To: County of Sonoma Board of Supervisors
Department or Agency Name(s): County Counsel
Staff Name and Phone Number: Josh Myers - 707-565-3737
Vote Requirement: 4/5th
Supervisorial District(s): Countywide
Title:
Title
Legal Services Agreements for General Municipal Legal Representation
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Recommended Action:
Recommended action
Authorize County Counsel to execute three legal services agreements with the law firms of Colantuono, Highsmith & Whatley, PC, Burke, Williams & Sorensen, LLP, and the Renne Public Law Group, for advice and representation in varied legal matters, each for a thirty-six (36) month term ending July 1, 2026, and contract maximum limits not to exceed $500,000 each; and to execute a one-time two (2) year renewal option based on satisfactory performance with contract maximum limits not to exceed $200,000, with law firms. (4/5th Vote Required)
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Executive Summary:
This requested Board action authorizes the County Counsel to execute agreements for legal services with three law firms who were selected through Request for Qualifications (RFQ) processes due to the specialized nature of their work.
Discussion:
County Counsel provides legal representation, advice and counsel to the County, its governing Board of Supervisors, County Departments, special districts, and other public agencies, as mandated and authorized by California statutes and local ordinances. From time to time, the County has retained various outside law firms to represent the County in a variety of legal matters. Outside law firms are retained only when County Counsel either does not have the capacity, lacks the expertise to handle these lawsuits in-house, or has an ethical conflict. These law firms are assigned cases based upon their proven legal ability and specific experience with public entity representation.
County Counsel requested qualifications from several outside law firms to establish contracts for general municipal legal representation. These matters include advice and representation in varied legal areas such as open meetings laws; the Public Records Act; the Political Reform Act; public revenues; elections; housing; public works contracting; utility service; land use; local agency formation; taxes, rates and fees; employment law issues; and related litigation in administrative hearings, State and Federal Court, and in appellate courts.
The selected firms are: Colantuono, Highsmith & Whatley, PC, Burke, Williams & Sorensen, LLP, and the Renne Public Law Group. All three firms have previously provided representation to the County in relation to specific legal disputes.
The agreements proposed in this report are all fee for service contracts with no minimum or maximum amount of work guaranteed to the firms. The law firms will only be assigned work pursuant to the contract if County Counsel cannot handle the matter in house and if the affected department or agency identifies a budget source to pay for the legal work. The agreements also contain a termination clause that allows the County to terminate the agreements at any time. Actual costs will depend on future litigation or specific projects assigned to each firm. County Counsel reviews all assignments pursuant to the contracts and the law firm’s proposed legal strategy. County Counsel monitors and approves the law firm’s legal representation in all aspects. All legal services invoices are reviewed for payment by County Counsel. The initial contract term is recommended for a thirty-six (36) month term with contract maximum limits not to exceed $500,000, with the possibility of a one-time two (2) year renewal at the option of the County based on satisfactory performance with contract maximum limits not to exceed $200,000. Depending upon the number of case assignments to each firm and the size and scope of each case assigned, this limit may never be reached, or may require a contract amendment, which would be presented to your Board for authorization.
Strategic Plan:
N/A
Racial Equity:
Was this item identified as an opportunity to apply the Racial Equity Toolkit?
No
Prior Board Actions:
None
Fiscal Summary
Narrative Explanation of Fiscal Impacts:
Legal services will be requested on an as-needed basis and will be billed to the department or agency that needs the representation when the need arises. No legal work will be assigned unless and until a budget source is identified.
Services are not guaranteed and thus usage will vary year-over-year which prevents staff from defining specific annual fiscal impacts.
Narrative Explanation of Staffing Impacts (If Required):
None
Attachments:
Contracts
Related Items “On File” with the Clerk of the Board:
None