Smith Anderson Lawyers Tyler Cook, John Harris, Tory Hartmann and Rob Hash Transition to Partners

Smith Anderson announces the promotion of four exceptional attorneys to its partnership: Tyler Cook, John Harris, Tory Hartmann and Rob Hash. The four represent a range of key practice areas, including corporate, mergers and acquisitions, litigation, intellectual property and technology transactions and have demonstrated exemplary leadership, deep experience and unwavering dedication to clients and the legal community.

Tyler Cook joined Smith Anderson in 2020 from an international law firm in New York and is a member of the firm’s Corporate and Transactional team. He advises clients on public and private mergers and acquisitions, securities offerings, corporate governance, board advisory and SEC reporting, disclosure and compliance. Tyler's recognition includes being named in Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® in America for Securities/Capital Markets Law and Securities Regulation (2024-2025). He obtained his J.D., magna cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania Law School.

John Harris rejoined Smith Anderson in January 2022 after serving three years as a federal prosecutor with the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina. As a member of the firm’s Investigations and Litigation teams, he oversees investigations on complex corporate issues and helps organizations identify and navigate legal and reputational risks. Harris handles all stages of civil litigation across diverse subject matters and has tried multiple cases to verdict before judges and juries. His accolades include recognition as a North Carolina Super Lawyers Rising Star (2023-2024) and inclusion in Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® in America for Commercial Litigation (2024-2025). John earned his J.D., with honors, from the University of North Carolina School of Law.

Victoria "Tory" Hartmann is a key member of Smith Anderson’s Technology Transactions & Intellectual Property practice team, advising private and public companies on intellectual property, commercial contracting and corporate law matters, with an emphasis on complex licensing transactions in the Life Sciences, Ag Tech and Information Technology sectors. She counsels clients at every stage of the corporate life cycle and has represented clients on matters ranging from early-stage patent/technology licenses & material transfer agreements to SaaS, CDMO and vendor services agreements to multi-million-dollar research & development, manufacturing & supply and commercialization agreements. Victoria joined Smith Anderson in 2021 after practicing for several years at an international law firm in Boston. She obtained her J.D. from Harvard Law School.

Rob Hash joined Smith Anderson in 2019 and focuses his practice on corporate transactional matters, including mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, divestitures and private equity. In addition, he counsels clients on various general corporate matters, such as governance and vendor contracting, and advises on technology-related matters, including data use and privacy, software licensing and distributor agreements. Rob also brings unique insights from his prior experience running a marketing and IT consulting business for small businesses, including three years in Italy. His accolades include recognition in Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® for Mergers and Acquisitions Law (2022-2025) and Corporate Law (2024-2025). Rob earned his J.D., cum laude, from the University of North Carolina School of Law.