City Attorney

Attorney’s Office includes the City Attorney, one Assistant City Attorney, one Deputy City Attorney, and one legal secretary.

Responsibilities

The primary responsibilities of the City Attorney’s Office include:

Providing legal advice to the City Council, the boards of all related City entities (such as the Housing Authority of the City of Napa, and the Successor Agency to the Napa Community Redevelopment Agency), appointed boards and commissions (such as the Planning Commission, and the Cultural Heritage Commission), and City staff related to the establishment, implementation, and enforcement of City laws, policies, and procedures.
Preparing legal documents to implement and enforce City laws and policies, including ordinances, resolutions, regulations, and contracts.
Representing and defending the City’s interests in civil litigation and administrative proceedings, including code enforcement, collections, tort claims, contract enforcement, and land use regulation.

Open Public Meeting Laws known as The Brown Act (California Government Code Sections 54950 - 54963)
Access to Public Records under The Public Records Act and PRA Exceptions (California Government Code Sections 6250 - 6276.48)
Governmental Ethics Laws and Regulations summarized by the Fair Political Practices Commission
Evaluation of potential environmental impacts under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA):
- See California Public Resources Code (Scroll to Sections 21000 - 21178)
- See the CEQA Guidelines California Code of Regulations (Click on Title 14, Division 6, Chapter 3, Sections 15000 - 15387)