The Torrance City Council on the evening of its meeting reported it had authorized the city attorney to file a notice of appeal in a California civil‑rights case that staff described in closed session.

City Attorney Patrick Sullivan told the council, “The council authorized, in closed session, the city to file a notice of appeal in the California civil rights, Department versus Steve Torrance case.” He also said a notice of appeal must be filed by Jan. 15, 2026 and that the city attorney required immediate instruction from the council.

Council did not disclose deliberations held during closed session; the council followed the law permitting limited report‑out on actions taken in closed session. The mayor announced the council had been in closed session earlier in the meeting and asked the city manager and city attorney to report any actions.

The council’s action was described as an authorization to proceed with an appeal and does not itself reflect a court filing yet; staff identified the deadline imposed by the court calendar and instructed the city attorney to proceed. No public vote was required at the time the authorization was reported out.

The next procedural step will be whatever filings the city attorney deems necessary to meet the cited deadline; the council did not provide additional public detail about the grounds of the case during the session.