Biography

Arly Smith-Pearson is a staff attorney with the Family Law Unit of Philadelphia Legal Assistance.

Ms. Smith-Pearson is an attorney experienced in a broad array of matters involving family law, child custody, protection from abuse, criminal defense, federal taxes, migrant farmworker representation, housing, unemployment and public benefits.

Before joining Philadelphia Legal Assistance, she served as a staff attorney with the Legal Division of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. There, she assisted circuit panels with matters before the court, focusing on appellate procedure, civil rights, immigration and habeas corpus.

Ms. Smith-Pearson represented indigent clients in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas and Superior Court as a solo practitioner.

Previously, she served as a law clerk for Judge Kenneth J. Powell and Judge Barbara A. McDermott of the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas.

She received her JD, magna cum laude, from Tulane University Law School, where she received the Paul E. Garofalo Distinguished Service Award and was elected to the Order of the Coif and the Order of the Barristers. She served on the Tulane Moot Court Honor Board, won the Tulane Intraschool Senior Appellate Competition and competed as a regional semi-finalist in the Philip C. Jessup International Moot Court Competition.