City Attorney: Mona Ebrahimi

The City Council appointed Mona Ebrahimi, through the law firm of Kronick, Moskovitz, Tiedemann & Girard ("KMTG"), as City Attorney under a legal services agreement between the City and KMTG.

Mona is an AV rated attorney who enjoys practicing municipal law and the opportunity to see her work come to fruition in the communities she represents. As City Attorney to the City of Placerville, City of Rio Vista and the Town of Atherton, as well as General Counsel to the Amador Transportation Commission and Suisun/Solano Water Authority, she provides general counsel services in a broad range of municipal and public law matters.

Legal Experience

Mona is skilled in addressing the variety of legal issues that challenge public agencies, for example she may be
navigating the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) for a land use project one day, and representing a police
officer in court the next day. She has successfully opposed dozens of Pitchess motions in court and helped her clients
achieve victories in cases brought pursuant to the CEQA. Outside the courtroom setting, Mona advocates for her city
clients in administrative hearings. She regularly attends City Council and Planning Commission meetings and advises
those bodies to ensure compliance with the Brown Act and Conflicts of Interest Laws. She also is a certified mediator
experienced in alternative dispute resolution, offering clients a cost-effective, non-litigation option for resolving
conflicts. Her areas of practice include:
• Public contracts review, drafting and competitive bidding
• Advising and responding to requests about local governance, such as open meeting laws, the Brown Act, Public
records laws, including the Public Records Act and Pitchess laws, Election law, and Conflicts of Interest
• California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and CEQA litigation
• Development agreements review, drafting and negotiation
• Joint Power Authorities (JPAs)
• Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO)
• Land use
• Prevailing wage issues
• Property development (for commercial projects, residential, subdivisions and master-planned communities)
• Subdivision Map Act

While in law school, she clerked for the United States Attorney’s Office, San Diego County, where she interviewed
witnesses and drafted interrogatories, composed legal memorandums, drafted motions, conducted research, and
drafted responses to torts claims. She also served as a judicial extern for the Superior Court of San Diego where she
conducted criminal legal research and drafted legal memorandums for judges. During this time, she also served as a
pro bono intern with the Legal Aid Society of San Diego, assisting indigent clients with unlawful detainer complaints.

Practice Examples

• Mona has reviewed and provided legal advice on dozens of environmental documents. She has also defended cities
in CEQA litigation.
• Mona is experienced in negotiating and drafting development agreements for municipalities, having handled
numerous agreements between private entities and cities for new and infill development.
• As a certified mediator, Mona has mediated cases in small claims court and juvenile hall, handling conflicts between
individuals, families, privately owned companies and juvenile hall minors. While in undergraduate school, she also mediated conflicts between student groups, faculty, and administration.

Professional Activities & Accomplishments

Mona believes strongly in serving the community. She currently fulfills that goal by volunteering at local non-profit
organizations. Her professional activities and affiliations include:
• Martindale-Hubbell AV Rated Attorney
• Best Lawyers® 2021 Municipal Law “Lawyer of the Year” in Sacramento
• The Best Lawyers in America, Environmental Law, Land Use and Zoning Law, Municipal Law (2021, 2022)
• Northern California Super Lawyer, Rising Star (2012-2021)
• Top Lawyers, Sacramento Magazine (2016-2021)
• Best of the Bar, Sacramento Business Journal (2018)
• Top 100 Professionals Under 40 (2013)
• Adjunct Professor, University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law
• Member, Sacramento County Bar Association
• Member, Association of Environmental Professionals
• Member, Metro Chamber’s Leadership Sacramento Class of 2011
• California State Bar #236550

Publications & Speaking Engagements

• Author, “Discharge of Public Employee Who Sent Scathing Email Criticizing His Superiors Did Not Violate Employees
Free Speech Rights,” California Special District Magazine, Vol. 4, Issue 6, Nov-Dec 2010
• Author, “Legal Uncertainty: Local Regulation of Medical Marijuana Collectives,” California Land Use Law & Policy
Reporter, April 2010
• Contributing Author, CEB’s California Land Use Practice, section on vested rights
• Contributing Author, LOCC’s Municipal Law Handbook, section on Government Claims Act
• Provides several AB 1234, Conflicts of Interest, Public Records Act and Brown Act presentations annually to special
districts, cities, and to members of CSDA and SACRS

Academic Background

J.D. California Western School of Law, San Diego, 2004
• Cum Laude
• American Jurisprudence Award recipient in Property Law, Advanced Mediation, Advanced Legal Research and
Writing, Negotiation, and Child Advocacy
• Academic Achievement Scholarship
• Dean’s Honor List, 2003 and 2004
• Commencement Speaker, 2004
• Honors Instructor, Legal Research and Writing, 2004

B.A. University of California, Davis, 2002