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Committee approves $99,000 increase to outside labor counsel agreement
Summary
The committee approved a $99,000 increase to the city's legal services agreement for outside labor counsel to cover ongoing labor arbitration and litigation work, following a presentation from the labor director describing substantial recent litigation and contract work.
The committee approved a request to increase the legal-services contract for outside labor counsel by $99,000 after the city's labor director described ongoing high-cost litigation and contract work that exhausted the annual contracted amount.
The increase matters because outside counsel covers protracted labor arbitration and litigation that the city said has required more hours than the current contract estimate.
Wendell Olfatti, the city's labor director, told the committee the city had "significant high-profile cases" including litigation connected to the Cox matter and a lengthy police contract negotiation that had driven legal costs. He said outside counsel had nearly exhausted the existing $99,000 contracted amount by December 2024: "he had almost exhausted the 99,000 legal fee that's requested each year," Olfatti said, adding that several protracted arbitrations and appellate matters contributed to the expense.
Olffati (sic) said the city had limited work on a fire contract negotiation while other litigation involving the fire command had delayed bargaining and increased outside counsel needs. He described the requested $99,000 increase as necessary to provide coverage through the current contract-year work, including expected arbitration and negotiation tasks.
Committee members asked whether the city was building in more in-house capacity to reduce reliance on outside counsel. Olfatti said the Office of Labor Relations has expanded its in-house effort and had added an attorney recently but faced hiring challenges; he said the office continues to litigate much work internally but relies on outside firms for high-volume or appellate matters.
A motion to approve the $99,000 increase was moved and seconded, and committee members voted in favor by voice vote; the record does not show a roll-call tally. Committee members who spoke in support noted the firm's experience in public-safety labor matters and the practical need for outside counsel on complex arbitrations.
The increase will allow outside counsel to continue representing the city in ongoing arbitrations and litigation; the labor director said the office remains committed to building in-house capabilities over time.
