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City solicitor outlines receiverhip push and increased use of outside counsel for code-enforcement litigation
Summary
City Solicitor James O'Brien said his reduced FY27 budget will rely on outside counsel to pursue roughly 65 code-enforcement matters and an expected initial set of five receiverhips, aiming to capture fees, fines and rehabilitate problem properties.
City Solicitor James O’Brien described a strategic shift in how the city will handle high-volume code-enforcement cases. O’Brien told the finance committee the FY27 law department budget is reduced compared with FY26 but the city plans to expand use of outside counsel specifically for code-enforcement litigation tied to recently revised ordinances.
He said the law department manages roughly 287–290 active matters across litigation, labor and claims and currently has three vacant attorney positions; the department expects outside firms to handle approximately 65 newly filed enforcement cases so the in-house team can focus on core functions and litigation management. O’Brien argued outsourcing certain enforcement cases can be a revenue-positive investment because the city can capture fines and fees under the new code-enforcement ordinance and pursue receiverhip to stabilize neglected properties.
O’Brien said the receiverhip program is a collaborative, multi-department initiative (law, building, assessing, treasurer, finance) intended to file an initial set of five receiverhips in the coming weeks and target 10 or more by year’s end. He said the program will seek to recoup enforcement costs and facilitate rehabilitation or transfer of blighted properties.
Councilors asked about workload and whether remaining in-house attorneys can manage nearly 290 cases; O’Brien said many matters are shorter or administrative in nature and that he judged the current staffing and outside counsel mix manageable. The solicitor said the city spent roughly $278,000 on outside counsel year-to-date (including outside counsel used on the recent election recount) and that the FY27 budget increases the outside-counsel line while holding several internal attorney vacancies for budget balancing.
O’Brien and councilors emphasized that the code-enforcement outsourcing and receiverhip efforts will be evaluated for return on investment; the city expects stronger enforcement to produce fees and property improvements but committed to report results to the council as cases progress.
