We are thrilled to celebrate the City of Palo Alto City Council’s unanimous selection of Chris Jensen to be their new City Attorney effective March 30.
“Chris is an outstanding attorney who brings a breadth and depth of legal experience serving public agencies, including as City Attorney,” stated Vicki Veenker, Palo Alto’s mayor upon announcing the news. She added “Thank you to my Council colleagues for working through a rigorous process reviewing an exceptional applicant pool to select an attorney with a demonstrated track record of resolving complex, high stakes matters that will serve Palo Alto well.”
During his 21-year career, Chris has worked for the cities of Berkeley and Cupertino as well as in private practice. As Assistant City Attorney with Berkeley, Chris worked on land issue issues and major policy projects, including environmental matters serving as the lead attorney advising the City regarding restrictions on natural gas in new construction and successfully defending it in federal district court. While City Attorney with Cupertino, he led resolution of a long-standing dispute with a local developer that resulted in projected payments of approximately $40 million and negotiated a settlement with the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration, avoiding an estimated $75 million in liability.
Our candidate graduated from Stanford Law School and holds a master’s degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a bachelor’s degree from UC San Diego.
As Palo Alto’s chief legal counsel, Chris will lead a team of 12 professionals and manage a departmental budget of approximately $5 million.
Palo Alto (pop. 68,000) is regarded as the birthplace of Silicon Valley and recognized worldwide as a leader in cutting-edge technology, medicine, and green innovation.
Recruiters: Suzanne Mason and Teri Black
