City attorney cites staffing gains, continuing reliance on outside counsel in FY26 budget

City Attorney Jessica Brown briefed the Board of Finance on May 21 about staffing changes, workload and the office’s FY26 budget priorities.

Brown said the office completed hiring earlier this year, including appointing Emma Wood as assistant city attorney, promoting Arif Ramakrishnan to director of general government and transactional services, and hiring a new paralegal, Shay Brumband, to replace a long‑service staffer who retired. Brown said the office has been actively working on purchasing‑policy training and contract template simplification and participates in cross‑department "hotspots" meetings addressing downtown behavioral issues.

Nut graf: The city attorney’s office reported an FY25 base near $892,000 (as of a Monday run of budget figures) and expects a modest increase in FY26 largely attributable to attorney salaries as the office grows to six attorneys. Brown emphasized that about three‑quarters of the office budget is personnel costs and that the office will continue to use outside counsel for litigation and specialized matters.

Brown provided examples of outside counsel arrangements: firms are used for conflict counsel for police commission matters, bond counsel for the treasurer’s office, environmental litigation, and bargaining support. She said the city’s outside counsel relationships tend to yield discounted rates and that the office prioritizes handling work in‑house where feasible but that litigation practice often requires specialized outside teams.

Ending: Brown said the office will continue to support charter modernization discussions and provide litigation updates to council as needed. No changes to legal authorities or formal actions were taken at the May 21 meeting.