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CITY OF SAN BERNARDINO - REQUEST FOR COUNCIL ACTION
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From: JAMES F. PENMAN
CITY ATTORNEY
Subject: Transfer $121,984.00 from the Unreserved!
Undesignated General Fund Balance to the City
Attorney's Budget, Account No. 001-051-5503
(Litigation-Outside Attorneys.)
Dept: CITY ATTORNEY
Date: June 14,2005
MCC: June 20, 2005
ORIGINAL
Synopsis of Previous Council Action:
None.
Recommended motion:
Authorize the Director of Finance to amend the FY 2004-2005 Adopted Budget and appropriate $121,984.00
from the unreserved!undesignated General Fund balance to the City Attorney's budget, account #001-051-5503
(Litigation-Outside Attorneys.)
Contact person: James F. Penman
Supporting data attached: Staff Report
Phone: 5255
Ward:
All
FUNDING REQUIREMENTS:
Amount: $121.984.00
Source: UndesismatedlUnreserved General Fund Balance
Finance:
Council Notes:
Agenda Item No.35
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STAFF REPORT
Council Meeting Date: June 20. 2005
TO:
FROM:
DATE:
AGENDA:
Mayor and Common Council
City Attorney's Office
June 14,2005
June 20, 2005
Several lawsuits, that have required considerable work by outside attorneys, have resulted
in additional outside attorneys' fees this year.
As of June 6, 2005, there are 51 lawsuits wherein the City is represented by the City
Attorney's Office and 36 cases that are "farmed out" to outside attorneys. The total number of cases
is 87. (For comparison, see chart below.) While this represents an increase of only 9 cases since
June 7 last year, only two more of which have been "farmed out" over the last year, the amount of
time spent by outside attorneys, and their costs for discovery, trial preparation, settlement
negotiations, etc. have risen dramatically.
Some of the more recent, time-consuming lawsuits are the result of management decisions
in the Police and Fire Departments. *
By reducing expenses in other areas of the City Attorney's budget, and by transferring
$12,300 from those savings to the line item for outside attorneys, and by moving another $6,000
from other savings in the City Attorney's Office to the line item for litigation costs, we have reduced
the additional amount of funds needed for outside attorneys to $121,984.
It is anticipated that these transfers should cover the additional bills for outside legal services
incurred by the City through June 30, 2005, the end of the current fiscal year.
2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 1997 1987
Total Cases 87 78 107 98 91 115 198
Total In-House 51 44 78 72 63 89 -0-
Total "Farmed Out" 36 34 29 26 28 26 198
Total Where City Defendant 65 60 85 80 70 84 195
Total Where City Plaintiff 22 18 22 18 21 31 3
*One case was filed after a confidential memorandum was released to a plaintiff by the
Mayor, after a private meeting with him in her home. But for that memorandum, the case probably
would not have been filed. At a recent hearing on the case, the plaintiff's attorney told the Judge the
only discovery he needed was to take the deposition of the author of the confidential memorandum.
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