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Denton ethics board considers requiring violators to reimburse city legal costs for deliberate breaches
Summary
Board members discussed adding reimbursement of the city's outside counsel costs to the sanctions list for knowingly intentional or frivolous ethics violations and asked staff and counsel to research legal feasibility under Texas law.
Board members reviewed the ethics ordinance’s existing sanctions chart — letters of notification, admonition, reprimand, suspension (not applicable to council), and vendor ineligibility — and discussed whether to add an option to require a respondent to reimburse the city’s legal costs when a violation is found to be knowing, intentional or part of a frivolous complaint.
One member suggested that if a respondent’s conduct imposed outside counsel costs on the city, the ordinance could allow recovery of those costs at the level of a letter of reprimand for intentional or knowing violations. Another board member said the council raised concern about the cost of outside counsel during the March 4 work session.
City staff cautioned that Texas follows the American rule, meaning litigants generally pay their own legal fees unless a statute authorizes fee shifting; staff advised that adding a fee‑recovery provision is legally uncertain and would require review by the City Attorney and outside counsel. The board directed staff to research the legality and feasibility of adding language that would permit the city to seek reimbursement of legal expenses in cases of intentional violations or frivolous complaints and to report back to the board.
