Mary Lou Conrow joined Coughlin & Gerhart, LLP, in 2000 and is Of Counsel with the firm. She has been selected to the Best Lawyers in America since 2020 in the Labor and Employment - Litigation field. Mary Lou was selected Lawyer of the Year for 2023, in the area of Labor and Employment - Ligation for the Binghamton Area and received the William L. Holcomb Award for Public Service in Labor Relations in 2023. She practices as an arbitrator, mediator and hearing officer. She is currently on the American Arbitration Associations Construction Panel of Arbitrators. She has previously practiced in the labor and employment field, with emphasis on municipal liability, including police and fire disability and retirement claims, labor negotiations, Workers’ Compensation, arbitrations, grievances, discipline, NYSHR and PERB matters. Her previous experience includes private practice in Broome County; Vice President of Workers’ Compensation and Disability for EM Ernst Management; Risk Manager for Broome County; First Assistant Corporation Counsel for the City of Binghamton; Assistant Broome County Public Defender. Mary Lou is also an owner and President of KHM, Inc., a WBE/DBE Construction company.
Mary Lou is a member of the Broome County Bar Association and the New York State Bar Association (Municipal Law Section, Labor Law Section and Dispute Resolution Section). She is also a member of the New York State Association of Self-Insured Counties, the New York State Public Employer Labor Relations Association, the North East Subcontractor’s Association (NESCA); Associated General Contractors of America (AGC); Builders Exchange of the Southern Tier and a member of the St. Bonaventure University National Alumni Association Board. She is also Past President and current member of the Triple Cities Chapter of St. Bonaventure alumni.
Awards
Listed, Best Lawyers in America 2020- Present
Lawyer of the year, Best Lawyers in America 2022 - Labor and Employment litigation, Binghamton Area
William L. Holcomb Award for Public Service in Labor Relations, 2023
Presenter
New York State Retirement Systems
New York State Association of Career Fire Chiefs
New York State Association of Fire Chiefs
The Albany Department of Public Safety
Executive Services Corps of the Tri-Cities
New York State Rural Housing Association
Law Enforcement Executive Development Seminar-Municipal Service Division
New York State Department of Civil Service
Cornell University Institute of Labor Relations
New York State Association of Self-Insured Counties
New York State Public Employment Relations Board (PERB)
Law Enforcement Training Directors Association of New York State
Executive Services Corps of the Tri-Cities
Monroe County Association of Chiefs of Police
New York Municipal Insurance Reciprocal (NYMIR)
New York State Association of Chiefs of Police
NYS Conference of Mayors
NYS City/County Managers Association
The Broome County Bar Association (Ethics & Professionalism Course)
New York Association of Fire Districts
Practice Areas
Litigation
Labor & Employment
Alternative Dispute Resolution
Published Works
•General Municipal Law Section 207-a Handbook (New York State Association of Fire Chiefs)
•Navigating Municipal Employment Issues: Leading Lawyers on Analyzing the Latest Employment Trends, Creating Effective Strategies, and Resolving Conflicts (Inside the Minds): “Managing Municipal Employee and Employer Rights in the Technological Age”
•Employment Law 2014: 'Recent Decisions from the National Labor Relations Board affecting the Field of Employment Law'
Past Positions
•Past member of the Board of Directors of the BC Pops
•Current member of the St. Bonaventure University Alumni Association
•Co-Chair of the Florida Gulf Coast St. Bonaventure University Alumni Association
•Past President of the Binghamton Alumni Association
•Served as a member of the St. Bonaventure National Alumni Board for six years
•Past member of the Broome County Chamber of Commerce Governmental Affairs Committee
•Past assistant organizer of the “All Paws for a Cause” walk for the YWCA Encore Breast Cancer Prevention grou
AV Preeminent®: The highest peer rating standard. This rating signifies a large number of the lawyer’s peers rank him
or her at the highest level of professional excellence for their legal knowledge, communication skills and ethical standards.
Notable: This rating indicates that the lawyer has been recognized by a large number of their peers for strong ethical standards.
