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Meet Arizona City Attorney Association (ACAA) President, Michael Bailey
Michael D. Bailey has practiced in the area of public law since 2000. He is licensed to practice law in Arizona and California. He has served as the city attorney for the cities of
Glendale and Surprise. Michael is active in the Arizona City Attorneys Association and currently serves as its president.
Tell us a little about your background, and where you were educated.
I am an Arizona transplant, born and raised in Utah and educated in California. I attended Chapman University in Orange, California where I obtained a bachelor's degree in business
administration. Upon graduation and after exploring opportunities in the marketing field, including owning a site location services firm, I went to law school. In 1999, I graduated
from the Chapman University, Fowler School of Law. During my tenure as an assistant city attorney with the City of Glendale, in an effort to more thoroughly understand municipal
operations to better advise the city on legal matters, I obtained a Master of Public Administration from American Public University.
What is your background and experience in municipal law?
I began my career in public service in California at the Law Offices of Susan M. Trager, a boutique firm representing small landowners, cities and special districts on matters regarding
water law, water rights, public law and endangered species law. In 2001, I relocated to Arizona and accepted the position of tax and licensing manager for the City of Glendale. I later
joined the Glendale City Attorney's Office as an assistant city attorney. In 2007, I was appointed as the city attorney for the City of Surprise, and in 2013, I was appointed the city
attorney for the City of Glendale. I remain the city attorney for Glendale.
What are your goals and plans for the ACAA in the next year?
I want to continue the growth and development of the association that began with my predecessors. I aim to strengthen the annual meeting to provide a venue for municipal attorneys to
obtain all mandatory continuing legal education requirements. In doing so, the intent is to encourage all cities to send their entire legal departments to the conference.
Additionally, the diversity of issues faced by a city attorney can be challenging and the resolution of those issues can sometimes be thankless. I want to develop a recognition program
that recognizes the accomplishments of municipal attorneys in Arizona and their contributions to the success of their respective cities.
Finally, I want to work with city attorneys to strengthen the ACAA as a resource by encouraging regular updates on issues and explore the possibility of establishing a document repository
for recurring legal issues.
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League of Arizona Cities and Towns
1820 W. Washington St.
Phoenix, AZ 85007
Phone: 602-258-5786
Fax: 602-253-3874
http://www.azleague.org
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