The Stockton City Council plans to hire Marci Arredondo as the city’s new lawyer, in an addition to the growing list of new officials recruited to replace those who left or were ousted throughout 2025 and early this year.
The City Council voted 7-0 Tuesday to choose Arredondo, pending a background check, to be Stockton’s latest city attorney: a powerful role that involves running the city’s law office, and spearheading any legal challenges or defenses the council may launch involving residents, city employees and others.
Once she’s officially hired, Arredondo will be under a three-year contract and receive $315,000 plus benefits annually, according to a copy of the agreement. Each year, she’ll also get $7,000 to pay for professional development opportunities and conferences; $500 for vehicle expenses; and $250 for technology expenses, the contract says.
Stockton has been without a permanent city attorney since January 13, when former city attorney Lori Asuncion resigned. Asuncion had nearly two decades of experience in the city attorney’s office, according to her LinkedIn.
While neither the city nor Asuncion gave a reason for her exit, an August email from Councilmember Brando Villapudua to Asuncion, obtained under state public records law, shows Villapudua claiming that the lawyer failed to coordinate with former interim City Manager Steve Colangelo, among other criticisms. In an emailed response, Asuncion denied Villapudua’s claims.
Councilmembers Michele Padilla and Mariela Ponce supported Villapudua’s request to schedule a discussion of possibly dismissing Asuncion for a City Council meeting on Jan 13. Villapudua and Padilla asked Stockton’s city clerk not to reveal their involvement in scheduling the discussion, emails obtained under public records laws show. Asuncion resigned that day.
Now, Arredondo is positioned to join Stockton’s new chief financial officer, public works director and interim community services director among the city’s recent high-ranking hires, some brought in to fill vacancies that happened when several officials were fired or left under Colangelo.
It remains to be seen how Arredondo will tackle the city’s legal landscape, which among other challenges includes an August discrimination lawsuit by Vice Mayor Jason Lee claiming he received harsher consequences for alleged misconduct than Colangelo did. It’s unclear if that lawsuit is ongoing.
Arredondo didn’t agree to an interview. In an emailed statement, Villapudua said the council’s unanimous vote to hire her “reflects the strong confidence the entire Council has in her experience and leadership.”
Arredondo has “an impressive background,” including prior roles at the San Joaquin County District Attorney’s Office and at the Stockton City Attorney’s office, Padilla said in an emailed statement.
Mayor Christina Fugazi’s spokesman said the mayor was waiting for Arredondo’s employment checks to be finished before commenting. The remaining councilmembers didn’t respond to requests for comment.
The city has made no statement on Arredondo’s tentative hiring, and city spokesman Tony Mannor didn’t provide a description of the lawyer’s educational and professional background.
California’s official website of licensed lawyers shows Arredondo attended Lincoln Law School in Sacramento, and officially became an attorney in 2007.
That year, Arredondo joined the San Joaquin County District Attorney’s Office as a prosecutor, according to a bio of the lawyer from a law firm she later worked with, Filippi Law Firm.
In 2009, Arredondo joined Stockton’s legal team, defending city management against discrimination claims, the bio states.
At the city, Arredondo fought numerous lawsuits, court records show. They included a 2009 lawsuit by a resident who claimed Stockton police officers violated his Constitutional rights, and a 2016 case by an officer who, along with the police union, claimed the officer had been wrongly disciplined, among many other lawsuits, court records show.
In 2023, Arredondo also defended city leaders in a lawsuit by the parents of Michael Bean, a Discovery Bay resident who died in 2022 after several Stockton police officers put him in handcuffs. That lawsuit was settled last summer, court records show.
It’s unclear if Arredondo was still working in the city attorney’s office when the council voted to appoint her Tuesday. She is not listed on the office’s staff page, and Mannor didn’t immediately respond to a question about her start and end dates there.
As of last summer, Arredondo was working as an advisor for Filippi Law Firm, according to a June Instagram post by the firm. Based in Rocklin, Filippi specializes in estate planning and real estate and business law, according to its website.
The law firm didn’t return a request for the exact dates of Arredondo’s work there.