Jacksonville General Counsel Cindy Laquidara leaves the position for the Foley & Lardner firm next week without a successor yet identified.
Chris Hand, chief of staff for Mayor Alvin Brown, said this morning that the administration is setting in motion the process to choose a new general counsel and also will announce an interim leader.
“Mayor Brown understands the key importance of the general counsel position and wants the City to continue to have strong legal representation during his administration,” Hand said.
“We will announce the selection committee very soon. At that time, we will also announce who will lead the Office of General Counsel on an acting basis during the selection and confirmation process,” he said.
The City Charter calls for the mayor to name a committee of five Florida-licensed attorneys to recommend three candidates. The mayor’s selection is sent to City Council for approval.
Laquidara leaves Sept. 30, the day before the City’s new fiscal year begins.
She served as an assistant general counsel from 1985-87, leaving for private practice, and returned in 1998, becoming general counsel last year when Rick Mullaney left the position to run for mayor. She was reappointed by Brown after he took office July 1 to serve through the end of the month.
Laquidara is the first woman to serve as Jacksonville’s general counsel.
The office provides legal services to the City, including its constitutional officers, boards, commissions and independent agencies.
For the current fiscal year, it had 71 authorized positions, including 38 attorneys, according to the City’s website.
Laquidara could not be reached for comment.
Karen Chastain is deputy general counsel.
The City Charter outlines the selection and term of general counsel. In summary:
The general counsel shall be an attorney licensed to practice law in Florida and shall have at least five years’ experience in the practice of law.
“Upon the start of each term in office, the mayor shall appoint a selection committee of five attorneys licensed to practice in Florida. No more than two members shall be former City general counsels. The mayor shall endeavor to appoint two former general counsels to the committee, but if either or both refuse to serve, the mayor shall appoint an attorney licensed to practice in Florida in their stead.
• The committee shall receive applications and can consider applicants it chooses.
• The committee shall choose three qualified and available candidates for recommendation to the mayor.
• If the mayor declines to select one of the three, the committee shall conduct another search and recommend three more candidates. The procedure continues until the mayor makes a selection.
• The mayor’s chosen candidate shall be confirmed by City Council.
• The term coincides with the term of the mayor who made the appointment.
The Charter also explains reappointment.
A general counsel may be reappointed by a newly elected or re-elected mayor. If Council does not confirm the re-appointment, the mayor can allow the general counsel to continue to serve for six months. The mayor can resubmit the name to Council at any time during the six months.
If Council does not confirm, then the position becomes vacant and a search begins.
One of Brown’s 18 transition committees weighed in on the general counsel’s office.
The Transition Legal Committee said it will not play a direct role in the selection of the next general counsel, but said it was informed about several qualifications to suggest in considering a hire.
Among the qualifications listed were management experience, especially in a large firm; approaching the position with a “careerist” view; some expertise in government law and litigation; respect in the legal community; an apolitical approach; demonstrated ability to exercise independent legal judgment; ability to recognize and address conflicts related to representation; and familiarity with alternative dispute resolution.
Another suggestion was that the general counsel should have some experience addressing legal issues in the context of a consolidated government.
The committee also heard conflicting suggestions, one that the next general counsel should be from Jacksonville to give confidence to the legal community and another that a national search should be conducted for candidates experienced in government law.
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