Opinion ID: 2440987
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Appointing Authority

Text: As mentioned previously, the law in this state is that a city officer's resignation is not effective, and thus may be withdrawn, until it is accepted by the proper authority. Rider v. City of Batesville, 220 Ark. 31, 245 S.W.2d 822 (1952). Based on this premise, Hopper argued at trial that he was the rightful city attorney for Horseshoe Bend because he withdrew his October 6, 1995, resignation before it was accepted by the proper authority. Although Arkansas law does not designate who is the proper authority to accept a municipal officer's resignation, other jurisdictions have held that the entity or person that has the authority to designate the resigning officer's successor also has the authority to accept a resignation. 63A Am. Jur.2d, Public Officers and Employees, §§ 172-74 (1984). Arkansas law provides that a vacancy in the city attorney's office may be filled by the mayor and city council. Ark.Code Ann. § 14-42-112(a)(2) (Supp.1995). Accordingly, Hopper requested the judge to give the following jury instruction which parallels the statute: when no resident attorney has been elected as municipal attorney, the mayor and the city or town council may appoint any regularly licensed attorney of this state to serve as the municipal attorney. (Emphasis added.) The trial judge refused to give the instruction because he found that the statute was permissive instead of mandatory. As we have previously explained, the use of the word may instead of shall indicates that the statute is permissive or discretionary rather than mandatory. Chrisco v. Sun Indus. Inc., 304 Ark. 227, 800 S.W.2d 717 (1990). Thus, it may be inferred that the legislature deliberately used may in Ark.Code Ann. § 14-42-112(a)(2) to designate that the mayor and city council could appoint a replacement city attorney, or that the appointment could be made in some other manner. Because the statute does not require second-class cities such as Horseshoe Bend to fill a vacancy in the city attorney's office in any particular manner, we find that the trial judge correctly refused to give Hopper's proffered instruction. Affirmed.