Chaffee County meeting enters executive session for legal advice on active litigation

Participants in a Chaffee County meeting voted to enter an executive session under Colorado Revised Statutes Section 24-6-402(4)(b) to receive legal advice regarding active litigation and adjourned after emerging from the session at 3:29 p.m.

The motion to approve the agenda came first when Speaker 2, a meeting participant, said, "I'll make a motion to approve the agenda." A second was offered by Speaker 3 and the chair (Speaker 1) called the voice vote: "All in favor? Aye." The meeting then approved a motion to go into executive session "for the purpose of receiving legal advice regarding active litigation matters," citing CRS 24-6-402(4)(b). Speaker 3 moved the executive-session motion and Speaker 2 seconded it.

After the executive session ended, Speaker 1, a meeting participant, announced, "It is 03:29PM, and we have just exited the executive session." The presiding participant then invited anyone who had participated in the executive session to state for the record whether they believed any substantial discussion occurred outside the stated purpose or whether any improper action had taken place under the open meetings law. "Hearing none, we have no further business and we are adjourned," Speaker 1 said.

The meeting recorded no further public detail about the litigation or any formal vote on litigation strategy or settlement during the public proceeding. The sole items recorded on the public agenda were approval of the agenda and the motion to enter the executive session; the meeting concluded immediately after the post-session check for procedural compliance.

No names of outside counsel, parties to litigation, or substantive legal advice disclosed in open session were provided on the record.