About Us
For the past twelve years, I’ve dedicated my practice exclusively to criminal defense in Utah. In that time, I’ve successfully argued and won bench and jury trials, prevailed in motion hearings, and secured monetary judgments for clients in wrongful arrest cases against law enforcement. I’ve also briefed, argued, and won cases before the Utah Court of Appeals and the Utah Supreme Court.
My experience extends to working within the court systems of Utah and Colorado, and interning with both the Salt Lake City Prosecutor’s Office and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Arizona. This background gives me valuable insight into how judges and prosecutors think and operate. Criminal law is my passion, and I’m proud to be an attorney.
Dain Smoland, Esq. (Manager & Owner)
Law Licenses
State of Utah
Federal Court for the District of Utah
10th Circuit Court of Appeals
Legal Experience
Owner-Manager, Smoland Law
Intern, Salt Lake City Prosecutor’s Office
Volunteer Attorney, Utah Crime Victims Legal Clinic
Volunteer Legal Intern, United States Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona
Judicial Extern, Chambers of Federal Magistrate Judge Samuel Alba, District of Utah
Court Judicial Assistant, Colorado Sixth Judicial District
Degrees and Accomplishments
Juris Doctor, Vermont Law School
Magna Cum Laude
Top 10% of Class
Law Review Editor
Member of Mock Trial Team
Two Academic Excellence Awards for Highest Final Grade (Constitutional Law and Corporations)
Master’s Degree, Northern Arizona University
Summa Cum Laude
Graduate Teaching Assistant
Bachelor’s Degree, Northern Arizona University
Honors College, Summa Cum Laude
Professional Organizations
The Utah Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
The American Bar Association
The Utah Young Lawyers Division
The Salt Lake County Bar Association
NORML Legal Committee
Law Publications
…And Damned If You Don’t: Utah’s Plea Withdrawal Statute is a Devil’s Bargain for Criminal Defendants, Utah Journal of Criminal Law, Spring 2021, Volume 5, Issue 1 (Co-Authored with Ann Taliaferro).
Keep Calm and Argue the Facts: A Pragmatic Approach to the Doctrine of Chances, Utah Bar Journal, Sep/Oct 2012, Vol 26, #5, Page 45-49. You can also view it here.
Community and Volunteer Work
Assisted the Utah Young Architects Forum in the launch of SixtyNine Seventy, an international design competition aimed at revitalizing two city blocks in downtown Salt Lake City.
Taylor Goldstein
Originally from San Antonio, Texas, Taylor moved to Salt Lake City to attend college, and stayed. She started working at Smoland Law as a legal assistant in 2018, advanced into a paralegal position, and, upon graduating law school in 2023, became an associate attorney.
Clients love her for being approachable, caring, and real; and for diligently pursuing the results they need. Much of criminal defense is a type of negotiation--with prosecutors, with judges--and Taylor has proven herself to be an excellent negotiator and attorney.
In her spare time, she snuggles her cat Cleo and punches people in the face (consensually, with boxing gloves).
Law Licenses
State of Utah
Federal Court for the District of Utah
Legal Experience
Legal Assistant, Paralegal, and Associate Attorney, Smoland Law
Holistic and Education Attorney, Utah Juvenile Defender Association
Criminal Policy Intern, American Civil Liberties Union
Professional Organizations
The Utah Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
The Utah Young Lawyers Division
Degrees and Accomplishments
Juris Doctor Degree, University of Utah SJ Quinney College of Law
High Honors
Constitutional Law Section Secretary
National Lawyers Guild co-chair
Masters Degree, Westminster University
Community Leadership
Bachelors of Art Degree, Westminster University
Studio Art and Political Science
Community and Volunteer Work
Co-Chair of National Lawyers Guild University of Utah Chapter
Expungement Clinic Volunteer
Criminal Clinic Volunteer
Master's Thesis Collaboration with the Utah Criminal Justice Advisory Council to understand the impacts of criminal record mitigation
Ready to discuss your case?
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