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County attorney summarizes legal caseload: child support, mental-health commitments and contracts
Summary
County Attorney Brad Stern told the executive committee his office handles county legal work, child support (about 4,000 cases), mental-health commitments, CHIPS filings and guardianships, and reviewed contract-review volume and open records requests for 2025 and year-to-date 2026.
Brad Stern, the county attorney, briefed the Executive Committee May 18 on the county legal office's workload and services.
Stern said his office represents the county and departments across a range of matters, manages the child support agency (about 4,000 cases), and handles mental-health commitment hearings, guardianships, termination-of-parental-rights cases and CHIPS (child abuse and neglect) filings. He reported that in 2025 the office reviewed 498 contracts, handled about 205 mental-health commitments and filed 40 new CHIPS cases; through 2026 he said the office had reviewed 110 contracts, worked through 69 mental-health cases and filed 17 new CHIPS cases to date.
Stern also said the office fields open-records requests (119 in the prior year) and partners with human-services social workers in court for family- and protective-placement matters. He described recent appellate work and the office's role in advising departments on legal questions.
Supervisors commended Stern for responsiveness and for Criminal Justice Coordinating Council work referenced by a supervisor. Stern said he serves at the pleasure of the county executive and emphasized the office's client is the county and its departments.
No formal action followed the briefing.
