Ms. Rachel Nigro Scalish serves as General Counsel to the Cleveland City Council.  Her duties are to advise City Council on legal issues with respect to legislation and on municipal law matters.  Additionally, she drafts legislation, contracts and letters and acts as Council’s legal advisor, staffing Council Committee meetings and general Council meetings. 

A graduate of the University of Notre Dame, Ms. Scalish received her Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies before attending the University of Notre Dame Law School from which she received her Juris Doctorate. 

After graduation, Ms. Scalish began working as a law clerk for U.S. Federal District Court in Cleveland and then as legislative counsel to Cleveland City Council.  Before joining the Cleveland City Council staff, she worked as the Assistant Director of Law for the City of Cleveland Law Department.  In that position, she advised the Department of Port Control, the Department of Personnel and Human Resources and the Department of Aging on legal matters related to the running of each particular department. 

Ms. Scalish lives in Cleveland with her husband and four children.  She is an active member of the Ohio Bar, the National Lawyers Association and the Ohio Women’s Bar Association.  She is also the current cantor of St. Ann Church and participates in various choruses in the area.