey.com, enabling clients to remit invoice payments electronically.
• Jacksonville Bar Associationprofessional communityGTM or Marketing PartnerSmith Hulsey & Busey shareholder John Wallace was elected to the Jacksonville Bar Association's Board of Governors for the 2026-2027 term (May 13, 2026). Stephen D. Busey is a former president of the Jacksonville Bar Association. Several SHB attorneys serve on Jacksonville Bar Association committees (e.g., the Litigation Section Commercial Litigation vice chair).
• Florida Bar (Business Law Section, Health Law Section, Special Study Commission)professional community / regulatoryGTM or Marketing PartnerSHB attorneys hold leadership positions in The Florida Bar: Stephen D. Busey is a former chair of the Business Law Section and former chair of the Special Study Commission on the Rules of Professional Conduct; Charmaine T. M. Chiu is a former Chair of The Florida Bar Health Law Section (2015-2016) and former Chair of the Health Law Certification Committee (2016-2017); Michael E. Demont served on The Florida Bar Special Study Committee for the Model Rules of Professional Conduct. Patrick P. Coll was appointed by the Supreme Court of Florida to a five-year term on the Florida Board of Bar Examiners (2015) and continues as an Emeritus member.
• Florida Board of Bar Examinersprofessional / regulatoryOthersPatrick P. Coll was appointed by the Supreme Court of Florida in 2015 to serve a five-year term as one of 15 members of the Florida Board of Bar Examiners, the administrative agency created by the court to implement the rules relating to bar admission. He continues to serve as an Emeritus member.
• Black Diamond Capital ManagementOthers

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Carlton Fields: Tampa-based full-service business law firm with strong Florida presence and deep healthcare, insurance, and financial services practices — comparable in mid-market M&A and regulated-industry counsel.
• GrayRobinson: Florida-headquartered full-service business law firm of similar scale with statewide offices; comparable in serving Florida-based enterprises across M&A, healthcare, real estate, and litigation.
• Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough: Southeast regional full-service firm with strong Florida footprint; comparable in offering multi-state business law coverage to mid-market and enterprise clients similar to SHB's Meritas-enabled reach.
• Rogers Towers: Jacksonville-based full-service business law firm with comparable practice breadth across business, litigation, real estate, and healthcare. Most direct local competitor given shared geography, firm size, and mid-market to enterprise client base.

Broad incumbents

• Foley & Lardner: National full-service firm with a Jacksonville office; comparable healthcare and corporate practices targeting similar Florida-based enterprise and middle-market clients.
• Holland & Knight: Major AmLaw 100 firm with a substantial Jacksonville office; comparable in healthcare, M&A, and litigation practices, but with substantially larger scale and national footprint that competes for SHB's enterprise clients.
• Akerman LLP: National firm with strong Florida presence and a deep healthcare practice; comparable in serving Florida-based health systems and middle-market M&A clients.

Emerging players

• Hall Render: Nationally focused healthcare law firm; direct specialist peer for SHB's Healthcare Practice Team given its Bar-certified healthcare counsel and integrated clinical expertise model.
• Epstein Becker Green: National healthcare-focused law firm with strong Florida ties; comparable in advising health systems on M&A, regulatory compliance, and value-based care matters.

Regional players

• Burr & Forman: Southeast-based full-service firm; comparable in serving regional business clients across healthcare, M&A, banking, and litigation, with similar size and pricing structure.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/smithhulsey
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/2732485

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Smith Hulsey & Busey