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Commission rejects proposed county attorney contract after extended debate over conflicts, pay and termination terms
Summary
The Walton County Board debated and then rejected a proposed contract for county attorney Clay Atkinson. Commissioners and public commenters clashed over compensation, conflict-of-interest risks given the firm’s other municipal clients, and a clause requiring a supermajority vote for termination; the motion failed 3–2.
DeFuniak Springs — A contested motion to approve a contract with Atkinson Law Firm for county attorney services failed at the Walton County Board of County Commissioners meeting on Aug. 12 after hours of debate by commissioners and public comment.
The proposed contract would have replaced the interim arrangement and moved the county to a retainer model that staff presented as a cost-saving alternative to a full-time in-house county-attorney FTE. The contract terms discussed on the dais included a flat monthly retainer to cover most county legal work, a rate for litigation work outside the retainer, several…
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