Russel S. Smart

Russel Sutherland Smart, (June 20, 1885 – May 18, 1945) was a Canadian intellectual property lawyer who founded the law firm Smart & Biggar.

Early life and education Russel S. Smart was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, on June 20, 1885, to George Alexander Smart and his wife. His mother died when he was six months old, and he was abandoned by his father who left to Atlanta, Georgia, while he was a child. Smart was raised by two maternal aunts in reduced circumstances.

While he was Toronto, Smart came across an advertisement for a job as a manager of the Ottawa office of the patent agency Fetherstonhaugh & Co. With no other job prospects, Smart decided to apply for the job, and was offered the position by F. B. Fetherstonhaugh on January 1, 1904. In 1917, Smart published a treatise on the law of trademarks and designs, which was also one of the first such texts on Canadian law.

Smart's litigation practice was extremely busy. He appeared in over 100 reported cases relating to intellectual property, and he regularly visited England to appear before the Privy Council on appeals. In 1927, the law firm became known as Smart & Biggar, which has continued to this day as a leading intellectual property firm in Canada. The Smarts socialized with diplomats, civil servants, lawyers, politicians, and many future literary and cultural figures. Among the Smarts' close friends were Arthur Bourinot, a Canadian lawyer and poet, and Sir Stafford Cripps, a prominent British lawyer and politician who later became Chancellor of the Exchequer. The Smarts named their cottage "The Barge" because it was allegedly shaped like the hull of a ship. Helen and Alan Swabey later divorced, and she was remarried to Averill Stowell. Elizabeth (b. 1913, also known as "Betty") was well known as a socialite in Ottawa in her early life, a pursuit encouraged by her mother, but she was later better known as a poet and writer. Her most famous work was her semi-autobiographical poetic novel, By Grand Central Station I Sat Down and Wept, which detailed her romance with the poet George Barker. Russel Jr. (b. 1921), his only son, served overseas in the Canadian Forces during World War II, and later joined Smart & Biggar, eventually taking over as its managing partner.

Late life During World War II, Smart was appointed as the real property administrator for the Wartime Prices and Trade Board.