Kristen E. Smith

Kristen works with employers to help ensure compliance with the complex maze of labor and employment laws. She provides practical, tailored advice to help clients avert costly and damaging employment-related claims.

Kristen joined Bond in 2005 as a labor and employment lawyer. In 2018 she was appointed by Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh as Corporation Counsel for the City of Syracuse. After Mayor Walsh’s first term, Kristen returned to Bond in 2022.

As Corporation Counsel, Kristen oversaw all legal affairs for the city, supervising a law department of 18 attorneys. She directly advised the Mayor, Common Council and department heads (including the police and fire chiefs) on wide-ranging legal issues, with a particular focus on employment and labor issues including employee relations and discipline, labor contract interpretation and compliance, civil service compliance, labor negotiations, workplace investigations and employment litigation. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she helped negotiate concessions with the city’s labor unions to avoid widespread furloughs and ensure the continuation of critical city services.

As the head of the law department, Kristen implemented major staffing, organizational and performance improvements to the department and improved responsiveness and efficiency of its Freedom of Information Law process. She also made significant contributions to police-reform initiatives, negotiated the city’s acquisition of its street-light network and helped Syracuse earn its designation as New York’s Flagship Smart City.

Prior to her legal career, Kristen worked in human resource management with several large corporations (including Exelon and Bose). This, combined with her years as Corporation Counsel, gives her a unique and helpful perspective into the day-to-day realities of being an employer. She merges this practical knowledge with her legal experience to provide each client with a realistic, pragmatic approach to solving employment law challenges.