Chapin Mayor Bill Mitchell Jr.’s authority to unilaterally hire and direct a town attorney has been challenged by the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office, which stated on August 6 that state law indicates this responsibility rests with the entire town council. This guidance comes amid weeks of escalating disputes within the Chapin Town Council, culminating in a rescheduled meeting for Monday, August 31, to specifically address the employment of attorneys.
The Attorney General’s Office response, though not a formal opinion, was prompted by an August 3 letter from Chapin Town Councilwoman and Mayor Pro Tem Ainslee Bost. Bost’s letter detailed what she described as unprecedented instability in the town’s legal representation over the past eight months, with four municipal attorneys allegedly terminated or resigned after being engaged by the Mayor without council approval. These concerns were also raised publicly during a July 21 council meeting, where council members expressed a lack of willingness from attorneys to work with the town due to the Mayor’s reputation, leading to a vote of no confidence against Mayor Mitchell.
Despite the ongoing disagreements, Mayor Mitchell announced the hiring of Georgia-based attorney Bubba Samuels three days after Bost sent her letter. Council members have since moved to limit what Mitchell asserted as his sole authority, prompting threats of legal action from the Mayor. Bost’s letter also alleged that Mayor Mitchell instructed town employees not to communicate with council members without his knowledge, an accusation also brought up at the July 21 meeting. She argued this lack of transparency hinders the council’s ability to perform its legislative, budgetary, and oversight duties.
The Attorney General’s Office, in its August 6 response, cited Title 5 of South Carolina law, which assigns the responsibility of electing or appointing a municipal attorney to the entire town council, regardless of the specific municipal government structure. While Title 5 grants the mayor supervisory authority over city employees in a mayor-council government, it exempts the hiring and direction of a town attorney from this purview. Assistant Attorney General David Leggett encouraged collaborative resolution between the Mayor and Town Council, noting that a functioning government serves the public’s best interest.
Chapin Town Council gave final approval on August 20 to ordinances designed to clarify its ability to create and organize departments, hire and direct attorneys, and appoint liaisons between the council and legal counsel. Mayor Mitchell maintains that his most recent hire, the Samuels firm, was for a narrow scope concerning utility laws and not a general town attorney, a distinction he believes falls outside council’s authority. However, Councilwoman Bost disputes this, asserting that all attorneys fall under the council’s responsibility. The upcoming August 31 council meeting is also expected to address a lawsuit filed by Lexington County regarding Mayor Mitchell’s attempts to block the county’s nearly $20 million land sale of the vacant Chapin Technology Park.
