Proposal:
Issue a Request for Proposals to Hire Outside Litigation Counsel
Synopsis:
From time to time the AQMD requires the assistance of outside litigation counsel having expertise and experience in areas including, but not limited to, CEQA law, air quality laws, administrative law, representation of government agencies, constitutional issues, and complex environmental litigation. The purpose of this RFP is to solicit qualified law firms or sole practitioners to establish a pre-qualified list that District Counsel may use to represent the AQMD in possible future litigation where outside counsel is required. The maximum total dollar amount that may be contracted out is $120,000 per year.
Committee:
Administrative, March 22, 1996, Recommended for Approval.
Recommended Action:
Approve the attached Request for Proposals for Outside Litigation Counsel.
James M. Lents, Ph. D.
Executive Officer
PMG:BBB:vmr
Background
Due to the need for rapid response when a lawsuit is served, it is not possible to go through the RFP process as new cases arise. Accordingly, the attached RFP solicits proposals from attorneys qualified to and interested in representing the AQMD in cases where outside counsel assistance in these specialized areas is required.
The intent of this RFP is to qualify one or more law firms or sole practitioners who may subsequently be engaged by District Counsel to represent the AQMD in future cases, without need of going through lengthy consultant selection processes at the time that assistance is needed.
Work may be allocated to one or more selected contractors based on their area of expertise, availability at the relevant time, and the needs of the AQMD as determined by District Counsel. Specific assignments of work will be made by District Counsel as the need arises. In each case, it will be ascertained whether the work can be performed entirely in-house, and in all cases the work will be performed under the direction of and with the assistance of District Counsel.
The specific amounts of funding available will depend on the District's 1996-1997 budget, but in any case it is expected that the total amount of funds available will not exceed $120,000. Due to the nature of this work, selection as a qualified contractor as a result of this RFP does not necessarily mean any work will be assigned to any selected consultant. The amount of funding allocated to each selected litigation counsel will depend upon the nature of future litigation, the consultant's qualifications, and AQMD needs.
Proposal
Issue the attached RFP to solicit and pre-qualify law firms and sole practitioners who will be able to serve as litigation counsel in future cases representing the AQMD when the need for outside counsel arises, at a cost not to exceed $120,000.
Attachment (Down Load self-extracting compressed attachment package for this letter in M.S. Office 4.2. )
(e:share\gloria\attyrfp.doc)