John C. Walsh

As John C. Walsh announced on social media in February 2024: “Very excited to share that I’m back home in New Orleans, and this week I joined the excellent team at Smith & Fawer, LLC!”

The feeling is mutual, as John joined the firm after serving more than four years as Deputy Executive Counsel to Governor John Bel Edwards.

In that role, he regularly counseled and advised the governor and other members of the Office of the Governor in a broad array of matters including drafting and reviewing legislation, high-stakes litigation, administrative law, public records requests, open meetings issues, and more. While in the governor’s office, John also served as the governor’s appointed chairman of the Occupational Licensing Review Commission.

Beyond government relations and complex civil litigation, John also has significant experience in entertainment law, participating in the drafting and negotiation of multimillion-dollar contracts involving sports and music industry clients.

Before serving in the administration, John worked as Scheduler and Deputy Political Director for the successful John Bel Edwards Campaign for Governor in 2015, and was campaign adviser and Voter Protection Director in 2019 for Governor Edwards’ successful re-election campaign.

A native of New Orleans, John graduated from Jesuit High School, earned his undergraduate degree from Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, and his law degree from the Paul M. Hebert Law Center at Louisiana State University.

He is licensed to practice law throughout the State of Louisiana in all state and federal courts, is a Fellow of the 2023 Institute of Politics at Loyola University New Orleans, and he also serves as a board member of the Southeast Louisiana Chapter of the American Red Cross.