Dover City Council named a new deputy solicitor earlier this month, but council members were not in full agreement on the choice.
Councilmen Roy Sudler Jr. and Brian Lewis voted against Liam Gallagher’s appointment on August 12.
Liam Gallagher has been a practicing attorney for a year and a half and works for Schmittinger & Rodriguez, the same law firm as city solicitor Nicholas Rodriguez. This has been common practice in Dover.
Sudler said just because it’s been done this way in the past doesn’t mean it’s best practice.
“It's always a good idea to have at least two legal opinions,” Sudler said. “I want to make sure that that second opinion is independent from the first organization or legal agency.”
Council president David Anderson said in a memorandum to members of council, this practice is more time and cost efficient.
City code says the deputy city solicitor must be an attorney in Delaware and is elected by council. Sudler argues “elected” implies Council must see several candidates, which they did not this time around.
“Anytime that you're getting paid by the taxpayers' dollars, whether you're the solicitor or deputy solicitor, people should be able to compete for that job,” Sudler said. “That's it, that’s just the bottom line.”
