The Seattle City Attorney is a non-partisan elected official in

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region ...

whose job is to "prosecute people for misdemeanor offenses, defend the city against lawsuits, and gives legal advice to the city". Since 2022, the position has been held by

Ann Davison Ann Davison (5 June 1913 – 12 May 1992) was an author and sailor. At the age of 39, she was the first woman to single-handedly sail the Atlantic Ocean. She departed Plymouth, England in her 23-foot boat ''Felicity Ann'' on 18 May 1952. Early ...

Departmental Organization

The

City Attorney A city attorney is a position in city and municipal government in the United States. The city attorney is the attorney representing the municipality. Unlike a district attorney or public defender, who usually handles criminal cases, a city att ...

is the head of the Seattle City Law Department, a branch of the Seattle Municipal Government, and the fourth-largest public law office in

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

. There are approximately 90 staff attorneys and 65 support staff. They are split between four divisions: *

Civil Civil may refer to: *Civic virtue, or civility *Civil action, or lawsuit * Civil affairs *Civil and political rights *Civil disobedience *Civil engineering *Civil (journalism), a platform for independent journalism *Civilian, someone not a membe ...

: torts (claims), land use, environmental protection, employment, contracts & utilities, government affairs, and regulatory enforcement & economic justice * Criminal: traffic infractions, misdemeanors, and gross misdemeanors *Administration: human resources, information technology, budgeting, accounting, internships/externships (approximately 35 law students per year) *Precinct Liaison (with the

Seattle Police Department The Seattle Police Department (SPD) is the principal law enforcement agency of the city of Seattle, Washington, United States, except for the campus of the University of Washington, which is under the responsibility of its own police department ...

): North, South, East, Southwest, Vice/Narcotics The City Attorney receives a salary of $145,000 per year, making them only the 265th highest paid municipal employee (as of 2012). The Law Department began issuing a digital newsletter in 2011.

List of City Attorneys

, 2022–present *

Pete Holmes Peter Benedict Holmes (born March 30, 1979) is an American comedian, actor, writer, producer, and podcaster. Musings on spirituality and religion are frequent themes in his works. Holmes gained recognition in the early 2010s as a stand-up comic, ...

, 2010–2022 * Tom Carr, 2002–2009 * Mark Sidran, 1990–2002 *Douglas Jewett, 1978–1989Corporation Counsel/City Attorney
/ref> *John Harris, 1974–1977
/ref> *A.L. Newbould, 1963–1973 *A.C. Van Soelen, 1930–1963 *Thomas Kennedy, 1924–1930 *Walter F. Meier, 1918–1923

References

External links

Official Website Washington (state) city attorneys Government of Seattle {{Washington-stub