January 20, 2026
DATE: January 20, 2026
TO: Mayor Martinez and Members of the City Council
FROM:
Mayor Eduardo Martinez
Councilmember Doria Robinson
Councilmember Sue Wilson
Subject:
Request for Proposals for the City Attorney Recruitment FINANCIAL IMPACT: There is no fiscal impact for the request for proposal process.
PREVIOUS COUNCIL
ACTION:
None.
STATEMENT OF THE
ISSUE:
With the resignation of Dave Aleshire as City Attorney, the City Council determined a recruitment for a new City Attorney is needed. A Request for Proposals has been
drafted and will be published with Council’s approval. The Job Description has also been updated. The Committee
recommends Council approval.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: APPROVE the proposed Request for Proposals, for a new city attorney, and its publication – Mayor Eduardo
Martinez (510-620-6503), Councilmember Doria
Robinson (510-620-6568), and Councilmember Sue
Wilson (510-609-211).
DISCUSSION:
The Request for Proposals (“RFP”) for the City Attorney position has been drafted using the City’s model. The RFP includes standard language for RFPs for recruiting firms.
AGENDA
REPORT
January 20, 2026
Because of the City Council’s desire to maintain independence on recruitment for this City Council appointed position, a provision for a salary review and survey is included in the proposed work. Once approved by City Council, the RFP will be posted on the City’s online bidding system. Firms affiliated with the League of California Cities and with experience with city attorney searches will be invited to bid through the formal process.
Selection of a well-qualified recruiting firm is needed. There have been many recent recruitments or advertisements for high level city attorneys. Current or recently closed City Attorney recruitments include Santa Monica (January 2026), National City (January 2026), Milpitas (December 2025), Palo Alto (December 2025), Sacramento (November 2025), and Antioch (November 2025). A good recruiter will be able to showcase Richmond and make the City stand out with prospective applicants.
Based on our analysis, the anticipated cost of the recruitment will range between $30,000 to 50,000. Funding for the recruitment will be requested of City Council to add to the City Attorney’s professional services line item once an agency is selected.
As part of the preparation for the recruitment of a City Attorney, the Interim City Attorney and the Human Resources Director reviewed the 2018 Job Description for the City Attorney position, and it has been updated to align with industry and market standards.
The job description can be viewed here.
DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
Attachment 1 - Draft Request for Proposals for Recruiting Firm for City Attorney Vacancy