The Town of Loxahatchee Groves will be parting ways with its current legal counsel after Town Attorney Glen Torcivia announced his resignation at the Tuesday, June 3 meeting of the Loxahatchee Groves Town Council.
Rather than looking for a new law firm, the town might consider hiring an in-house legal counsel.
The West Palm Beach-based law firm of Torcivia, Donlon, Goddeau & Rubin P.A. has been the town’s legal counsel since 2019.
Torcivia, who attended the meeting remotely, made his announcement during an item placed on the agenda to “discuss the town attorney’s contract and analysis of legal fees.” It was added to the agenda last month by Councilwoman Phillis Maniglia.
The analysis provided by Torcivia did note that over the past five years, legal fees paid to his firm by the town have trended upward from just under $200,000 a year to approximately $400,000 a year.
However, he did note in the report that the town has been using more legal services than previously, as it has tried to tackle a backlog of work. The report did provide suggestions on how to lower costs and the workload, but that got pushed to the wayside by Torcivia’s announcement.
“It has been a pleasure to represent the town these past few years, but at this point, we will be providing you with the required 30 days’ notice that we will be resigning as the town attorney,” Torcivia said. “We are certainly willing to continue to serve for the period of time necessary for you to determine the course you want to take to obtain a new town attorney, whether it’s going in-house or seeking proposals.”
He also promised to provide whatever services are necessary to provide a smooth transition.
Mayor Anita Kane noted that she brought up the possibility of hiring an in-house attorney with a paralegal last year.
“I said then, and I still think now, that it will save the town a significant amount in legal fees,” Kane said. “We can use a larger firm to do the large projects and the heavy lifting.”
The council directed town staff to prepare a presentation on the options available to be discussed at the next regular meeting, which is scheduled for Tuesday, July 1.
“Thank you for your service, Mr. Torcivia,” Kane said. “Sorry that we have had some rough roads recently.”
“We have had a lot of good times, too,” Torcivia replied. “And we accomplished a lot.”
Torcivia’s decision came a month after a hastily called special meeting where Kane and the attorney clashed over how to handle a series of anonymous allegations against the town.
