MSP Law Firm

Celebrating 125 Years

It is often said that “change” is one of the few constants in life. While the names and faces of the McRae, Smith, Peek, Harman & Monroe law firm may have changed over the years, the firm’s tenets have not. This year, the firm is celebrating its 125th anniversary as one of the oldest law firms in Georgia.

The firm’s roots were planted in 1899 when George Edmondson Maddox and Colonel William S. McHenry partnered to offer a full slate of legal services for residents of Rome, Floyd County, and the entire region. The Maddox family has been involved in one way or another throughout the ages.

For decades, the firm was known as Smith, Shaw, and Maddox, led by partners Oscar Smith, Charles C. Shaw, and Judge James D. “Jimmy Dick” Maddox.

Members of the firm have always been committed to serving the community beyond its legal needs. Judge Maddox was a leader who worked to bring Floyd Junior College, now Georgia Highlands College, to Rome. “Today, we all continue to be involved in the community on various boards and projects” said Andy Garner.

Offices are currently found in Rome and Cedartown. Today’s principals include Mike McRae, a senior partner primarily involved with Polk County. Junior partners Robert Monroe and Carey L. Pilgrim are based in Polk also. Senior partners Scott Smith, Jule Peek, and Virginia Harman, are part of the Rome office, working with partner Andrew (Andy) Garner, Lee Niedrach, Chris Jackson, Brian  Bojo, Ben Stell, Trey Newton, Lint Johnson, Jordan Knight, and Jason Stanker. The firm also includes a full staff of paralegals and administrative assistants.

The firm is currently housed in its own building on Second Avenue in the Cotton Block. Built in 1898, it’s a year older than the law firm.  The firm followed the First National Bank of Rome for years, which would become SunTrust and eventually Truist. “As we grew, we needed more space and we wanted to own our building,” Garner said. The visibility of the new, historic building on Second Avenue was excellent for us because all the years in the SunTrust/Truist building, most folks didn’t know where the firm was. The move has been a real boon for us.”

“For a law firm to stay intact 125 years is almost unheard of,” Garner said. “That says a lot. There tend to be a lot of big egos as a rule, and it’s hard for those egos to stay together unless you have some humility about you. It doesn’t mean you’re not good at what you do; we’re confident, but we have great deal of humility.”  He said the firm doesn’t do a lot of advertising with a lot of billboards around the region as some do, but we let our work, and successes tell our story.

We are honored to work for all types of clients, including Floyd Medical Center, now Atrium Health Floyd, the firm’s oldest continuous client. The firm has also represented the Berry Schools and Shorter University.

“We’ve traditionally been a defense firm, so what we do is not flashy,” said Andy Garner. We represent institutions, businesses, banks, insurance companies.” In recent years, the firm has successfully argued many noise pollution cases. In Polk County, the firm represented a number of landowners in a case against one of Georgia’s electric membership co-ops and received several large verdicts in the Polk County Superior Court. It is currently litigating similar cases in Northeast Georgia.

Current firm members have specific distinctions across a broad spectrum of legal issues. Brian Bojo, for one, has a Master’s of Law in taxation, so he has that expertise. Jule Peek is a member of the American College of Trial Lawyers. Real estate work and malpractice and are heavily involved with local government clients, including Floyd County, Haralson County, the Haralson County School Board, and the cities of Rockmart, Cedartown, Temple, and Buchanan. With much experience and ability to pull from, the client’s legal needs of all classes are successfully concluded.

“We’ve got a lot of work right now that we’re doing for the DOT,” Garner said. One project has involved preparations for right-of-way acquisition for the Rome-Cartersville Development Corridor. Years ago, Oscar Smith was one of the partners who helped negotiate the acquisition of property on I-75.

“I think what sets us apart is our commitment to the community, our clients, and our families,” Garner said. “Our humble but confident approach to the practice of law has proven to hold us together for 125 years. Our relationships with one another have been a true strength.”