For more than a year, Jason Gabriel has been the city’s top attorney on an interim basis. He’s a step away from having that tag lifted.
Gabriel was the unanimous selection by the General Counsel Review Committee on Thursday afternoon after interviews with two candidates. The committee provided its recommendation to Mayor Lenny Curry, who announced the appointment Friday.
Gabriel has been acting general counsel since July 2014 after Cindy Laquidara returned to the private sector.
John Delaney, a former mayor and general counsel, served as head of the review committee. He said Gabriel was left with several difficult issues, with pension lawsuits and reform efforts leading the way.
“He stepped into a hurricane,” said Delaney. “The past year has really helped him … we were knocked out in the interview.”
The general counsel oversees all parts of city government, leading a group of more than 30 attorneys. That management experience played a role, as did Gabriel’s desire to upgrade the talent in the office, Delaney said. The current talent base is there, Delaney said, but Gabriel told the committee that a “couple hundred years of experience” had left the office in recent years.
Additionally, Delaney said, Gabriel’s loyalty to the principles of consolidated government was a positive.
The committee interviewed Gabriel and Patrick Krechowski, a GrayRobinson attorney who serves as legal counsel for Neptune Beach. Delaney said Krechowski was impressive in the interview, but Gabriel’s seasoning in the role was key.
A third applicant, former Circuit Judge Aaron Bowden, withdrew his name earlier in the week after submitting his resume.
In a news release, Curry said Gabriel “has an enormous scope of responsibility and done an amazing job.”
The committee consisted of Delaney; former general counsel Rick Mullaney; Florida Bar Board of Governors’ members Fred Franklin and Michael Tanner; and Jacksonville Bar delegate Mary Bland Love. Franklin also is a former city general counsel.
Gabriel’s name will be inserted into legislation filed last week that intentionally left the name of the appointee blank.
As the appointment still needs City Council confirmation, Gabriel was unavailable for an interview.
His salary is being negotiated.
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