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ITEM: OUTSIDE LEGAL FEES AND COSTS
REQUEST: Approval of continued use of outside professional legal services with multiple firms in an amount up to $123,827.91 through September 30, 2017.
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EXPLANATION: Various outside law firms have been retained by the Village of Wellington to serve as its legal counsel in pending lawsuits, human resources related issues, and other areas in which special expertise is needed. These outside legal expenses were anticipated and are part of the overall legal budget. To date, invoices totaling $146,172.09 have been paid for services from multiple firms through May 2017 for various projects. Of that, a total of $119,515.04 has been paid to Lehtinen Schultz Riedi Catalano de la Fuente for services through May 2017. The Florida Municipal Insurance Trust has reimbursed the Village a total of $134,765.00 for fees incurred in litigation with Palm Beach Polo, Inc. Those funds will be transferred to revenue once the litigation concludes and the Village and FMIT resolve their differences with respect to the reimbursement rate.
Pursuant to the Village's purchasing policy, legal expenses are exempt from competitive bidding requirements. However, individual expenditures for which the cumulative totals are over $25,000, for any single project, requires Council approval.
Staff recommends approval of continued use of outside legal services with multiple firms in an amount up to $123,827.91 through September 2017. Any unused funds will be carried over to the FY18 budget.
Sufficient funds have been allocated in the Legal GL #001-0130-514.31-01 for outside legal services to cover the cost of these expenditures.
BUDGET AMENDMENT REQUIRED: NO
PUBLIC HEARING: NO QUASI-JUDICIAL:
FIRST READING: SECOND READING:
LEGAL SUFFICIENCY: YES
FISCAL IMPACT: Sufficient funds have been allocated in the Legal GL #001-0130-514.31-01 for outside legal services.
WELLINGTON FUNDAMENTAL: Protecting our Investme...
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