HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 10 City Attorney Contract AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY Meeting Date: 7/7/2014
Meeting Type: Regular Meeting
Staff Contact/Dept.: Greta Utecht / Bob Duey Administrative Services
Staff Phone No: 541-726-3705
Estimated Time: Consent Calendar S P R I N G F I E L D
C I T Y C O U N C I L
Council Goals: Provide Financially
Responsible and Innovative Government Services ITEM TITLE: CITY ATTORNEY CONTRACT
ACTION
REQUESTED:
Authorize the City Manager to sign individual retainer contracts with the firm of
Leahy, VanVactor, Cox & Melendy LLP for general counsel services.
ISSUE
STATEMENT:
The City Attorney contract expired on June 30, 2014. The proposed contract
amendment is for a two year term, with three more individual years of renewal option.
ATTACHMENTS: 1. Second Amendment to City of Springfield Retainer Agreements
DISCUSSION/ FINANCIAL
IMPACT:
The City contracts with the firm of Leahy, VanVactor, Cox & Melendy LLP (City
Attorney) for legal representation. The contract is historically for a three year
period with an option for renewal. Each year the City Council and staff evaluates the performance of the City Attorneys and also engages in a conversation about any changes in either the numbers of hours to be contracted for with the firm or the
hourly rate that will be charged for services. Beginning on July 01 for FY15 the City Attorney firm has asked for an adjustment in their hourly billing rate.
The City contracts with the City Attorney’s firm for an estimated number of hours
per year at a predetermined hourly rate. The following chart is a table of the last four years of contracts between the City and the City Attorney’s firm and the
request for next year.
FY11 FY12 FY13 FY14 FY15
Retainer Hours 2,316 2,124 2,124 2,124 2,124
Hourly Rate $152.57 $166.36 $152.57 $152.57 $166.36
Contract Amount $353,352 $353,352 $324,058 $324,058 $353,353
For FY15 the firm is requesting that their hourly rate be increased back to the rate that they were contracted for in FY12 prior to the latest reduction. The number of
hours would remain the same. As in other years, staff has also looked at other cities
and the cost of attorney services and still believes that both the current rate charged by Leahy, VanVactor, Cox & Melendy LLP and the proposed rate are on the low
end of the scale for these types of services.
On June 23, 2014, the Finance & Judiciary Committee reviewed the annual
evaluation results of the City Attorney’s Office and given the positive review,
recommends that the proposed amendments to the current contract be approved.
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
1
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
2
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
3
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
4
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
5
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
6
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
7
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
8
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
9
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
10
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
11
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
12
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
13
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
14
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
15
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
16
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
17
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
18
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
19
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
20
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
21
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
22
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
23
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
24
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
25
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
26
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
27
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
28
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
29
of
30
At
t
a
c
h
m
e
n
t
1
Pa
g
e
30
of
30