City Council Memorandum
TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL DATE: SEPTEMBER 15, 2026 FROM: CITY ATTORNEY WARDS: ALL
SUBJECT: OUTSIDE COUNSEL EXPENDITURE REPORT
ISSUE:
To receive and review the City’s Outside Counsel Expenditure Reports for the period of January 1, 2026, through March 31, 2026, and for the period of April 1, 2026, through June 30, 2026, as provided in the City’s Outside Counsel Policy approved by City Council on June 16, 2015.
RECOMMENDATION:
That the City Council receive and file the attached report.
BACKGROUND:
In order to increase transparency and accountability, in 2015, City Council approved the City Attorney’s recommendation of quarterly reporting of the City’s outside counsel expenditures. This report includes expenditures for the period of January 1, 2026, through March 31, 2026, and for the period of April 1, 2026, through June 30, 2026, as well as the total amounts paid to each law firm for each matter from inception. All closed matters are highlighted in blue and will not be included in the next quarterly report.
As of FY 2024/25, this report now includes all outside counsel engagements, including those requested by other departments, such as Human Resources, Finance, and the City Manager’s Office.
FISCAL IMPACT:
FY 20/21
QTR 1
QTR 2
QTR 3
QTR 4
TOTAL
687,692
1,002,666
893,398
628,463
$3,212,219
FY 21/22
QTR 1
QTR 2
QTR 3
QTR 4
TOTAL
857,745
553,639.77
398,734.57
175,471.02
$1,985,590.36
FY 22/23
QTR 1
QTR 2
QTR 3
QTR 4
TOTAL
218,981.21
235,101.47
264,445.61
308,380.88
$1,026,909.17
FY 23/24
QTR 1
QTR 2
QTR 3
QTR 4
TOTAL
316,770.19
287,910.61
305,075.47
328,466.10
$1,238,222.37
FY 24/25
QTR 1
QTR 2
QTR 3
QTR 4
TOTAL
439,052.48
557,091.27
636,242.38
443,781.09
$2,076,167.22
FY 25/26
QTR 1
QTR 2
QTR 3
QTR 4
TOTAL
383,801.19
374,271.87
707,919.39
447,415.37
$1,913,407.82
Prepared by: James Johnson, City Attorney
Attachments:
Outside Counsel Expenditure Report FY 2025/26 3rd Quarter Outside Counsel Expenditure Report FY 2025/26 4th Quarter