There shall be a Department of Law, the head of which shall be the Director of Law, who shall be appointed and removed by Council and shall serve under the supervision of the City Manager.
The Director of Law shall be an attorney-at-law who shall have practiced in this State for at least five years.
The Director of Law shall be the chief legal advisor of all offices, departments and agencies and of all officers and employees in matters relating to their official powers and duties. He shall represent the City in all legal proceedings, unless otherwise authorized by City Council, necessitated by contractual obligations, or as required by law. It shall be his duty to perform all services incident to the Department of Law as may be required by statute, or by ordinance or resolution of the Council.
In case the Director of Law, upon the written request of any taxpayer of the City, fails to make any application provided for in Section 733.56 to 733.58 of the Ohio Revised Code, the taxpayer may institute suit in the taxpayer’s own name on behalf of the City. No such suit or proceeding shall be entertained by any court until such request to the Director of Law shall first have been made, nor until the taxpayer gives security for the cost of the proceeding.
If the court hearing any such action is satisfied that the taxpayer had good cause to believe the taxpayer’s allegations were well founded, or if they are sufficient in law, it shall make such order as the equity of the case demands. In such case the taxpayer shall be allowed the taxpayer’s costs, and if judgment is finally ordered in the taxpayer’s favor, the taxpayer may be allowed, as part of the costs, a reasonable compensation for the taxpayer’s attorney.
(Amended November 2, 2005; November 7, 2023)