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Council weighs finding new town attorney after repeated delays on ordinances
Summary
Several councilors said the town's current attorney has been slow to complete ordinances and other legal work and asked staff to check for any signed contract before pursuing alternatives; members suggested soliciting other law firms if no binding agreement exists.
A councilor (speaker 7) raised concerns about the responsiveness of the town’s attorney, identified in the discussion as Todd, saying several recent requests had taken too long or were not completed.
"The thing with changing the zoning ... he wrote those ordinances for us, basically, a fill in the blanks, and he completely forgot that he even did that," the councilor said, summarizing why the council felt the attorney had been unresponsive on specific zoning and ordinance tasks. Other members agreed they had experienced slow follow‑up and that documents sent for legal review had not progressed after council approval.
Members discussed whether a contract with the attorney exists. Speaker 2 said they would review records and, if there is no binding contract, could solicit another law firm. The council noted that some firms previously contacted—such as Jason May—had conflict‑of‑interest constraints or other limitations; the group agreed to check the current contract status before taking steps to replace the attorney.
One councilor observed that while alternative firms might bill at a higher hourly rate, timely completion of legal work could reduce total cost and staff time. The council directed staff to look for any signed agreements and, if necessary, follow procurement requirements for obtaining new legal services.
Next step: staff will search for existing contracts or agreements with the current attorney and report back with options and legal constraints for moving forward.
