The Central Otago District Council is recruiting an in-house general counsel, or lawyer, to join its workforce, but that will not remove the need for outside legal advice.
Group manager business support Saskia Righarts said the council did not have an in-house general counsel to provide legal advice but used several legal firms in Central Otago and Dunedin.
Many councils, including the Queenstown District Council and Dunedin City Council, employ their own legal staff.
Dr Righarts said the council had been using commercial law firms in Central Otago and Dunedin for legal advice.
The general counsel would review policies and commercial contracts and act as a clearing house prior to seeking specialist legal advice.
While the council was recruiting the final salary package would not be revealed, but it had been included in the current annual plan, she said.
In the past three years, the council had spent $1,355,177.86 on legal advice — $427,231.83 in 2022, $461,502.47 in 2023 and $466,443.56 in 2024.
Central Otago Mayor Tim Cadogan said during the annual plan submissions one of the things people requested was that the council stopped spending money on consultants.
The cost of using legal firms for advice fell under the consultants budget and was paid at law-firm rates, he said.
