He received his Juris Doctor from the University of Florida College of Law in 1972.

This ruling came after a Florida principal suspended many students for wearing such items.

[5] In Brayshaw v. City of Tallahassee, Fla. Smoak struck down a Florida statute which made it a crime to "publish or disseminate the residence address or telephone number of any law enforcement officer while designating the officer as such..." Brayshaw had posted the name of a Tallahassee police officer, along with her home address, cell phone number and age on the page RateMyCop.com, and also criticized the officer, stating that she was verbally abusive, rude and unprofessional.

Brayshaw challenged the constitutionality of the Florida statute, claiming a right to free speech under the First Amendment.

On April 30, 2010, Judge Smoak struck down the 1972 Florida law, finding that the statute was "unconstitutional on its face".