Leland Smith
Associate
Washington, D.C.

Leland Smith
Associate
Washington, D.C.
Contact Details
Leland is a New York-based structured finance associate. He has experience working with Sovereigns and International Institutions in both legal and non-legal capacities. Leland has industry experience in energy and oil & gas, as well as banking and finance transactions including projects and capital market transactions.
At the US Treasury Department, Leland developed frameworks to analyse Sovereign approaches to electricity generation and debt. There, Leland worked with market participants and IFIs on managing risk in infrastructure investment globally. He has also worked with municipal and regional officials on emerging market economic development.
At Royal Dutch Shell, Leland’s work on the Trading floor and in project management assisted integration between upstream operations and global markets. Leland was the primary point of contact and lead partner for multiple oilfield facilities projects involving hiring and overseeing outside engineering, construction, and finance teams. At Shell Trading, Leland worked closely with financial market counterparties to minimize risk. He also led the operational aspects of railroad, pipeline, and barge delivery obligations for several key crude oil grades.
Leland’s research has focused on systemic financial risk, infrastructure development, and economic growth. He has contributed to textbooks on International Banking Regulation and considerations for commodity-exporting Sovereigns. He advised former senior IMF economists on legal considerations regarding the intersection between law and macroeconomics. He studied sovereign solvency law under a former IMF General Counsel and banking solvency under the practitioner in charge of the US Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP).
Office
Washington, D.C.
Allen & Overy LLP
1101 New York Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C.
20005
Qualifications
Professional
Academic
JD, Law, Georgetown University Law Center, 2020 (Cum Laude)
Master of Marine Affairs (MAF), The University of Rhode Island, 2017 (Focus: International Ocean Law, Sovereign approaches Water Economics)
BS, Political Science & Mechanical Engineering Track, United States Military Academy at West Point, 2007
Related articles

Publications: 29 April 2021
LIBOR Transition – Legislative Solutions
As LIBOR (London Interbank Offered Rate) transitions, various jurisdictions are mapping out the path forward.

Office
Washington, D.C.
Allen & Overy LLP
1101 New York Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C.
20005
Qualifications
Professional
Academic
JD, Law, Georgetown University Law Center, 2020 (Cum Laude)
Master of Marine Affairs (MAF), The University of Rhode Island, 2017 (Focus: International Ocean Law, Sovereign approaches Water Economics)
BS, Political Science & Mechanical Engineering Track, United States Military Academy at West Point, 2007
Published work
- International Finance: Transactions, Policy, and Regulation, Hal Scott and Anna Gelpern (forthcoming revision)
- Considering Law and Macroeconomics, Anna Gelpern and Adam Levitin
- An analysis of the current US position related to the United Nations law of the sea, in Marine Policy, Leland Smith
- Evidence of Environmental Damage Caused by Chinese Island Building, in Nature’s Scientific Reports, Leland Smith et. al. (award for top 100 papers of 2019)