Berkeley to seek proposals for city attorney services; council asks for quarterly legal updates

The Berkeley City Council on April 21 voted to publish a request for proposals seeking qualified firms to provide city attorney services, a step council members described as a routine best practice while the city continues operating month-to-month under its existing legal services arrangement.

City staff said the current contract with Haefeli, Starin & Crist PC has expired and the city has continued on a month-to-month basis. "The decision to release a request for proposals is not meant to indicate any sort of dissatisfaction with their services," the staff member presenting the item said. "It's only a reflection, I think, of best practice." The council approved the motion to publish the RFP on a unanimous roll call.

Council members pressed staff on the RFP timeline and on how responses would be solicited. The presenter said the city plans to post the RFP through the Michigan Municipal League and to notify the Michigan Association of Municipal Attorneys (MAMA). On timeline, staff said they used the same one-month window the city used previously but could extend it to six weeks if council requested.

Council member Hennen proposed adding a requirement that the selected firm provide regular written reports summarizing current legal matters — ongoing litigation, prosecutions, significant legal developments and potential areas of legal risk. "I would like to see a formalized report," Hennen said. Council members generally supported quarterly reporting as a balance between frequency and burden. Council member Baker said he favored quarterly updates and that special, significant developments could be circulated as they occur.

Attorney Crist, representing the current firm, told council that going out for proposals is within council's prerogative and that clarification of the contract status would be appropriate if council wishes to continue with the present firm. "If counsel decide that it is satisfied with the current firm representation, I would suggest at a minimum providing clarity through an amendment to identify that since, as city manager indicated, there's currently an expired contract," he said.

Motion details: Motion to approve publication of the RFP was made by Mayor Pro Tem Gavin and supported by Council member Hennen. The council's roll-call vote recorded affirmative votes from Gavin, Hennen, Patterson, Vilani, Baker, Black and Dean. Staff said the city will monitor response levels and return to council to extend the submission window if needed.

The council did not set a final contract award date; the action approved publication of the RFP only. The RFP scope and any scoring or evaluation criteria will be presented to council after responses are received.