Jennifer McGrath: Office needs streamlining

RACE FOR THE CITY ATTORNEY

Name: Jennifer McGrath

Age: 34

Occupation: Deputy city attorney, Huntington Beach

Family: Husband Bruce; son Paul; daughter Halen.

Community activities: Sts. Simon and Jude Catholic Church,

Parishioner

Education: bachelor’s in political science from UCLA; doctorate

and Order of the Coif from McGeorge School of Law

Favorite leader: Sandra Day O’Connor, U.S. Supreme Court Justice

Contact information: Committee to Elect Jennifer McGrath

8441 Dallas Circle

Huntington Beach, CA 92646

Phone. 714-210-2426

Fax 714-210-2427

www.jennifermcgrath.com

McGRATH ON:

* Saving money in the City Attorney’s Office

The City Attorney’s Office can save money by reducing the City’s

reliance on outside counsel and increasing the success rates of the

city in litigation. First, we need to streamline the office to do a

better job of utilizing technology, such as the contract streamlining

process initiated in October, 2001. We need to reduce the amount of

time our attorneys spend on routine matters and increase the time

spent on serious issues and litigation and avoid the necessity of

outside counsel. The City Attorney’s Office must provide consistent

and reliable legal advice on contracts, prosecutions, land use

decisions, ordinances, resolutions, and specific legal issues on a

daily basis to protect against potential litigation. To ignore the

routine matters will result in an increase in litigation and legal

costs.

Second, the City Attorney’s Office must be proactive in

identifying potential legal issues before the problem arises by

working with the various city departments and the City Council

earlier in the process. City departments should be trained in basic

processes to enable staff to make better decisions to ensure the

success in the event of a lawsuit, or perhaps avoid the lawsuit

entirely.

* Running the City Attorney’s Office more efficiently

The City Attorney’s Office can run more efficiently by instituting

cutting edge management techniques, including law office time

management software systems. All staff attorneys should be

cross-trained to be experts in the core municipal subjects of land

use, Brown Act, conflict of interest, public records, public

employment, redevelopment and revenue/fiscal issues to provide

competent legal advice on a daily basis and improve the likelihood of

success in a lawsuit.

* The biggest challenge that faces the new city attorney

The biggest challenge facing the new City Attorney is how to

continue to provide a high level of legal services when faced with an

ever-increasing demand for those services and fewer resources due to

declining city revenues and statewide budget constraints.

* The most important lawsuits facing the city

The most important lawsuits facing the city include Howard Jarvis

Taxpayers Assn. vs. City of Huntington Beach; Mills Land & Water vs.

City of Huntington Beach; Mulligan vs. Redevelopment Agency; CARES v.

City of Huntington Beach (I and II); and the potential litigation

regarding water service to the property owned by Hearthside Homes.