Charlotte City Council appoints interim city attorney, announces search for top lawyer
The Charlotte City Council appointed an interim city attorney and announced a search for a new top lawyer Monday, weeks after reports of City Attorney Patrick Baker’s ouster.
Council members voted 8-3 after no public debate to hire Anthony Fox on a six-month contract while conducting a search for a new permanent city attorney. Renee Johnson, Tariq Bokhari and Ed Driggs voted against the hiring.
Fox, who is not the the same person as former Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx, is a partner with the Parker Poe law firm. His tenure will begin January 1, Mayor Vi Lyles said.
Monday’s vote was not on the public agenda for the day’s City Council meeting.
The move comes after WFAE reported in October that Lyles and a majority of the Charlotte City Council voted in closed session to “end” Baker’s employment. The decision was rooted in part in Baker’s decision to fulfill a public records request from the NPR affiliate, according to WFAE’s reporting.
The City Council has held multiple closed sessions about “personnel matters” in recent weeks, including Monday afternoon, but hadn’t publicly announced any action or acknowledged Baker’s departure.
Baker, who was a regular presence at City Council meetings to provide legal guidance, has been absent from public meetings since WFAE’s story. Deputy City Attorney Lina James and other City Attorney’s Office staff have instead appeared at the dais.
Charlotte’s city attorney leads a staff of more than 40 people and is responsible for providing legal and policy representation and guidance to the mayor, City Council and city staff. It’s one of three city positions that report directly to the City Council.
Baker, 57, was hired in March 2019 after 22 years with the City of Durham. The council awarded him four raises during his tenure, bringing his salary to $291,443.64. His compensation package also included a $4,800 yearly “automobile allowance,” contributions to a 401(K) and a cell phone.
He was an “at will” employee, meaning he could be fired “at any time, with or without cause,” according to a copy of his contract obtained by the Observer through a public records request.
The contract said that if Baker was fired without cause, he would get a lump sum severance payment worth six months of his salary and a payout for any unused vacation days or sick leave. But, according to the contract, he gets no severance if he resigned or was “terminated for good cause.”
Lyles did not specify at Monday’s meeting whether Baker was terminated, resigned or retired.
Fox has “more than 30 years’ experience representing municipalities in North Carolina” as an assistant city attorney and town attorney, according to his firm’s website.
This story was originally published December 16, 2024 at 6:36 PM.
