About Us
Smith Cash Family Law is a small firm by design. When you hire us, you work directly with Kelly Smith or Kelley Cash — two board-certified family law specialists with 27 combined years of experience in Wake County and the surrounding areas.
Meet the Team
"You are facing issues that are complex and deeply personal. I am here to help guide you through this time so that you can come out the other side with confidence."
Founding partner
Kelley W. Cash
Kelley Cash is a founding partner of Smith Cash Law and a North Carolina State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Family Law. She grew up in Eastern North Carolina and earned her undergraduate degree in Journalism and Mass Communication from UNC-Chapel Hill.
Before law school, she worked as a paralegal at an international firm in Washington, D.C., which gave her an early, ground-level view of what complex litigation actually looks like from the inside. She returned to Chapel Hill for law school at UNC, where she developed a strong interest in the intersection of legal strategy, financial complexity, and the deeply personal dynamics of family law.
Prior to co-founding Smith Cash Family Law, Kelley served as a senior attorney at a Raleigh family law firm and as an Assistant District Attorney in the Wake County DA's Office — experience that sharpened both her courtroom advocacy and her ability to read a case clearly under pressure.
Outside the office, Kelley is an avid golfer who travels to play new courses whenever she can. She also spends time on the river in Bath, NC, and values time with her husband and three children.
certification
Board Certified Family Law Specialist
experience
Practiced family law since 2012
recognition
NC Super Lawyers Rising Stars 2021–2024
education
UNC School of Law
Undergrad, UNC Chapel Hill
Founding partner
Kelly K. Smith
Kelly Smith is a founding partner of Smith Cash Family Law and a North Carolina Board Certified Family Law Specialist. She grew up in Emerald Isle on the North Carolina coast and earned her undergraduate degree in Journalism and Mass Communication from UNC-Chapel Hill. After undergrad, she attended Elon University School of Law, where she met her husband, and she moved to Raleigh in 2014.
As the youngest of six children in a blended family, she approaches family law with a personal understanding of how much the structure of a family shapes everything else — and how much is at stake when that structure changes. Before co-founding the firm, she spent more than a decade working with Cary Close as a partner at Close Smith Family Law, building a reputation as a strategic, plainspoken advocate who tells clients the truth even when it is hard to hear.
Her goal is not just to resolve the immediate legal matter — it is to set clients up for a genuinely good future.
Outside the office, Kelly spends most of her time cheering on her three sons at basketball games and Brazilian jiu-jitsu practices. When she can get away, she heads back to the beach — and occasionally holds her own on the pickleball court.
“Things may get worse before they get better—but my goal is to run into you a few years down the road and hear how great things are going in your life.”
certification
Board Certified Family Law Specialist
experience
Practiced family law since 2013
recognition
NC Super Lawyers 2024–2026 · Legal Elite Young Gun 2021
education
Elon University School of Law
Undergrad, UNC Chapel Hill
Paralegal
Keri Kimmons
Keri is your first point of contact at Smith Cash Family Law. As the firm's paralegal, she manages client communication, coordinates case logistics, and makes sure every matter moves forward without unnecessary delays.
She has more than a decade of litigation support experience in family law, which means she understands both the legal process and what clients are going through — before the attorneys even enter the room. Keri earned her undergraduate degree from UNC Charlotte and her Certificate in Paralegal Studies from Cape Fear Community College.
Outside the office, she enjoys spending time with her family, getting to the beach whenever she can, and running.
Ready to figure out where you stand?
Contact us for a confidential conversation so we can help you understand your options. No commitment, just clear guidance so you can decide what is right.
What you share with us is confidential. No obligation. We respond within one business day.