Tourism board votes to engage outside counsel after county attorney limits noted

Sumner County — The Sumner County Tourism Board voted on May 27 to proceed with engaging outside legal counsel after members discussed limits to representation by the county attorney and the board’s need for business and real estate expertise.

Board materials and the presenter noted that the county attorney is constrained from acting as the tourism board’s private counsel. The presenter said they had interviewed Walter Stubbs of the Stubbs Law Group in Gallatin and described his practice as including business and real estate law. “Of all the attorneys I’ve talked to in town, he’s the only one that really does business attorney work,” the presenter said.

During the meeting the presenter recommended authorizing contact with Stubbs Law Group so the board would have outside counsel available when needed. The presenter described Stubbs’s billing detail for support roles, saying, “His rates 25 for paralegal.” After a short discussion a member moved to approve contacting Stubbs Law Group, another member seconded, and the chair called for the vote. The meeting record shows the motion was seconded and the board responded, “Aye.” The presenter told the board the county attorney had said they could provide limited gratis work if it was included as a budget item, but county staff recommended outside counsel because of workload.

Why this matters: outside counsel availability affects the board’s ability to get legal advice on leases, contracts and potential property development without relying solely on limited county resources.

The board approved the authorization at the meeting; the presenter said exact scopes and fee arrangements will be determined as needs arise.