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Denton County commissioners end outside counsel and authorize D. Randall Montgomery in two pending suits
Summary
Denton County commissioners voted unanimously to terminate outside counsel and assign D. Randall Montgomery and Associates, PLLC, to represent the county in two pending lawsuits involving the county public health department and the sheriff’s office; contracts were authorized as exempt under Texas Local Government Code §262.023 if applicable.
Denton County commissioners voted unanimously to end existing outside legal representation and to hire D. Randall Montgomery and Associates, PLLC, to represent the county in two pending lawsuits, the court record shows.
The chair moved to terminate legal representation by the law firm identified in the transcript for Denton County Public Health in cause no. 42300864ALM (styled SF v. Denton County) pending in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, Sherman Division. “The chair moves to, 1, terminate legal representation on behalf of Denton County, Texas, Denton County Public Health,” the chair said. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Williams and carried unanimously.
The commissioners then voted to assign D. Randall Montgomery and Associates, PLLC, to represent the county in the same federal matter and authorized an employment contract for D. Randall Montgomery that the county characterized as potentially exempt from the competitive bidding or procurement requirements of Texas Local Government Code §262.023. The chair also asked that the county judge be authorized to sign the contract.
Separately under the same agenda item, the chair moved to terminate outside legal representation for the Denton County Sheriff’s Office and Sheriff Tracy Murphy in cause no. 222726211 (styled John Tillman Milstead v. Denton County) pending in the 470th Judicial District Court of Denton County. The motion was seconded and carried unanimously. The court then approved assigning D. Randall Montgomery and Associates, PLLC, to the Sheriff’s Office matter and authorized an exempt employment contract and the county judge’s signature.
The transcript cites Texas Local Government Code §262.023 as the statutory provision referenced by commissioners when discussing an exemption from the usual procurement requirements for the proposed employment contracts. The transcript does not include a numeric roll-call of votes; motions were recorded as “carried unanimously.”
No substantive debate, public comment, or objections to the appointments appear in the available transcript. The meeting concluded with the chair offering Thanksgiving wishes and adjourning.
What the actions mean: the county will be represented in the two cases by D. Randall Montgomery and Associates, PLLC, under employment contracts authorized by the commissioners. The contracts were described in the meeting as possibly exempt from Texas Local Government Code §262.023; the transcript does not provide further contract terms, fees, or the effective dates for the agreements.
Next steps: The county judge was authorized to execute the contracts; the transcript does not record when contracts will be finalized or any required public postings or filings related to the exemption.
