§§ 255. 256]   Corp. Counsel's Power of Appointment.    125

that purpose the corporation counsel may assign an assistant or

assistants to any department that he shall deem to need the same.

No officer, board, or department of the city, unless it be herein

otherwise specially provided, shall have or employ any attorney

or counsel.    The corporation   counsel shall have  the   right   to

institute actions in law or equity, and any proceedings provided

by the code of civil procedure or by law in any court, local, state,

cr national, to maintain, defend and establish the rights, interests,

revenues, property, privileges, franchises or demands of the city

or of any part or portion thereof, or of the people thereof, or to

collect any money, debts, fines or penalties or to enforce the laws

and ordinances.    He shall be a member of the board of estimate

and apportionment and of the board of public im.provements.

L. 188-i, ch. 410, % 215 ; L. 1888. ch. 383, tit. 9, g 1; L. 1898, ch. 106.
See L, 1883, ch. 410, §§ 432, 589, 864.
 

(a) The corporation counsel being
bound to conduct all law business of
and render legal assistance to eveiy
department of the city, neither the
common council nor any >3ther de¬
partment has power to employ other
counsel, and in case of such em¬
ployment such counsel cannot recover
frgm the city for services rendered
under such employment. Ramson v.
Tlie Mayor, 24 Barb. 220; s. c, 4 Abb.
l-r 343, followed in Roberts v. The
Saiiic, 5 Id. 41.

i;,) The counsel to the corporation
has no larger powers as such to bind
tlif? city than those connected with
tlic oi'dlnary relations of attorney and
cHent. Tiie People ex rel. Taylor v.
The Mayor, 11 Abb. Pr. 66,

(c) The counsel to the corporation,
wiu'n conducting the prosecution or
defense of a suit in court, is an officer
of the court, and as such, like any
otliei- attorney in like case, responsibfe
to liie court. Lowber v. The Mayor,
5 Ahb. Pr. 335.

(fi) Tlie advice given by the cor¬
poration counsel to any officer or de¬
partment is privileged under Code
Civ. Pro.. § 83o, which provides that
attorneys sliall not be allowed to dis¬
close   professional   communications.
 

People ex rel, Updyke v. Gilon, 9 N.
Y. Supp. 343.

(e) It is the duty of the corporation
counsel to act as counsel for the comp¬
troUer. People V. Myers, 50 Hun,
483.

(/) It is the duty of the counsel to
the corporation to conduct the pro¬
ceedings for the recovery of amounts
due from delinquent taxpayers, and
he is authorized to employ additional
counsel to assist him therein. Smith
V. The Mayor, 5 Hun, 2a7.

(g) A proceeding by commissioners
to acquire the title to land for public;
purposes must, under this section, be
instituted and carried on through the
intervention of the law department of
the city, and an objection that such a
proceedmg has not been so instituted
is not formal, but substantial. In re
Lorillard, 13 N. Y. Supp. 83.

{h) The right of the city to conduct
its legal business cannot be lost or
waived by the failure or omission of
the corporation consul to assert the
right.    Id.
 

Corporation counsePs power of appointment.

§ 256. The corporation counsel may appoint, and at pleasure
remove, as many assistants to the corporation counsel as are
necessary to the discharge of the duties of the law department,
and he may appoint and at pleasure remove such clerks, assistants,
and subordinates as are requisite to the discharge of the business