Scott DickeyPartnert: 415.678-3827 ExperienceMr. Dickey represents public-entity and public interest clients in litigation involving a wide range of subjects including constitutional, administrative, and election law. Mr. Dickey advises clients on a broad range of government law matters (including open meeting laws, governmental ethics, and constitutional matters), as well as election and tax issues. Mr. Dickey is the General Counsel to the San Francisco Community College District, where he works closely with administration, faculty, and the Board of Trustees. Mr. Dickey also serves as the Chief Deputy City Attorney for Richmond, California, where he supervises a staff of six Assistant City Attorneys. In that capacity, Mr. Dickey frequently advises the mayor and city council, the city manager, and numerous department heads. Mr. Dickey also frequently attends city council and committee meetings as counsel. Mr. Dickey also is an experienced appellate advocate. He has been lead counsel on more than a dozen appellate matters involving the constitutionality of state and local laws and regulations, tax allocation, election law, the Brown Act, and due process and takings claims. Mr. Dickey has appeared before the California Supreme Court, the First, Second, and Third District Courts of Appeal, and the Ninth Circuit. His published decisions include Edelstein v. City and County of San Francisco (2002) 29 Cal.4th 164 (City charter section regarding runoff elections is constitutional; overruling Canaan v. Abdelnour (1985) 40 Cal.3d 703), Chafee v. San Francisco Public Library Commission (2004) 115 Cal.App.4th 161 (State and local public meeting laws permit continuance of hearings without first providing a general public comment period), Cobb v. S.F. Rent Board (2002) 98 Cal.App.4th 345 (Landlord may waive right to uncontrolled rent increase under Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act), and Danekas v. S.F. Rent Board (2001) 95 Cal.App.4th 638 (Rent Ordinance provisions allowing tenants to replace outgoing roommates are constitutional and do not illegally delegate legislative authority to Rent Board). Mr. Dickey also successfully defended the allocation of jet fuel sales tax revenue to the City and County of San Francisco in County of San Mateo v. State Board of Equalization, et al. (2002) 2002 WL 1204451. Mr. Dickey has also handled many dozens of administrative and traditional writ actions during his career. Mr. Dickey is a member of the Executive Committee for the Public Law Section of the State Bar of California, which works to promote the practice of public law in California. Mr. Dickey also is an associate editor for the Public Law Journal, the State Bar’s public law magazine. Mr. Dickey is a member of the Editorial Board for the League of California Cities’ Municipal Law Handbook. He is Chapter Chair for the Open Meetings and Ethics chapter of that treatise. In 2010, Superlawyers designated Mr. Dickey as a “Rising Star” in Northern California Government/Cities/Municipalities law. Related ExperiencePrior to joining Renne Sloan Holtzman Sakai, Mr. Dickey served as a Deputy City Attorney for eight years in the San Francisco City Attorney’s Office, where he was a member of the General Government Team and the Government Litigation Team. There, he provided advice to San Francisco’s Mayor, Board of Supervisors, and the 24 other policy-making departments within the City. Mr. Dickey also participated in sensitive and complex litigation involving challenges to city laws, policies, and decisions. While with the City Attorney’s Office, Mr. Dickey served as litigation counsel to the Rent Board and general counsel to the County Clerk and to the Relocation Appeals Board. He also drafted legislation on behalf of City departments and members of the Board of Supervisors. MembershipsCalifornia Political Attorneys’ Association Bay Area City Attorneys’ Association Contra Costa City Attorneys’ Association Bar Association of San Francisco Recent PublicationsLitigation and Case Law Update, Public Law Journal, Vol. 33, No 1, Winter 2010 Litigation and Case Law Update, Public Law Journal, Vol. 33, No 2, Spring 2010 Litigation and Case Law Update, Public Law Journal, Vol. 33, No 3, Summer 2010 Litigation and Case Law Update, Public Law Journal, Vol. 33, No 4, Fall 2010 Litigation and Case Law Update, Public Law Journal, Vol. 34, No 1, Winter 2011 Declarations of Fiscal Emergency: A Resurging Option for Public Entities Attempting to Deal with the Current Economic Climate, Public Law Journal, Vol. 34, No 1, Winter 2011 (with Jon Holtzman and Steve Cikes) Litigation and Case Law Update, Public Law Journal, Vol. 34, No 2, Spring 2011 Litigation and Case Law Update, Public Law Journal, Vol. 34, No 3, Summer 2011 Litigation and Case Law Update, Public Law Journal, Vol. 33, No 4, Fall 2011 HonorsMember, Public Law Section Executive Committee Appointed by the City Attorney’s Department of the League of California Cities to the Editorial Board of the Municipal Law Handbook, the CEB’s definitive treatise on public-sector legal issues. Mr. Dickey is the Chapter Chair of the Open Government and Ethics chapter of that treatise 2010 Superlawyers “Rising Star” for Government/Cities/Municipalities Law |
Practice AreasAppeals & Writs EducationUniversity of San Francisco School of Law, J.D. University of California, Berkeley, B.A. Bar AdmissionsCalifornia |
