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May 20, 2025
NSSF Government Relations Team Profile: Shelby Baird Smith
NSSF’s Government Relations Team is working hard on behalf of the entire firearm and ammunition industry, both at the federal level and at state capitals across the country. To give our members a better understanding of who is fighting for their businesses and Second Amendment rights every day, NSSF will periodically publish a Government Relations Team member profile. May’s NSSF GR Team profile is for Shelby Baird Smith, NSSF Chief Litigation Counsel.
1) What is your favorite hunting or recreational shooting sports activity?
I grew up in rural southwestern Pennsylvania and my dad taught me to shoot at a young age. In my county, every high school had a smallbore rifle team and I was our team captain. I decided to continue with the hobby in college and was lucky enough to meet my husband that way! It was your classic love story: he was organizing the pistol club meetings and I was the rifle team captain. Naturally, we fought over scheduling range time. And to bring it full circle, I recall that a generous NSSF grant kept our small club afloat. So I can attribute a lot of my life’s happiness to participating in shooting sports and NSSF in particular.
2) How did you become interested in professionally advocating for pro-firearm industry policies and Second Amendment rights?
Along with my passion for shooting sports, I also developed an interest in constitutional law at an early age and set my sights on becoming a lawyer. One major catalyst was the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Heller v. District of Columbia, which I was enthralled by even though I was only in high school. I recall reading everything I could get my hands on about the Supreme Court and conservative legal principles. I eventually achieved my goal of becoming a lawyer and pursued jobs that gave me opportunities to work on interesting constitutional issues. I was always passionate about the Second Amendment but never dreamed that I would have the incredible privilege of work on industry issues every single day.
3) Describe your role within NSSF to the firearm industry community.
As the Chief Litigation Counsel, I manage the litigation matters in which NSSF is a party, as well as monitor litigation that might have a potential impact on the firearm industry. I also provide legal advice to our Government Relations team, including legislative and regulatory counsel. NSSF is very busy on the litigation, legislative and regulatory fronts, so there is always an interesting challenge ahead!
4) What is your favorite aspect of your role with NSSF while interacting with industry partners?
It really is an honor to serve an industry that means so much to me. I had the opportunity to meet representatives from many member companies at SHOT Show this year and enjoyed talking with them about the challenges that their businesses face, as well as their outlook on the very active Second Amendment litigation landscape following the Supreme Court’s relatively recent decision in NYSRPA v. Bruen. I love working on NSSF’s cases from a baseline intellectual perspective, but what really gets me fired up is talking with our members and seeing the direct impact that our litigation has on their ability to engage in the lawful commerce of their constitutionally protected products. Without the firearm industry, the Second Amendment would be a dead letter and I am proud to fight important legal battles on behalf of our members.
5) Describe your favorite “win” from your role/advocacy on behalf of the firearm industry.
I recently hit my one-year mark at NSSF and yet it is difficult to narrow down the list in such a short amount of time! I am particularly proud of the victory that we secured in Barnett v. Raoul, which is our challenge to Illinois’s unconstitutional ban on Modern Sporting Rifles (MSRs) and standard capacity magazines. We worked closely with our wonderful outside counsel on all aspects of the litigation, from the (not so fun) discovery process to a four-day bench trial in federal court. The court issued a tour-de-force opinion spanning over 150 pages, making critical factual findings regarding the function and utility of MSRs and standard capacity magazines for self-defense and ultimately holding that the Illinois ban violates the Second Amendment. It has been very gratifying to work on that case from the ground up and to secure such a great win for the industry.
6) What’s a favorite hobby or recreational activity outside of hunting or shooting sports?
As the mother of a toddler, my main hobby during this season of life is trying to get enough sleep. With the time left over, my husband and I enjoy taking our daughter on long walks so that she can add to her extensive rock collection. I also like to bake and have recently gotten back into sewing by making colorful outfits for my bold little girl.
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