City Attorney Salary in Oakland, California

How much does a City Attorney make in Oakland, CA?

As of April 01, 2025, the average annual salary for a City Attorney in Oakland, CA is $128,654. According to Salary.com, salaries can range from a low of $93,516 to a high of $168,253, with most professionals earning between $110,261 and $149,382.

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Salary range for an City Attorney

$110,261 to $149,382

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What is a City Attorney?

A City Attorney can be an elected or appointed position in city and municipal government in the United States. The City Attorney is the attorney representing the city or municipality. In some small towns, the City Attorney is usually a lawyer in private practice and handles only governmental matters. In other towns or cities, he or she also prosecutes minor crimes. A City Attorney generally handles all legal matters for the city, from traffic tickets to civil lawsuits to acting as a general counsel, giving legal advice for city departments. Areas of focus may include: Civil claims against...

Source: Wikipedia (as of 09/06/2019). Read more from Wikipedia

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Job Openings for City Attorney in Oakland, CA

What does a City Attorney do?

Common responsibilities of a City Attorney

Demonstrated project management skills and abilities, including the ability to determine overall plans, outline tasks, delegate responsibilities, set deadlines, get feedback, review and report results.

March 25, 2023

Requires an equivalent combination of education, training, or work experience, that provides the knowledge, skill, and ability required to perform the essential functions of the position.

May 18, 2023

Reviews the legality and/or sufficiency of contracts, bonds, bids, leases, insurance, deeds, easements, and other documents that have legal, financial and/or policy implications.

November 04, 2022

Assist or take lead in drafting contracts, deeds, ordinances, resolutions, intergovernmental agreements, property transaction documents and legal memoranda to assure legal protection for the City in conformance with applicable local, state and federal laws.

February 25, 2023

Provide day-to-day legal advice to the City Manager, City department heads and staff including the community development, growth management, engineering and infrastructure, police, fire, finance, accessibility, communications, city recorder, code enforcement, municipal court, purchasing, public works, airport, affordable housing, and economic development departments.

March 12, 2023

Prepare drafts and/or review the legality of legislation, ordinances, resolutions, administrative policies, contracts, deeds, leases and other legal documents and instruments.

April 01, 2023

Maintains active liaison with City, County, District Attorney, courts and other agencies that interact with the Police Department.

April 29, 2023

Represents the City in lawsuits before Federal and State courts and in administrative hearings, including enforcement actions.

May 02, 2023

Performs described Essential Functions and related assignments efficiently and effectively in order to produce quantity of work which consistently meets established standards and expectations.

May 07, 2023

Attend and participate in meetings for, and provide legal support and advice to, City commissions, committees and boards.

May 21, 2023

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City Attorney Salary By Experience Levels in Oakland, CA

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RELEVANT JOB EXPERIENCE

Length of experience is a pay differentiator. Those with greater experience may have an advantage in negotiating salary. For those with less experience, other factors such as education or special skills could impact your pay. Please visit Professional Salary Report for more details.

City Attorney Salary By Level of Education in Oakland, CA

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LEVEL OF EDUCATION

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Average Salary Range for City Attorney in Oakland, CA

Average Base Salary

Core compensation

110261

149382

128654

Average Total Cash Compensation

Includes base and annual incentives

113857

159035

134549

What is the average salary for City Attorney in 2025?

These charts show the average base salary (core compensation), as well as the average total cash compensation for the job of City Attorney in Oakland, CA. The base salary for City Attorney ranges from $110,261 to $149,382 with the average base salary of $128,654. The total cash compensation, which includes base, and annual incentives, can vary anywhere from $113,857 to $159,035 with the average total cash compensation of $134,549.

View Average Salary for City Attorney as table

	Average Salary	Average Salary Range
Base Salary	$128,654	$110,261 - $149,382
Bonus	$5,895	$3,595 - $9,653
Total Pay	$134,549	$113,857 - $159,035

* Base Salary represents gross income before taxes and deductions. It does not include additional pay such as benefits, bonuses, profit sharing or commissions.

* Total Pay combines base salary, bonuses, profit sharing, tips, commissions, overtime pay and other forms of cash earnings, as applicable for this job.

City Attorney Salary Near Oakland, CA

CITY, STATE	AVERAGE SALARY RANGE	COMPARE TO Oakland, CA
CITY, STATE Berkeley, CA	AVERAGE SALARY RANGE $110,261 - $149,382	COMPARE TO Oakland, CA 0%
CITY, STATE Hayward, CA	AVERAGE SALARY RANGE $110,081 - $149,137	COMPARE TO Oakland, CA
CITY, STATE Concord, CA	AVERAGE SALARY RANGE $101,359 - $137,320	COMPARE TO Oakland, CA
CITY, STATE Fremont, CA	AVERAGE SALARY RANGE $113,665 - $153,993	COMPARE TO Oakland, CA
CITY, STATE Daly City, CA	AVERAGE SALARY RANGE $112,762 - $152,770	COMPARE TO Oakland, CA
CITY, STATE Antioch, CA	AVERAGE SALARY RANGE $104,031 - $140,941	COMPARE TO Oakland, CA

See salaries for City Attorney in locations close to Oakland, CA. Pay for the same job may vary based on the location and on the location and on other factors such as the size of company, the industry, and other local conditions.

About Oakland, California

Oakland is in the eastern region of the San Francisco Bay. In 1991 the City Hall tower was at 37°48′19″N 122°16′21″W / 37.805302°N 122.272539°W / 37.805302; -122.272539 (NAD83). (The building still exists, but like the rest of the Bay Area, it has shifted northwest perhaps 0.6 meters in the last twenty years.) The United States Census Bureau says the city's total area is 78.0 square miles (202 km2), including 55.8 square miles (145 km2) of land and 22.2 square miles (57 km2) (28.48 percent) of water. Oakland's highest point is near Grizzly Peak Blvd, east of Berkeley, just over 1,760 feet (...

Source: Wikipedia (as of 04/11/2019). Read more from Wikipedia

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JOB TITLE	LOCATION	MINIMUM SALARY	MAXIMUM SALARY
JOB TITLE Assistant City Attorney	LOCATION Oakland, CA	MINIMUM SALARY $289,303	MAXIMUM SALARY $344,342
JOB TITLE Deputy City Attorney	LOCATION Oakland, CA	MINIMUM SALARY $177,089	MAXIMUM SALARY $233,718
JOB TITLE Associate City Attorney	LOCATION Oakland, CA	MINIMUM SALARY $111,347	MAXIMUM SALARY $133,980
JOB TITLE Attorney	LOCATION Oakland, CA	MINIMUM SALARY $147,718	MAXIMUM SALARY $200,781
JOB TITLE City Clerk	LOCATION Oakland, CA	MINIMUM SALARY $50,312	MAXIMUM SALARY $60,404
JOB TITLE City Assessor	LOCATION Oakland, CA	MINIMUM SALARY $84,912	MAXIMUM SALARY $97,647

The City Attorney job could be listed using titles that are not exactly the same, but actually are for the same or very similar job. Here are some job titles in Oakland, CA that might be a good fit for the type of job and salary you are looking for.

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