Scotch Plains Council Welcomes New Township Attorney

Scotch Plains' mayor and council officially appointed the township's new municipal attorney Tuesday night.

Jeffrey Lehrer has replaced Brian Levine, who served his last day on Feb. 28. Rumors have swirled in town since the decision was made to replace Levine with Lehrer, but Mayor Nancy Malool told Patch Tuesday that the decision was a "simple council appointment that turned into much more."

"Unfortunately it was a political issue, and I wish it hadn't been," she said. "We're starting fresh. We've got a new manager, a new council. I wanted someone who didn't have any ties to anyone."

Levine began his service as township attorney in 2001 under former Mayor Martin Marks. When Malool took office in 2009, she said she wasn't ready to make a new appointment. Now with a year under her belt, she said it felt like the time to bring someone new on board. 

"I don't want to be seen as someone that's smearing Brian Levine," she said. "It's not about his character or qualifications. It's about the interaction between the council and attorney. I wanted someone with more municipal experience. Jeff lives here, he has experience in this town, I know him, I trust him, and that's what it comes down to."

Malool said any notion that the appointment was done for her own professional gain is "absolutely untrue."

The majority of the council backed Malool's decision, but Councilman Jeffrey Strauss voted against the appointment Tuesday, citing his displeasure with the circumstances under which Levine was removed.

Strauss said that the council had several spirited debates about the issue, but that he ultimately felt the reasons given for not reappointing Levine were insufficient.

"This is no reflection on Mr. Lehrer," Strauss said. "I'm voting against this for those reasons, for my displeasure with the process."

At Levine's final council meeting on Feb. 16, former council members, former Mayor Martin Marks and former longtime manager Tom Atkins all came out to express their support for his service to the township.

"Levine is the best township attorney I've ever worked with," Atkins said at the time. "He was there for the township residents, and I appreciate that."

Levine has now moved on to serve as municipal attorney in Mount Olive, but Scotch Plains is retaining his services long enough to complete certain litigation issues that he was already working on with the township. The council passed a resolution Tuesday to hire him for special counsel in these situations at a rate of $200 per hour for litigation matters and $150 per hour for non-litigation issues.

Lehrer is being funded through the 2010 municipal budget, but it's not yet known how much he will make.

He is a partner in DiFrancesco, Bateman, Coley, Yospin, Kunzman, Davis & Lehrer, P.C., the Warren-based firm that's headed by former state Senate President and acting governor Donald DiFrancesco. DiFrancesco, also a former Scotch Plains resident, served as township attorney from 1983 to 1999. Lehrer served as assistant attorney from 1996 to 1998 and most recently as Scotch Plains' planning board attorney.

During his gubernatorial race in 2001, allegations arose that DiFrancesco had violated legal-ethical rules during his term as Scotch Plains attorney. Malool emphasized Tuesday night that it would be wrong for anyone to judge Lehrer in light of those accusations against his law partner.

"It's unfair to malign the firm," Malool said. "I think it's unfair to Jeff to drag him down for what happened to Don when he was running for political office."

This is not Lehrer's first municipal attorney role. He also previously served as municipal attorney in Edison and Bedminster. In addition to his new role in Scotch Plains, he was also appointed township attorney in Springfield in January.

When asked how he will juggle the role of being township attorney in both towns, Lehrer said: "I just work out my schedule to make sure it works. It's what I do."

Lehrer will serve the township attorney until the end of this year, when his term will be up for reappointment again.

After being sworn in by the municipal manager and clerk on Tuesday night, Lehrer told the council he was ready to serve.

"I've lived in Scotch Plains about eight years and I love this community," he said. "I know I have big shoes to fill, and I'm up for the challenge."