Huntington Beach City Attorney’s Office Gets Some Pointers

After a seven-month audit of the Huntington Beach city attorney’s office, consultants noted “significant improvements” in recent years and offered 33 recommendations for better management, according to a report the city released Friday.

The audit was approved by the City Council in June 1999 after some officials said they had received complaints from department heads that the office was not responding promptly to requests for legal advice. At the time, City Atty. Gail Hutton said there was sometimes confusion when she was out of the office.

In the report, the consultants noted that Huntington Beach has paid “the lowest amount in lawsuit settlements and judgments over the past three fiscal years” compared to five cities with comparable budgets.

The audit was part of the city’s “overall organizational effectiveness effort,” according to a press release late Friday afternoon.

Several of the recommendations are aimed at improving customer service, while others focus on communication and supervision, according to the report, compiled by Ohio-based Management Partners Inc., which conducted the audit.

Among its recommendations are:

* Hiring an experienced litigator as deputy city attorney to handle more tort and police civil rights cases in-house.

* Implementing office procedures and training programs to improve customer service.

* Requiring a supervising attorney to be in the office at all times to ensure a quick response to legal requests.

* Purchasing comprehensive legal management software within the next few years.