(Los Alamitos, 12/21/2012)  Los Alamitos City Attorney Sandra J. Levin, who has already announced she is leaving her Los Alamitos post “no later than January 31, 2013,” is also expected to resign from her post as La Habra Heights Legal Counsel at their next City Council meeting.

All this apparently is to clear Levin’s workload so she can   become the Executive Director of the LA Law Library, based on an announcement from the library this past Tuesday.

The obvious question is what impact the Law Library’s position’s availability might have  had on Levin’s decision to resign from Los Alamitos. [ad]

Levin announced her resignation from her Los Alamitos position almost seven weeks ago in the first Council Meeting after the November election.   Yet she still hasn’t announced her resignation from her La Habra Heights position, despite the Law Library Directorship is a full time position (see below).

Levin might have been involved in discussions about the LA Law Library position almost two months ago, when she announced her resignation here.  However, it would seem logical to conclude from the over two months  between her Los Al resignation and the pending La Habra Heights resignation that the Law Library post was not the primary motivation for the Los Al resignation.

However, I suspect Levin’s experiences in our town might have helped her conclude the Executive Position might be a more enjoyable assignment.

According to the LA Law Library  announcement,

LA Law Library is a global leader in providing state-of-the-art legal research and services. With nearly one million volume equivalents of Federal and State materials, a comprehensive California collection and one of the nation’s largest foreign and international law collections, LA Law Library is the second largest public law library in the United States.

Below are excerpts from the Law Library’s 12/18/2012  announcement:

LA Law Library Board of Trustees today announced that Sandra J. Levin will be joining LA Law Library as Executive Director, effective December 26, 2012, succeeding Marcia J. Koslov, who is retiring after 7 ½ years in the position.

“We are extremely pleased that Sandi will be joining the LA Law Library full time” said Susan Steinhauser, President of the Library’s Board of Trustees. “She has already distinguished herself in her role as the Law Library’s General Counsel. With a total of 25 years in the legal profession in roles ranging from named partner to elected official, she brings an extraordinary blend of experience and ability to the Library. Her legal intellect, thoughtful approach to problem-solving and planning, and interpersonal and management skills, make her the ideal leader as we expand our position as a leading legal research and community center.”

As the Law Library’s General Counsel for the last two years, Ms. Levin has had the opportunity to familiarize herself with its operations, finances and staff. She also comes to the Executive Director position with management, budget and strategic planning experience from a variety of perspectives. As a founder, owner and co-manager of her law firm, Colantuono & Levin, she is responsible for approximately 20 employees and a vibrant, successful law practice. As Mayor and Councilmember of Culver City she had firsthand experience overseeing a budget of over $80,000,000, hundreds of employees and diverse municipal operations. As both general and special counsel to numerous government agencies, she has acquired an in depth knowledge of public sector governance and operations.

“I am excited to be joining the LA Law Library at such a momentous time,” Ms. Levin said. “The accomplishments of Marcia and her staff over the last seven and half years are nothing short of remarkable. I look forward to carrying out the vision of the Board of Trustees to reach a larger segment of the public and the legal community, provide services both virtually and at our Main Library, branch and partnership locations and open our doors to a broader range of events and activities.”

Ms. Levin has been a named principal at Colantuono & Levin since 2001 and was previously a principal at the firm of Riordan & McKinzie. She received her juris doctor from Boalt Hall School of Law in 1987. Recent accolades include being named one of California’s top 25 municipal lawyers in 2012.

As I’ve said previously, Levin’s resignation was a wise and gracious decision that enables Los Alamitos to move forward more easily.  I always found her intelligent and personable one on one, and wish her all the best in her new position.

As always, your comments, diplomatically (and preferably positively) expressed are welcome!