Galloway Township Names Mike Fitzgerald New Solicitor

Michael J. Fitzgerald, Esquire was unanimously appointed as the new Solicitor for Galloway Township following an executive session in which five candidates were interviewed at the council meeting on Tuesday night, July 24.

Fitzgerald, the current Planning Board Attorney for the township, will make $135 an hour, but there will be no retainer fee. Former Solicitor , who left his position after being nominated to the State Superior Court by Gov. Chris Christie, made $125 an hour, but worked on a $30,000 retainer fee.

“(Fitzgerald) was one of the cheapest attorneys who applied for the job,” Mayor Don Purdy said following the announcement that followed a nearly two-hour executive session. “He has a proven track record. He’s cleared multiple hurdles in Galloway Township in past years, and he’s remained loyal to his clients.”

“Every person we interviewed was extremely qualified,” Deputy Mayor Tony Coppola said. “We were looking for a person with unchallenged integrity and all the candidates were excellent in their own way.”

He is serving his second term as Planning Board Solicitor. His first was from 1982-87, and he returned in 2004.

In addition to Galloway Planning Board, Fitzgerald currently serves as solicitor for:

• Folsom, since 1999;
• Absecon Planning Board, since 1982;
• Port Republic Planning Board, since 1980;
• Linwood Zoning Board of Adjustment, since 2008;
• Hamilton Township Zoning Board of Adjustment (alternate solicitor); and
• Upper Township Fire District No. 5 (assistant solicitor) since 1985.

He previously served as solicitor for:

• Northfield Board of Education, 1981-85;
• Pleasantville Housing Authority, 1986-89;
• Folsom Zoning Board of Adjustment, 1980-85;
• Folsom Planning Board, 1985-99;
• Hamilton Township Planning Board (assistant solicitor), 1991-94;
• Linwood Planning Board (alternate solicitor), 1991-2007; and
• Northfield Assistant Solicitor, 1995-2000.

“With all the boards he’s kept, if he wasn’t on top of his game, municipalities would’ve never kept him,” Purdy said.

Fitzgerald takes over a position that has been the subject of much scrutiny over the past year. In his final year as Solicitor, Blee found himself dealing with a much higher than normal volume of Open Public Records Act (OPRA) requests. Because the township consulted him frequently before releasing information to the public, the township spent a lot to get these requests filled. This led to brief consideration by council to use an “in-house” attorney.

Fitzgerald is a principal in the Fitzgerald, McGroarty and Malinsky law firm, based in Linwood. He lives in Northfield with a wife and a daughter and graduated magna cum laude with college honors from Rutgers University in 1974 with a dual degree in History and Political Science, according to his resume. He earned his Masters Degree in government and his Juris Doctor degree from Rutgers at the same time, according to his resume.

He is a member of the Atlantic County Bar Association, and is a member of the New Jersey Institute of Local Government Attorneys. He’s been published in the Local Government Law Review.

He’s served as Assistant Counsel to New Jersey Planning Officials, which is an affiliate of the State League of Municipalities, and is a lecturer for the group’s programs on planning and zoning issues for board members.

In 2001, he received the Achievement in Planning Award from the New Jersey Planning Officials, and he has served as local counsel for the Atlantic County Chapter of the American Red Cross.

He is serving in his second term on the State Supreme Court District 1 Ethics Committee. He investigates allegations of misconduct by attorneys, and when necessary, prosecutes those who are found guilty of the crime.

He has an array of experience in a variety of fields, and has knowledge on a variety of diverse ordinances.

“He’s good about giving good counsel,” Councilman Brian Tyrrell said. “He knows how to navigate the straight and narrow.