Q&A
Collaboration with private firms and building the Law Department
1:14:52
·
4 min
Council Member Adams and Randy Mastro discuss the collaboration between the Law Department and private law firms, as well as strategies for building up the municipal workforce.
- Adams raises concerns about past programs that benefited private firms more than the Law Department
- Mastro emphasizes the importance of building up the municipal workforce while also leveraging resources from private firms
- He discusses plans to energize the Law Department by engaging in more affirmative litigation and social justice cases
Adrienne E. Adams
1:14:52
Mister Masto, in in the 19 eighties, Alan Schwartz, Mayor Kautz's 1st Corporation Council, established a program to serve as a bridge, while the modern law department was being developed.
1:15:04
This program allowed these large law firms opportunity to send their lawyers to get trial experience and other training on the city's time.
1:15:14
While the city benefited from their services in the short term, the long term benefits of that training experience and institutional knowledge went went out the door.
1:15:24
To the benefit and windfall, of private law firms.
1:15:29
How will you ensure this benefits the law department rather than lead to weakening the law department?
Randy Mastro
1:15:37
Well, I'm not a speaker.
1:15:40
I think, actually, I have enormous respect for the law department.
1:15:46
I was a consumer of the law department.
1:15:49
I I stand on the shoulders of giants, and I'm fortunate to have this opportunity.
1:15:53
But I think that the experience of lawyers in the law department who work really hard with those tens of thousands of defensive cases to have additional resources to have exposure and work with lawyers in the private sector, to get that more diverse experience, and to do that on affirmative cases where they are they are achieving civil rights and constitutional rights and social justice, where they are protecting public safety.
1:16:27
I think the lawyers in the law department are going to love that.
1:16:32
It's not going to take anything away from them Right now, we're not doing a lot of affirmative litigation.
1:16:36
We're doing some.
1:16:38
There there are cases like going after, you know, our share of the opioid crisis money, like some tenants rights cases for slumlords.
1:16:46
We need to do many more of those.
1:16:49
I but they are few and far between.
1:16:52
I want to see us do a lot of that kind of work.
1:16:57
And if we do a lot of that kind of work, I think the people in the law department will not only be energized and inspired by the work, they will want to work with the broader team to achieve those objectives.
1:17:09
It's remarkably inspiring.
1:17:11
We did this when I was in the civil division at the US attorney's office and we brought cases against organized crime.
1:17:17
We brought cases against drug dealers.
1:17:19
We brought cases for consumer protection.
1:17:22
You're gonna hear from some of my former colleagues.
1:17:24
We did groundbreaking work in so many of these areas, and it just jazzed us.
1:17:28
It was inspiring.
1:17:30
And we worked with outside counsel whenever we could to expand the team because we were achieving social justice and public safety.
1:17:39
That's what I intend to do.
Adrienne E. Adams
1:17:40
Mister Mastro, why would your enthusiasm though not be more towards building up the municipal workforce?
Randy Mastro
1:17:48
It is.
1:17:49
It is your honor.
1:17:51
I think we have to make it a major priority, and I have said this, and I said it to you.
1:17:56
We have to we have to replenish the ranks.
1:17:58
We have COVID took a heavy toll.
1:18:00
We have to build up the law department again.
1:18:02
There have been cuts and things like that.
1:18:05
It's extremely important.
1:18:06
But I think with a law department that does both the defensive cases, which is so much of its docket right now, and the opportunity to achieve social justice and to advance public safety, I think the people in the law department are going to love that of I wanna build up the municipal workforce.
1:18:27
I wanna come back to public service for all the right reasons to do good, to improve people's lives, to use the law department, and the power of the law to achieve social justice and public safety ends.
1:18:40
If we do that, my god.
1:18:42
The people in the law department are gonna love that.
1:18:45
I am a mentor.
1:18:46
I am a trainer.
1:18:47
I am a leader.
1:18:47
I'm an inspire.
1:18:49
I've led large law firms.
1:18:51
I've led large organizations.
1:18:53
And Priority number 1 is to have the best law department to recruit at every level to bring in the best people.
1:19:01
That's priority number 1, and you do that because the work is so compelling.
Adrienne E. Adams
1:19:08
Thank you.
1:19:09
I I just wanted to note that the gallery was chuckling at at your reference to me as Euronor.
1:19:14
I happen to like it.
Randy Mastro
1:19:17
Yeah.
1:19:18
K.
1:19:18
Then Euronor, I will continue doing it for as long as I can.
1:19:23
Thanks,
Adrienne E. Adams
1:19:23
bud.