Ms. JoAnna Jae Smith

Marple Smith Family Law

Working as a doula (a birth support person) before law school, JoAnna developed a passion for providing the information and support families needed to get through a life-changing and challenging time. Now JoAnna applies those skills and that passion to helping Georgians successfully navigate their family law issues from divorce, custody, and child support to mediation, protective orders, and name changes. She particularly loves working with the LGBTQ++ community, people exploring alternative family structures, and parents with kids with disabilities. She is a certified domestic relations mediator and arbitrator and experienced Guardian Ad Litem.

JoAnna graduated summa cum laude from American University in Washington, D.C. with a degree in Law & Society, and a certificate in Women, Politics & Political Leadership. She is a Truman Scholar and a Truman-Albright Fellow.

After graduation, JoAnna worked at the U.S. Department of Transportation, as a doula in a local birth center, and a sexual assault victim advocate. She attended Emory University Law School as a Woodruff Fellow, where she received both a law degree and Masters of Public Health. She ran her own family law firm for seven years before joining the Firm.

JoAnna lives in Avondale Estates with her son who is blind, where she is active in various community organizations.