Glenn R. Smith, Director

Workers' Compensation Administration

Governor Bill Richardson appointed Glenn R. Smith to be the Director of the New Mexico Workers' Compensation Administration beginning in January, 2007. Although born in New York City, Mr. Smith considers himself a native having moved from New York to New Mexico in 1972. He is a 1977 graduate of the University of New Mexico with a Bachelor of Arts in History. Mr. Smith received his Juris Doctorate in 1987 from the UNM School of Law.

Mr. Smith began his legal career serving as a law clerk for Supreme Court Justice Richard Ransom. Following his clerkship, he joined the firm of Messina, Madrid & Maynez as a commercial litigator, working primarily on matters involving the Resolution Trust Corporation.

Mr. Smith left the firm of Messina, Madrid & Smith to become Special Counsel to Attorney General Patricia Madrid in 1999. In 2003, he became Deputy Attorney General for the State of New Mexico. As a member of Attorney General Madrid's administration, Mr. Smith managed complex litigation, spearheaded legislative initiatives and structured policy for the office.

Once an avid whitewater rafter, Mr. Smith has not ventured back into the rapids since he had a near-death experience with Screaming Yellow Left and Right in the Taos Box. Now he is more comfortable on the tennis courts and he remains an avid Lobo basketball fan. Of course, the majority of his free time is devoted to his twelve-year old son, his nine-year old daughter, and his wife as well as his dogs, Allie McBeagle and Caesar, a Jack Russell Terrier puppy.