On October 6, 1966, Smith was nominated by President
Lyndon B. Johnson to a seat on the
United States District Court for the District of Columbia vacated by Judge
Luther Youngdahl. Smith was confirmed by the
United States Senate on October 20, 1966, and received his commission on November 3, 1966. He served as Chief Judge and as a member of the
Judicial Conference of the United States from 1981 to 1982. He was a Judge of the
Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court from 1982 to 1988. He assumed
senior status on January 31, 1983. Smith served in that capacity until his death on September 4, 1992, in Washington, D.C. ==References==