STATEMENT FROM PATERSON MAYOR ANDRE SAYEGH ON CORPORATION COUNSEL KHALIFAH SHABAZZ-CHARLES

“It is with sadness that I announce the resignation of Corporation Counsel Khalifah Shabazz-Charles.  I am very grateful that just over a year ago, Khalifah joined my Administration to lend her extensive expertise in municipal government and serve as director of our law department. Knowing she would only be with us a short time, I asked her to share her experience, help our team hit the ground running, and provide high-quality counsel to both the Administration and City Council. At this, she did an outstanding job.

Khalifah brought tremendous value to rethinking how we engage outside counsel, prepare the City for contract negotiations, manage personnel matters, and represent the City of Paterson in court and in arbitrations. She has helped reduce legal costs by over 10% and has set a high standard for aggressively defending claims against the City. Khalifah has also been an invaluable member of my core team of advisors and I will miss her counsel. I wish Khalifah all the best in her future endeavors and thank her husband Osner and son Justice for sharing her with us this past year.

I will soon welcome Farrah Irving as new Corporation Counsel for the City of Paterson.  A native Patersonian, Farrah currently serves as Chief Municipal Prosecutor and Assistant Township Attorney in Irvington, New Jersey, where she prosecutes cases at the Municipal Court while also directing the administrative operations of the Prosecutor’s Office. Prior to her work in Irvington, Farrah also served as Township Attorney in Hillside, where she managed the Law Department as Director and was Chief Legal Counsel. A graduate of The David A. Clarke School of Law in Washington, DC, Farrah is a partner in the Law Firm of Irving and Mendenhall. Farrah lives in Paterson with her husband Adrian. I welcome Farrah to the team and look forward to her bringing her unique style and calm confidence to the role of Law Director.

Farrah will begin in the law department on August 5 and will overlap with Khalifah for one week to ensure a smooth transition.”

Corporation Counsel Khalifah Shabazz-Charles:

“It has been an honor and privilege working with Mayor Sayegh, the City Council, and the rest of the team over the past year.  In particular, I would like to thank the Mayor for selecting me to play such a vital role during his first year in office and I am hopeful that my input and experience provided value to the team. As a life-long resident of Paterson, it was extremely gratifying to be able to contribute my legal knowledge toward the success of the city I love.”