Gerald Le Van serves as Special Counsel for The Smitherman Law Firm, L.C. Mr. Le Van received his law degree from Louisiana State University and his college degree from Southern Methodist University.

Mr. Le Van has served on the Louisiana Law Institute, is a member of the Committee on Successions and Donations, served on the Committee on Continuous Revisions of Trust Code, International Academy of Estate and Trust Law, and as a member of the Executive Council and Vice President of the Americas.

Mr. Le Van has been Editor-in-Chief of the Louisiana Law Review; a Professor of Law, Louisiana State University, and has authored "Lawyers' Lives Out of Control: A Quality of Life Handbook; Survival Guide for Business Families; Healthy Wealth in Families," and Co-author of "Louisiana Wills and Trusts: A Drafting System," with the late Judge Alvin B. Rubin and L. Paul Hood, Jr. He has also been the co-editor of "Louisiana Estate Planner" with L. Paul Hood, Jr. He is the Managing Director of The Le Van Company, Consultants and Mediators. He is listed in The Best Lawyers in America and is a Fellow, American College of Trust and Estate Counsel ,and editor, Probate Notes. He is also a member of The Le Van Company, LLC, in Black Mountain, North Carolina.