City Attorney's Practice Areas

The City of Chula Vista City Attorney's Office provides legal counsel and representation to the City's elected and appointed policy-makers. It serves the public interest by providing these clients with the affordable, high quality legal advice and representation that they need to best achieve their policies and goals. The Office's responsibilities revolve around seven specialized areas of practice in which attorneys provide legal counsel as well as representation in litigation at all levels of state and federal courts and administrative agencies.

Please Note: The City does not prosecute violations of the California Penal Code, California Vehicle Code, or other violations of State law.

Contracts
Handles legal services at all stages of contract formulation, implementation and enforcement, including negotiation, drafting, administration and litigation. The City Attorney develops and maintains standardized City contracts and participates as counsel in complex transactions such as capital projects for multi-million dollar construction, developers agreements, and site licenses for wireless telecommunication providers.

Land Use
Handles counsel on zoning, planning, growth management, code enforcement, state environmental policy, low-income housing development, preservation of historic properties, and acquisition of public property for open space, parks, and other public facilities.

Redevelopment and Real Estate
Provides legal support to the City Council, City Manager, Redevelopment Agency and various City departments in connection with a wide range of redevelopment and real estate issues. Common issues in this area of practice include property acquisition and disposition, disposition and development agreements, public improvements, design-build agreements, franchises, affordable housing transactions, long-term energy policies, and redevelopment plan administration.

Employment/Labor
With over 1,000 City employees, including many union members, the personnel and labor issues facing the City are complex and diverse. In conjunction with the City's Human Resources Department, the City Attorney is responsible for personnel policy development and labor relations matters, including civil service and arbitration proceedings.

Municipal Law
Handles legal advice on a diverse areas of local government law such as municipal finance and budgeting, taxation, legislation drafting and Municipal Code supervision, public disclosure and inter/intra-governmental relations.

Torts
Primarily engaged in litigation, defending the City in personal injury and property damage cases, which span the spectrum from minor matters to multi-million dollar lawsuits. The City Attorney works closely with the Risk Management's claim management team, which handles administrative claims against the City.

Code Enforcement
Involves enforcing the City Code provisions relating to building codes, zoning, neighborhood preservation and vehicles on private property. Violations are addressed by employing the various enforcement tools available to the City: administrative actions, civil actions and/or criminal prosecution. The City Attorney provides further assistance by litigating the abatement, securing and/or demolition of substandard properties.