City solicitor outlines plan to outsource code‑enforcement litigation and file receiverships to recover costs

City Solicitor James O’Brien told councilors the law department will shift part of its work toward outside counsel to handle a rising volume of code‑enforcement matters and to support an administrative receivership program.

O’Brien said the office is managing roughly 287–290 active matters across litigation, labor, insurance and transactional work and that a recent ordinance change allows the city to recover fees and costs more effectively when outside counsel advances enforcement actions. “We expect five receiverships will be filed in the next couple of weeks and targeting 10 or more by the end of the year,” O’Brien said, describing the receivership work as a collaborative effort across building, assessing, treasurer and finance offices.

Councilors asked whether the department’s reduced in‑house attorney roster can manage ongoing litigation; O’Brien said the remaining attorneys are experienced and most matters are manageable in‑house, but that high‑volume or highly specialized enforcement cases will be referred to outside counsel. The solicitor noted the administration increased the law office’s outside‑counsel line item and expects expenditures for outside counsel to be tracked against results; he cited earlier outside‑counsel bills in the current year (including recount support) as context for the decision.

Next steps: the solicitor said the strategy is intended to accelerate enforcement outcomes and recoup fees where allowed by the new ordinance; councilors asked for periodic reporting on costs and recoveries.