County appoints first County Solicitor
Lethbridge County is pleased to announce that Charlene Scheffelmair will join our team on September 15 as our first County Solicitor, leading our legal services and corporate risk management function.
The County Solicitor role serves as Lethbridge County's in-house legal counsel and leads the corporate legal and risk management function. This includes municipal and administrative law, planning and development, contracts and procurement, real estate and land matters, bylaws and enforcement, claims and insurance, governance, employment matters, legal education and management of external counsel.
Until now, the County has relied on external law firms for legal work. That model handles specialized files well, but does not provide the agility, responsiveness and opportunity for early risk identification and prevention that an in-house counsel can provide. As the County's development activity, land transactions, and contract work have grown, so has the value of having legal expertise available every day rather than engaged file by file. It also means the County can spot and address legal risk while a project is still taking shape.
Scheffelmair comes to the County after serving as a partner with Davidson & Williams LLP, where her practice has included corporate and commercial law, real estate, contracts and municipal planning and development.
But many people across the region will know her for much more than her legal work. She currently serves as Chair of the Lethbridge Chamber of Commerce, is Past President of Economic Development Lethbridge, was named to Lethbridge’s 2026 Top 40 Under 40 and has given significant time to organizations throughout our community.
"This is a chance to build a legal function that's proactive, strategic and closely woven into how the County operates, and getting to do it in partnership with such a talented team is what makes this opportunity so exciting,” said Scheffelmair. “I'm looking forward to settling into this role and helping the County navigate all of the innovative projects and initiatives to come."
“Bringing legal expertise in-house will allow the County to provide advice earlier, move agreements and transactions forward more efficiently, better manage organizational risk and provide stronger support to Council, administration, residents, businesses and development partners,” said Chief Administrative Officer Cole Beck. “Just as importantly, we’re proud to attract talented people who know southern Alberta, are invested in its future and want to help build strong communities.”