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Home My WebLink About1996-04-09; City Council; Resolution 96-1271 2 3 4 5 €j 7 8 9 lo 11 0 l2 2s~ 13 14 KkSE E:? n a l5 OZJO u'%d l6 c '2 9 l7 GO 18 l9 2o 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 sw2 d;g% $055 +-& a08 >-lz 401 Fsj 0 0 RESOLUTION NO. 96-127 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CARLSBAD, CALIFORNIA, AUTHORIZING THE RETENTION OF ADDITIONAL SPECIAL COUNSEL WHEREAS, Section 2.14.130 of the Carlsbad Municipa provides that the City Council may employ special counsel terms it considers proper; and WHEREAS, the City Council has determined, recommendation of the City Attorney, that it is necessary to additional special counsel for defense of labor employment/civil rights matters; and NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council City of Carlsbad, California, as follows: 1. That the above recitations are true and correc 2. That the City Attorney is hereby authorized to ( the law firm of Best, Best & Krieger as he considers appropri the rate of $150 per hour pursuant to the "Proposal to P: Litigation Legal Services" attached hereto as Exhibit "A". 3. That the City Council authorizes the expenditi funds as may be necessary to pay the fees of special counst labor and employment/civil rights matters. /// /// /// /// /// /// 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Sus om <a8 i~a~ 14 $055 ZdZ 15 dG>8 9 ,?k S&$pi gE$z- 16 002 Lorn 00 m> -IE& 13 Ow" QOJ c25 17 - 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 0 0 PASSED, APPROVED AND ADOPTED at a Regular Meeting City Council of the City of Carlsbad on the 1996, by the following vote, to wit: 9th day of - AYES : NOES: None ABSENT: None Council Members Lewis, Nygaard, Kulchin, Finnila, ATTEST: ALETHA L. RAUTENKRANZ, City C)lerk (SEAL) ---./\Lf 1 0 I 1 e't. a 0- RANCHO MI1 - (61e) 568- - ONTARIt (619) 32s-7264 (9001 S8S- 0 BEST BEST & KRIEGER LLP A OALWOIUA L-TLD YA~ILITI CIIT*C~.*Y mcLmmm mw=aaiO*aL ComComaroona LAWYERS 402 WEST BROADWAY. 13TH FTOOR RIVERSIDE (909) 686-1450 SAN DIEGO. CALIFORNIA 92101-354t TELEPHONE t6lS) 525-1300 TELECOPIER (6191 233-6116 PALM SPRINGS RECElVED March 29, 1996 APR 2*1996 Arlene PI Direct 1 (6191 525 ~ ,dAD I. f"i3-7 ML'S OaMEY Ronald R. Ball, City Attorney City of Carlsbad Office of the City Attorney 1200 Carlsbad Village Drive Carlsbad, California 92008 Re: Legal Services Dear Mr. Ball: I was pleased to be able to assist the City recently by filing an Amicus Curiae brief on behalf of 82 California Cities in support of Carlsbad's petition to the United States Supreme Court in the Warren case. Although we were all disappointed with the Court's denial of review, hopefully there will be a future opportunity for the Supreme Court to review these important legal issues. I hope that you were satisfied with our work on that matter, and wanted to take this opportunity to let you know of my availability and interest in assisting the City in employment litigation. I know you are generally familiar with my background and experience, but I wanted to provide you with some more detailed information, lists of my representative public agency clients and references, and information on our rates. As set forth in my enciosed Resume, for many years I have specialized in representing public employers, as well as private employers, in employment law litigation, administrative proceedings, labor negotiations, and advisory matters. I started my legal career with San Diego County Counsel, where I worked for approximately eleven years. Much of my work there was employment litigation. I then joined Jennings, Engstrand & Henrikson, where I continued to specialize in representing public and private clients in employment matters. In October, 1993, I assisted in opening the San Diego office of Best Best & Krieger, where I am now a partner. Best Best & Krieger is one of the oldest and largest full service public law firms in California, with offices in San Diego, APi 7879 LAW OFFICES cm 0 BEST BEST & KRIEGER LLP Ronald R. Ball, City Attorney March 29, 1996 Page 2 Riverside, Palm Springs, Ontario, and Rancho Mirage. The firm ha: businesses and individuals, for over one hundred years. The Sal Diego office is staffed with eleven lawyers practicin! predominantly public law. The office is staffed with experience( San Diego lawyers with years of practice in San Diego public agenc; law, coupled with public agency experts who have moved from ou: Riverside headquarters. I regularly represent both public and private employers in al: areas of employment litigation, including sexual harassment an( discrimination cases (gender, age, race, religion, handicap, etc.) under the California Fair Employment and Housing Act, the Federa: Equal Employment Opportunity Act, the Americans with Disabilitiec Act, the State and Federal Family Leave Acts and the Workers’ Compensation laws. I handle cases involving wrongful termination, constructive termination, breach of contract and related issues, defamation, wrongful hiring and retention, violation of privacy anc other employee rights, deprivation of civil rights and othei employment issues. I have litigated cases involving the Fair Labor Standards Act and issues related to overtime pay for standby duty, as well as other wage and hour issues under Federal and State laws. I also an often involved in all steps of public employee disciplinary matters, from providing advice to the administrative hearing and then through judicial review. Likewise, I am involved in all stages of grievance proceedings. I regularly represent clients in responding to administrative complaints of discrimination. I have also litigated numerous cases arising out of collective bargaining issues under the Meyers-Milias-Brown Act. Other specialized public agency issues have included Brown Act litigation, and petitions for writ of mandate challenging various aspects of personnel rules in general, and as applied to specific employees. I have handled numerous matters on appeal at all levels of federal and state courts. Because of my almost twenty years of representing public agencies in employment matters in San Diego, I believe I bring a unique background and expertise to my clients. I am mainly assisted in my employment litigation by associate David Cabral. David assisted me in researching and drafting our Amicus Curiae brief in the Warren case, and has developed expertise in both employment matters and litigation. A copy of his Resume is also enclosed. provided legal services to public agencies, as well as tl Enclosed is a rate sheet. If retained to represent the City in employment litigation, I would propose using our standard rates for representing public agencies through Joint Powers Insurance API 7879 0 LAW OFFICES 0 m BEST BEST & KRIEGER LLP Ronald R. Ball, City Attorney March 29, 1996 Page 3 Agencies. These rates are generally lower than our normal rates, but I would be happy to provide them to the City. We are, of course, always open to consideration of other alternative billing arrangements. I am very interested in having an opportunity to represent the City in employment litigation, and am confident that you and the other City representatives would be pleased with my expertise and the approach I bring to representing public agencies and employees. Therefore, should the need arise, I hope you will give us consideration. I would be happy to meet with you and other City representatives at your convenience. of Best Best & Krieger LLP AP/llf Enclosures AP17879 0 a Arlene Prater Ms. Prater has specialized for many years in providing advice to public and private employers on personnel and labor matters and representing public agencies and private employers in employment law litigation and administrative proceedings, as well as labor negotiations. Before joining Best Best & Krieger LLP in 1993, Ms. Prater was a partner at Jennings, Engstrand and Henrikson, where her emphasis was employment and labor law, and she was chairperson of that fm’s employment and labor practice group. Now a partner in the San Diego office of Best Best & Krieger, Ms. Prater continues her practice emphasizing personnel and labor advice and litigation for public agencies and private businesses. Ms. Prater regularly advises clients on all aspects of personnel management, including employee discipline and grievance matters, employee handbooks, employment contracts, personnel policies such as sexual harassment and drug and alcohol, and compliance with the many state and federal constantly changing employment laws including the discrimination laws, the collective bargaining laws, the Family Leave Acts, the Americans With Disability Act, the Fair Labor Standards Act and many other laws. She advises clients on wage and hour issues, employee safety issues, workplace violence issues, drug and alcohol issues, employee and applicant privacy issues and advises clients and drafts documents for all stages of employee disciplinary matters. In addition, Ms. Prater regularly handles discrimination, harassment and wrongful termination litigation in State and Federal Court, as well as a wide range of other litigation involving the rights and obligations of employees and employers. Ms. Prater has handled many cases arising under the federal and state discrimination laws and federal and state labor laws. Ms. Prater defends clients against administrative complaints of discrimination pending AP12690 e 0 with the State of California Department of Fair Employment and Housing and/or the Equal Employment and represents clients in employment matters before other state and federal agencies. In addition, Ms. Prater advises and represents public and private clients as to matters arising out of the collective bargaining process under state and federal law. She also conducts and assists in contract negotiations, impasse procedures, grievance procedures, Union representation proceedings and unfair labor practice charges before local, state and federal agencies. While employed with the San Diego County Counsel’s office from 1977 to 1988, Ms. Prater represented the County of San Diego and school districts in civil litigation involving employment, labor relations, civil rights, education, tort liability, and other related subject areas. Ms. Prater conducts supervisory and other training for clients as well as participates in the regular Best Best & Krieger Employment Law Seminars. She is a frequent speaker at employment law seminars for attorneys and human resource professionals on a wide range of current personnel issues, and writes articles on topics of current interest in employment law. Ms. Prater received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, in 1970, and her law degree from the University of San Diego in 1975. AP 1 2690 -2- e 0 David Cabral Mr. Cabral is an associate with Best Best & Krieger LLP. He provides labor and employment law services to public agencies and private employers, including advice on a wide variety of personnel issues and assisting in the defense of wrongful termination, discrimination and other lawsuits. He assists in the preparation of materials for Best, Best & Krieger’s seminars regarding recent developments in labor and employment law, and is a contributor to Best, Best & Krieger’s Labor and Employment Law Update. Mr. Cabral received his B.A. in Economics from Wheaton College in 1987 and obtained his teaching credential at the University of San Diego in 1989. After teaching middle school social studies, Mr. Cabral attended the University of Notre Dame Law School where he earned his juris doctorate in 1994. 0 a REPRESENTATIVE PUBLIC AGENCY CLIENTS Association of California Water AgenciedJoint Powers Insurance Authority (" ACWNJPIA") City of Encinitas/San Dieguito Water District Fallbrook Public Utility District Helix Water District Padre Dam Municipal Water District Pomerado Cemetery District Rainbow Municipal Water District Ramona Municipal Water District San Miguel Consolidated Fire Protection District San Diego Unified Port District San Diego Unified School District Santa Fe Irrigation District Sweetwater Authority Valley Center Municipal Water District I 0 e REFERENCES Thomas E. Maddox, Vice President ' Deputy General Counsel American Stores Company Post Office Box 27447 Salt Lake City, Utah 94127-0447 (801) 320-3272 Christina L. Dyer, General Counsel San Diego Unified School District 4100 Normal Street San Diego, California 92103-2682 (619) 293-8450 Thomas Beckord/Jace C. Schwann City of Encinitas 505 South Vulcan Encinitas, California 92024-3633 (619) 633-2600 Chief Kevin P. Eggleston San Miguel Consolidated Fire Protection District 2850 Via Orange Way Spring Valley, California 91978 (619) 670-0500 Daniel N. Klaff, Chief Executive Officer ACWNJPIA 5620 Birdcage Street, Suite 200 Citrus Heights, California 95610 (800) 231-5742 Geoffrey Poole, General Manager Santa Fe Irrigation District Post Office Box 409 Rancho Santa Fe, California 92067-0409 (6 19) 756-2424 Ethel M. (Dee) Chastain, Director of Human Resources County of San Diego County Administration Center 1600 Pacific Highway San Diego, California 92101 (619) 531-5107 a a .1 PROPOSED BEST BEST & KREGER RATES FOR LEGAL SERVICES TO THE CITY OF CARLSBAD Partners: $150 Associates: $110 - $140 Paralegals: $75