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Home My WebLink About1996-03-12; City Council; Resolution 96-80I 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 om 13 Yz Err& an8 14 J0U% $035 0 n L 15 .zi;gz ZWCO" BE56 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 SuJ? EG5g ZJZ E:; Cy: - JUU a01 0 0 0 RESOLUTION NO. - 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 general liability c- and NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council c City of Carlsbad, California, as follows: 1. That the above recitations are true and correc 2. That the City Attorney is hereby authorized to c Bradley A. Bartlett of the law firm of Bartlett, Kirch & Lievc he considers appropriate at the rate of $100 per hour pursui the llProposal to Provide Litigation Legal Services" attached I as Exhibit "A". 3. That the City Council authorizes the expenditi funds as may be necessary to pay the fees of special counse liability claims. /// /// /// /// /// /// 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 am 13 &z& an8 ow2 iUC3 14 3055 dt5K n"oB 15 2&$$ $$$: 0 16 !A 17 cq 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 ;yz rdz _I 'a- aod u 0 0 PASSED, APPROVED AND ADOPTED at a Regular Meeting c 12th day of Mp City Council of the City of Carlsbad on the 1996, by the following vote, to wit: AYES: Council Members Lewis, Finnila, Hall NOES: None ABSENT : Council Member ATTEST: ALETHA L. RAUTEgKRANZ, City qerk ( SEAL 1 0 0 Bradley A. Bad Jacques J. Kirch KIRCH 6r, Gregory Y. Lieve 221 West Crest Suite 200 ATTORNEYS Escondido, CA B ART L ETT LIEVERS 920251728 Tel 619-738-97E Fax 619-738-87: February 23, 1996 Ron Ball, Esq. City Attorney 1200 Carlsbad Village Drive Carlsbad, CA 92008 CITY OF CARLSBAD Re: Proposal to provide litigation legal services Dear Mr. Ball: Pursuant to your recent request, we propose to provide thi City of Carlsbad litigation legal services under the terms an1 conditions set forth in this letter. Bartlett, Kirch and Lievers will provide tort defense service at a rate of $100.00 an hour for attorneys and $50.00 an hour fo our paralegal. Additional terms and conditions of ou representation are set forth in the enclosed document entitled "Standard Terms of Engagement for Legal Services". After you review of this correspondence and the enclosure, please let us kno if you have any questions or wish discussion. We greatly appreciate your consideration of Bartlett, Kirc and Lievers among your panel of outside litigation counsel. W look forward to working with you. / BAB/rls Enclosures Ball2 LTR e e BARTLETT, KIRCH & LIEVERS Attorneys at Law STANDARD TERMS OF ENGAGEMENT FOR LEGAL SERVICES This statement sets forth the standard terms of our engagemeni as your lawyers. Unless modified in writing by mutual agreement these terms will be an integral part of our agreement with you Therefore, we ask that you review this statement carefully an( contact us promptly if you have any questions. Please retain thir statement in your file. 1. The Scope of Our Work. YGU should have a clear -xldei-standing of the lega services we will provide. Any questions that you have should bt dealt with promptly. We will at all times act on your behalf to the best o our ability. Any expressions on our part concerning the outcome o your legal matters are expressions of our best professiona judgment, but they are not guarantees. Such opinions art necessarily limited by our knowledge of the facts and are basec upon the state of the law at the time they are expressed. 2. How Fees Will Be Set. Our legal services will be charged at the rate of $100.0 per hour for attorneys’ time spent in rendering service on an matter you refer to us. Our paralegals will charge at $50.00 pe hour. We will keep accurate records of the time we devote to you work, including conferences, negotiations, factual and lega research and analysis, document preparation and revision, cour time, discovery, travel on your behalf, and other related matters We record our time in units of tenths of an hour. We are often requested to estimate the amount of fees an costs likely to be incurred in connection with a particular matter Whenever possible we will furnish such an estimate based upon ou professional judgment, but always with a clear understanding tha it is not a maximum or fixed fee quotation. The ultimate cos frequently is more or less than the amount estimated. 3. Out-of-Pocket Expenses. We typically incur and pay on behalf of our clients variety of out-of-pocket costs arising in connection with lega services. These costs include charges made by government agencie and service vendors as well as clerical charges. Whenever SUC costs are incurred, we will carefully itemize and bill them Typical of such costs are messenger, courier and express deliver charges; telecopy and telex charges; printing and reproductio 0 a costs; filing fees; deposition and transcript costs; witness fees; travel expenses; charges made by outside experts and consultants, including accountants, appraisers and other legal counsel (unles: arrangements for direct billing have been made) ; computerized legal research expenses; and charges for automated document productior clients and incur internal expenses on behalf of our clients, whc agree that these costs will always be paid on a regular basis. (word processing). We incur outside costs as agents for ow 4. Trust Deposits. Deposits which we receive from you will be placed in ( trust account on your behalf. Deposits which are nominal in amoun' or are on deposit for only a short period of time will be placed ii our unsegregated trust account, a non-interest bearing account Deposits which are not on 6eFosit for a short time will bf deposited in a segregated trust account for your benefit, and thc interest which accrues will be added to the deposit for you: benefit. Deposits which are received to cover specific items wil be disbursed as provided in our agreement, and you will be notifief from time to time of the amounts applied or withdrawn. Any amoun remaining after disbursement will be returned to you. 5. Termination. You may terminate our representation at any time, with o without cause, by notifying us. If such termination occurs, you papers and property will be returned to you promptly. Our ow files pertaining to the case will be retained. Your termination o our services will not affect your responsibility for payment fo legal services rendered and out-of-pocket costs incurred befor termination and in connection with an orderly transition of th matter. We are subject to the Code of Professiona Responsibility, which lists several types of conduct o circumstances which require or allow us to withdraw fro representing a client; nonpayment of fees or costs misrepresentation or failure to disclose material facts; actio contrary to our advice; and conflict of interest with anothe client. We try to identify in advance and discuss with our client any situation which may lead to our withdrawal, and if withdrawa ever becomes necessary, we immediately give the client writte notice of our withdrawal. In such event, you agree to execute SUC court.documents in such form as to permit us to withdraw in an legal action then pending. standard.2tm 2 a a 6. Billing Arrangements and Terms of Payment. We will bill you on a regular basis, normally each month You agree to make payment withii We will give you prompt notice if your account become: delinquent, and you agree to bring the account or the retainel deposit current. If the delinquency continues and you do not arrange satisfactory payment terms, we will withdraw from thc representation and pursue collection of your account. You agree tc pay the costs of collecting the debt, including court costs, filinc fees and a reasonable attorneys' fee. You agree to notify us in writing if you dispute any billins entry or computation. If you fail to do so within forty (40) day: after the mailing thereo:, ail eiitries shall be deemed by both yo[ and us as fair and correct. for both fees and disbursements. 30 days of receiving our statement. 7. Your Right to Arbitrate. If you disagree with the amount of our fee, please promptly bring this to our attention. Typically, SUC? disagreements are resolved to everyone's mutual satisfaction wit? little inconvenience or formality. In the event of a fee dispute which is not readily resolved, you have the right to request arbitration under the supervision of the State Bar Association, anc we agree to participate fully in that process. 8. Errors and Omissions Coverage. California Business and Professions Code Section 614E requires our firm to disclose whether we maintain errors anc omissions insurance coverage applicable to the services to be rendered. Bartlett, Kirch & Lievers does maintain such coverage. 9. Litigation Concerning Your Bill. While we hope that it will never become necessary, in the event of litigation concerning the amount of attorney's fees biilec or the terms of this agreement, the prevailing party in any suck litigation shall be entitled to reasonable costs and attorney's fees. Should we represent ourselves in such litigation, the firn shall be entitled to recover fees for the time spent on the litigation in accordance with the billing rate we charge on you1 matters. We will be considered the prevailing party if we recove1 any amount, by judgment, arbitration, stipulation or otherwise, ir excess of your last written offer of settlement. 3