With over thirty years of municipal law experience, M. Rick O’Connor, C.M.O., M.A., LL.B. has spent the last decade as the City Clerk and Solicitor for the City of Ottawa.

In 2005, Rick successfully achieved his Certified Municipal Officer designation (CMO) through the Association of Municipal Managers, Clerks and Treasurers of Ontario (AMCTO), and was the proud recipient of its 2006 Prestige Award, an honour that recognizes a member’s commitment to that Association’s ideals and for his contributions to the profession generally.  In 2010, Rick also achieved his Certified Specialist (Municipal Law:  Local Government) designation through the Law Society of Upper Canada.  He was also honoured to be the recipient of the Volunteer of the Year Award for 2012 by the Ontario Good Roads Association for serving as an instructor for more than twenty years.  In 2013, Rick received the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal in recognition of his leadership in the evolution of open and accountable public administration in Ontario.

A well-known speaker on various municipal issues, Rick has participated in many initiatives on behalf of the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) as well as the AMCTO and is the Editor of O’Brien’s Municipal Corporation Forms.

The author of numerous legal articles, as well as being a regular speaker to various municipal organizations, Rick also co-authored Conduct Handbook for Municipal Employees and Officials (2nd ed., 2003), wrote Open Local Government (2nd ed., 2004) and co-authored A Practical Guide to Ontario’s Municipal Conflict of Interest Act (2007 and 2017).