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HomeMy WebLinkAboutRes 08-22A WA Contract with Bracket Ellis Firm for Legal Services File No. 08-22/.% Contract for General Legal Services and a General Services Memorandum with Brackett& Ellis for Legal Services related to the Westlake Academy November 10, 2008 BRAckETT & Rhs A PROFESSIONAL CORPORATION ATTORNEYS ANd COUNSE[ORS RONAfd L.AdAms HENRI1. DussAufr RUSSEffJ.NORMENT n n AIN STREET A..WiffiAM BRAckETT LUTHER W. Ellis DANIEf O'BRIEN HARRY M. BRANTS CARTER L. FERGUSON SCOT PIERCE M 100 JANET S. BubERT RiChARd H.GATEIEy Tom B. RENfao FORT WORTh, TX 76102.3090 BRUCE S.CAmpbElt CRAIG A.GIPSON ApRll F. RObbiNs JDSEpfI F.CfEVELANd,JR. D.AIEXANd ER HARREU MIChAEf L. SCIiNEId ERMAN J. HEATh CcAWAN CIAUdiNE C.JACkSON LYNN Rossi SCOTT �817J 338'1700 ANdREA S.COTfREff TkEodORE MAck RIChARd U. SIMON,JR, LAMES A.CREEP R. BRUCE MOON COby D.SMiTh METRO (817) 429.9181 LAURA W. DoekER ELAINE S. MORRIS AIMEE L.STONE KEuy M. DodsoN ThOMAs E. MYERS JAMES M.WhITTON FACSIMI[E (817) 870.2265 JOSEpk A.DRACO WEb SITE: WWW.bE[AW.COM November 24, 2008 Ms. Kim Sutter Via U.S. Mail Town Secretary Town of Westlake 3 Village Circle, Suite 202 Westlake, Texas 76262 RE: Contract for General Legal Services Dear Ms. Sutter: Enclosed please find one original of the fully executed contract for General Legal Services between Brackett& Ellis and Westlake Academy Charter School. Thank you for giving us this opportunity to provide legal services to Westlake Academy Charter School. Please feel free to call me at(817) 339-2464 or metro (817)429-9181 if you need anything further regarding this matter. ours very truly, 7g <7t�— n Rossi c tt LRS:mal Enclosure cc: Mr. Tom Brymer w CONTRACT FOR GENERAL LEGAL SERVICES This Contract is made and entered into by and between the Board of Aldermen of the Town of Westlake, acting as the Board of Trustees of the Westlake Academy Charter School, hereinafter called "Academy", and Brackett & Ellis, a Professional Corporation, by and through its authorized representative,hereinafter called"Law Firm". The parties hereto agree as follows: 1. Employment. The Academy hereby employs the Law Firm for the provision of general legal services for a continuous period until terminated by either party upon thirty days prior written notice, subject to the attached memorandum regarding financial arrangements. 2. Legal Services. The Law Firm will provide on request of the Academy all necessary legal services related to currently pending matters. The Law Firm shall perform these services for the Academy unless the Law Firm has a conflict of interest in a legal matter or if additional legal specialization not provided by the Law Firm is required for the performance of the needed legal services. In such circumstances, the Law Firm shall advise the Academy and assist the Academy in obtaining additional legal counsel for such matters. 3. Fees for Services. The Law Firm agrees to perform its legal services for the following fees: a. Hourly rate: The Law Firm shall provide all legal services at its "school rate". Currently, the hourly school rate is $275 per hour for partners, $200 per hour for associates, $95.00 for paralegals. The Law Firm will give the Academy at least thirty days prior written notice of any increase in its school rate. b. Litigation: The Law Firm shall prosecute or defend lawsuits, shall defend special education due process hearings, and shall prosecute or defend appeals to the Commissioner of Education involving the Academy at the same hourly rate as set forth above. C. Other expenses: The Academy will reimburse the Law Firm for the cost of photocopies (currently 20¢ per page), long distance telephone calls, courier fees, mileage (at the rates set by the IRS, currently 58.5¢ per mile), postage (including express or certified mail charges), facsimile transmissions (currently 50¢ per page), filing fees, court costs, discovery costs, mediation fees, title reports and investigations, and computerized legal research. 4. Billing and Terms of Payment. Fees and expenses will be billed monthly, and will provide separate detailed statements for each file opened. A summary statement will also be included for administrative convenience. Fees shall be based on quarter hour increments. LRScott Contract for Educ Legal Svcs 11-10-08 I 5. Contact Persons. a. Persons authorized to request legal services on behalf of the Academy are: The Board of Trustees, the Head of School,the Town Manager, and the Town Attorney b, Primary contacts at the Law Firm shall be, Lynn Rossi Scott and Janet Bubert. They may be assisted by partners Tom Myers and Jim 'Whitton, and by assigned associates, as required for particular assignments. In consideration of the terms and compensation herein stated, Law Firm hereby accepts said employment and undertakes the performance of this Contract as above written. WITNESS the signatures of all parties hereto on this day of , 2008. WESTLAKE ACADEMY CHARTER SCHOOL BRACKETT & ELLIS, 2600 Ottinger Road a Professional Corporation Westlake,Texas 76262 100 Main Street Fort Worth,Texas 76102 By: / Thomas E. 4R=osLsiScott CEO, Westlake A46demy ATTEST: B y - - Narr Secretary, Board of Trustees #!303574 2 e GENERAL ENGAGEMENT MEMORANDUM Periodic Billings for Legal Services Unless we have made other arrangements, it is our policy to render periodic statements for legal services on a monthly basis. These are generally mailed toward the first of the month following the latest date covered in the statement. We normally base these interim statements on the hourly rate of lawyers and legal assistants working on the matter. The Firm, of course, expects that its statements will be paid upon receipt. Determining the Fee The attorney y y u have chosen within the Finn will be your primary lawyer. When necessary, we will use more than one member of our professional and pars-professional staff to work on your behalf. We believe this practice is more efficient in that it enables us to take advantage of the wide variety of experience and training that exists in the Firm,while at the same time reducing your costs. We believe that the fees we charge are generally competitive with those charged by other lawyers in our community for similar services. Our standard hourly rates vary from person to person to reflect various factors, including specialization and experience. At the present time, our standard hourly rates range from $150 per hour for a first-year associate to$325 per hour for certain senior attorneys. The standard hourly rate for paralegals is $95. We adjust these rates from time to time, and these rates increase as lawyers gain experience and expertise. Because our fee usually relate to the amount of time spent on a matter and because it is generally impossible to anticipate accurately when problems or opposition matter, it is often impossible for us to estimate the precise amount of our fees lfor future services. We arc, however, always willing to give you our best estimate and to keep you informed of costs incurred to date as a matter progresses. Because of our inability to make precise estimates, unless we specifically agree to a fixed fee by engagement letter, any quotations of fees by the Finn are only estimates. We are always willing to discuss with you the basis on which a fee has been determined or any other question you may have at any time about our statements. Retainers With new clients or with substantial new matters for existing clients, the Firm may require what is known as a"retainer:" This retainer is in the nature of a deposit, held by the firm for the protection of its investment of time and effort. The retainer may be reduced monthly for the amount of services rendered and any disbursements made on your behalf. When the retainer is consumed in that manner, our fees for services together with disbursements will be billed monthly at the same hourly rates or you may be required to deposit an additional retainer. aosa1.z Page 1 i Client Disbursements Most matters require, from time to time, certain advances to be made on your behalf by the Firm. Some of these represent out-of-pocket charges we advance, others represent internal costs called "client disbursements." These "client disbursements" include costs for long distance telephone calls, postage, facsimile charges, copying charges, travel expenses, delivery charges, computerized legal research, court and other filing fees, support staff overtime when necessary to meet client demands, and other client-related expenses. It is understood that while acting as your lawyers,we have the authority to use our best judgment in making such expenditures on your behalf. Unless we have made prior arrangements with you, we will send you monthly billings for client disbursements incurred during the preceding billing period. If the nature of the matter is such that we anticipate substantial advances, we will require a separate deposit for such purpose. Also substantial individual items such as expert witness fees,the costs of deposition transcripts, printing,costs, etc., may be billed directly to you by the vendor of such services. Legal Assistants Certain work will be done by legal assistants, sometimes called "paralegals." Such persons, although not lawyers,have undergone substantial training to perform certain kinds of services which would otherwise need to be performed by lawyers. All such work is supervised by lawyers. The use of legal assistants allows us to deliver legal services to you at a lower cost. Computer Assisted Research In certain matters when lawyers must examine legal authorities to serve you, it will be more economical to accomplish the task by using nationwide computer databases of legal precedents, (instead of the traditional way of going to a law library and manually retrieving and examining such material from books). In such instances, the special charges assessed by the providers of these services are shown on client disbursement billings. Withdrawal of Representation In the event the firm determines, at any time,that we should withdraw from further representation, we shall have the right to do so upon reasonable notice to you. Although such occurrences are uncommon, there may be instances where withdrawal is appropriate, such as - non-payment or late payment of fees or disbursements, disagreements in the manner in which the matter should be handled, or other circumstances. If a termination of the attorney/client relationship occurs,you agree to cooperate in filing any papers with the court to withdraw from such representation. 80841.1 Page 2 8 Retention of Documents When a matter has been concluded, the Firm will retain for a reasonable time copies of most documents generated by the Firm or received by the Firm during our representation of you. Occasionally, closed files are destroyed to make efficient use of limited storage space. You will be notified before the file is destroyed, by letter mailed to your last known address and will be given the opportunity to obtain your file. You must retain all originals and copies which you desire among your own files for future reference or provide us with specific instructions for safekeeping and preservation of documents in our possession. Confidentiality I One final word about our representation; communications between an attorney and a client are confidential communications as provided by Texas law. If the communications between an attorney and a client are properly protected,then the communications can be kept from third parties except in rare circumstances. Because of this statutory communications privilege, it is extremely important that you exercise great care and caution about discussing or communicating with anyone outside the Firm regarding the legal matters we handle for you. Such discussion and communication could prejudice the effectiveness of our Firm's representation and, in any case, can and probably will destroy the confidentiality of communications between us, to the end that our attorney/client communications privilege cannot I be enforced. Accordingly we caution you to be very guarded with respect to any discussions about your legal matters outside this Firm. We appreciate you selecting us as your legal counsel and look forward to a long and cordial relationship. 80841.1 Page 3