Willoughby Hills law director dispute: Judge rules ordinances are ‘illegal’

Willoughby Hills Mayor Robert Weger testifies during a March 5 hearing in Lake County Common Pleas Court. Weger sued City Council over an ongoing law director controversy. Council filed a counterclaim. The case is being heard by retired Geauga County Common Pleas Judge David L. Fuhry. News-Herald file

By Chad Felton, The News-Herald

Posted: 04/02/18, 3:27 PM EDT | Updated: 4 hrs ago

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The contentious issue over who serves as the law director in Willoughby Hills has, for the moment, concluded, as the city is now without anyone holding the position, temporary or otherwise, following a ruling by a Lake County Common Pleas Court sitting judge.

Mayor Robert Weger and a majority of City Council members have been engaged in an ongoing dispute over who holds the title of acting law director since longtime Law Director Thomas Lobe resigned in September.

In October, Weger filed a lawsuit claiming City Prosecutor Michael Germano holds the job, while Council filed a counterclaim stating attorney Stephen L. Byron is legally acting law director.

Sitting Judge David L. Fuhry ruled April 2 that two ordinances passed by Council are “illegal, unenforceable, and null and void.”

The first ordinance was one allowing Council to hire Byron as law director in an “improper” executive session in which Byron was allowed to provide legal advice for his own appointment.

Weger, who also serves as safety director, was unable to attend the Sept. 28 Council meeting when the session took place as he was attending to two police officers who were injured during a shooting at an auto dealership.

The second involved a January ordinance that was passed to hire an outside law firm as special counsel relating to the collective bargaining dispute and a possible malpractice claim against Lobe.

The decision now forces Weger and Council to once more attempt to come to a consensus to hire the department head. The Willoughby Hills charter holds that four members of Council and the mayor must work together to appoint a candidate to the position.

The court also denied the counterclaims against Weger and will set the matter for a hearing to determine the amount of legal fees and expenses to which Weger is entitled.

Weger had previously stated that Byron’s fee — $10,000 a month (and $250 an hour for anything extra) — was a problem. Councilman David M. Fiebig, during a special meeting of Council March 29, asked Weger directly if he intended to pay Byron for his service; Weger did not answer.

“You should sign that check that’s on your desk,” Fiebig said, adding Weger should work with Council in bringing someone forward to be named law director. “Stalemate is not the answer.”

It was hailed as a victory for Weger by his attorney, Joseph “Randy” Klammer, but City Councilman John Plecnik said Fuhry’s ruling essentially states that neither Council nor the mayor have the authority to appoint an acting law director or department head.

“I think it’s a ruling that doesn’t make sense for that reason,” Plecnik added. “This brings us back to the mayor’s failure to bring anyone that a majority of Council can confirm. In the interim, the judge’s opinion says Council can hire attorneys to do discrete tasks. So while we are not able under this holding to hire an attorney as the acting law director, we can continue to hire attorneys to handle the city’s business until the mayor does his job and brings forward somebody that Council can confirm.

“I certainly call on the mayor to submit a name that we can have consensus on and until then, Council will do as the judge ordered.”

Conversely, Klammer said Fuhry’s decision rejected every “nonsense argument” presented by Byron, and Plecnik and his colleagues.

“I hope the residents see that if the mayor had not asked the court for help, Council would still have been acting on ordinances the court declared illegal, null and void, from the beginning. Mayor Weger did not create this problem.

“The ordinances were circulated and passed,” Klammer said. “Council created a position of acting law director and wanted to fill it with Byron. This was done with no notice to the public, the action was failed to be put on the agenda, and with no notification to Mayor Weger.”

“It’s unfortunate that we had to go to court to make Plecnik, (Council President Nancy) Fellows and other Council members follow the charter’s rules,” Weger said. “I hope the decision, in my favor, serves to unite council with administration so that we can move forward to do the best for our residents.”

Plecnik said Council will most likely appeal.