Ryan T. Smith is the Managing Partner at RTS Law Group. He has won awards with National Trial Lawyers, Super Lawyers, and was named the 2016 Top Criminal Lawyer in North Carolina (Business North Carolina's Legal Elite 2016, voted by attorneys only). This award put Ryan in the Legal Elite Hall of Fame.

Ryan earns his living fighting for his clients, whether it's in Impaired Driving Cases (DWI/BWI/DUI/BUI), Criminal Defense cases, Car Accident cases, or individuals/families in contested Guardianship/Incompetency cases. Before starting in private practice, Ryan worked at Wachovia Securities in their Corporate & Investment Banking [CIB] division, focusing on the tax-incentivized financing of corporate assets such as aircraft, yachts, and technology-based products.

Ryan was born and raised in Wheeling, WV. After graduating from Marshall University's Lewis College of Business, Ryan then earned his law degree from the West Virginia University College of Law. He was appointed to Law Review and also spent a significant amount of time in the WVU Clinical Law Program.

Ryan spent two summers during law school studying abroad. The first summer was spent in Europe, studying in Greece, Italy, and Spain through the University of Miami School of Law Mediterranean Legal Studies Summer Abroad Program. The second summer was spent in South America, studying in Brazil and Argentina through the West Virginia University College of Law Business and Politics Summer Abroad Program. Ryan proudly talks about "Running with the Bulls" in Pamplona, Spain, and hang-glided from mountains of Rio de Janeiro, while being in route to earning his law degree.

Besides being the nerdy guy that spends most of his life battling in court, Ryan is also an NBPA Certified Player Agent. You'll find him on the court either recruiting potential NBA prospects or trying to relive his glory days by getting a few more buckets. He's the former Chair of the MCB Sports Committee, and has been the Commissioner of the MCB Lawyer Basketball League for years. He's quick to remind his colleagues that RTS Law Group WON THE CHAMPIONSHIP in 2017, and a key off-season signing makes the team even stronger in 2018. RTS Law Group routinely has teams in Basketball, Flag Football, Softball leagues, and 5K's around the city. Additionally, Ryan is a historical member of several professional organizations including the NC Bar Association, American Bar Association, and the Mecklenburg County Criminal Defense Lawyers Association (MCCDLA). In his younger days, Ryan was named in the Top 30 Under 30 Leaders in Charlotte. He is currently a member of National Trial Lawyer's Top 40 Under 40 Criminal Defense lawyers.

The greatest event to happen to Ryan in recent years is that his parents (Tom and Linda Smith) decided to move south to Charlotte and ultimately agreed to join the firm. Linda runs the Finance department and communicates with Ryan constantly through telephone calls, text messages, and emails. He often jokes around that when he sees Linda calling, the first question in his head is whether the caller is Linda Smith or just Mom. Tom, on the other hand, doesn't need to call Ryan as he has a desk right inside Ryan's office. Every morning for Ryan starts out with a cup of coffee and strategy session with his Dad.