After a long and storied career, City Attorney’s Office top deputy will retire, and Deputy City Attorney Jon Givner will succeed him
SAN FRANCISCO (December 3, 2024) — Today City Attorney David Chiu announced a leadership transition on the City Attorney’s Office’s Executive Team, as current Chief Assistant City Attorney Jesse Capin Smith will retire in February 2025 after 32 years of exemplary service and dedication to the City Attorney’s Office and the City and County of San Francisco. The San Francisco Board of Supervisors will honor Smith at its meeting today at 2:30 p.m.
When Smith retires in February 2025, Government Team Leader Jon Givner will succeed him as Chief Assistant City Attorney. The Chief Assistant City Attorney is tasked with overseeing all advice and transactional divisions within the Office and leading the Office in the City Attorney’s absence. Givner brings comprehensive knowledge of the workings of San Francisco government and the legal issues impacting City government as well as 18 years of experience advising City officials and departments on all manner of topics.
Smith joined the City Attorney’s Office in 1992 as a Deputy City Attorney on the Real Estate and Special Projects Team, later the Real Estate and Finance Team, and then served as its Team Leader. City Attorney Louise Renne selected Smith to serve as Chief Assistant City Attorney in 2000. Since then, he has led the Office through three City Attorney administrations and is the longest tenured Chief Assistant City Attorney in the Office’s nearly 125-year history.
Always thorough, thoughtful, and creative, Smith led by example with a clear understanding of the legal and ethical issues, and the ultimate goals of his clients. He created the standards and processes for advising City officials and departments, ensured continuity when there were changes in City government, and consistently worked for the good of the City and County of San Francisco.
Smith has acted as the City’s lead lawyer on large-scale developments and had a hand in the major projects that have shaped San Francisco’s skyline, including Mission Bay, the Giants ballpark, the Warriors arena, and the City Hall retrofit and renovation. He championed public-private partnerships like the SF Boys and Girls Club in Bayview Hunter’s Point.
An incisive and strategic thinker, Smith was always ready to confront San Francisco’s greatest challenges. He spearheaded officewide legal efforts to hold the first Trump Administration accountable, prioritized public integrity work to ensure City government is held to the highest ethical standards, helped save Laguna Honda Hospital from closure, and acted as a key architect of San Francisco’s response to COVID-19.
In 2013, Smith received the International Public Official Award from Lambda Alpha International (LAI), an honorary society of land use and economics professionals. He also was LAI Golden Gate Member of the Year in 2008. He has been recognized as a California Lawyer of the Year, and more recently, he received a Good Government Award in 2022.
“It’s impossible to distill all that Jesse has meant to the City Attorney’s Office and San Francisco government over the last 32 years,” said City Attorney Chiu. “He always met the moment, skillfully taking on every major challenge San Francisco has faced over the last three decades. His impact cannot be overstated. Jesse is consistently the smartest and kindest person in any room—a combination that has made him a remarkable leader and human being. As sad as I am that we will soon no longer benefit from Jesse’s moral clarity, legal acumen, and steady hand, he is infinitely deserving of a rewarding retirement.”
“Jesse Smith is a true public servant, who has faithfully acted in the best interests of San Franciscans for the past 32 years,” said former City Attorney Dennis Herrera. “As City Attorney, I saw up close his dedication, legal acumen, and moral character. Jesse helped me lead the Office to become the best public law office in the nation, and together, we achieved a number of landmark legal victories. I am grateful for our years of friendship and wish him nothing but the best in retirement.”
“In any Honor Roll of those who served San Francisco well, the name of Jesse Smith would be high on the list,” said former City Attorney Louise Renne. “Jesse is truly a remarkable person – a wonderful human being!”
“It has been the honor of a lifetime to have worked in the San Francisco City Attorney’s Office on so many consequential matters over the years and with so many remarkable public servants inside and outside the Office,” said Chief Assistant City Attorney Jesse Smith. “Retiring is indeed bittersweet, I’m humbled by the acknowledgements I am receiving, and I’m forever grateful to have served under the extraordinary leadership of City Attorney Chiu, and Dennis Herrera and Louise Renne before him.”
Deputy City Attorney Jon Givner will succeed Smith as Chief Assistant City Attorney. Givner joined the City Attorney’s Office on the Ethics and Elections Team in 2006. He served as team leader of Ethics and Elections from 2007-2019, and oversaw a team providing advice across all City clients, ensuring the integrity of San Francisco’s elections, upholding the will of the voters, and litigating several election-related matters.
Givner also served as general counsel to the Board of Supervisors from 2012-2019, where he skillfully navigated and advised on numerous complex situations. He has advised dozens of City commissions and boards, and written countless ordinances, advice memoranda, public opinions, and emergency orders. Based on the breadth and depth of his experience, Givner was selected to lead the City Attorney’s Office Government Team in 2020, which handles advice and legislative work for the majority of elected officials and City departments, boards, and commissions that comprise San Francisco’s government.
“I cannot think of anyone more qualified than Jon Givner to help me lead the City Attorney’s Office into the future,” said City Attorney David Chiu. “Jon has the utmost appreciation for his new role and our Office, as well as a deep understanding of our City Charter and how San Francisco government functions. Jon has built strong relationships across City officials and departments and is widely regarded throughout City Hall as a knowledgeable, approachable problem solver. I am confident he will do great things in this role, and I am excited to see him make it his own.”
“It’s impossible to overstate Jesse’s impact as a guiding hand in City government, a leader in the City Attorney’s Office, and a mentor to me and so many others in the office,” said Deputy City Attorney Jon Givner. “No one can fill his shoes, but it is the greatest honor to have the chance to follow in his footsteps.”
Givner will join Chief Deputy City Attorney Yvonne Meré and Managing Attorney Katie Porter as senior members of the City Attorney’s Executive Team.
Chief Assistant City Attorney Jesse Smith’s commendation at today’s Board of Supervisors’ meeting at 2:30 p.m. can be viewed here.
###