Hamblen County commission votes to retain outside counsel in lawsuit; minutes amended to include settlement docket and amount

The Hamblen County Commission on Tuesday voted to allow the mayor to retain outside counsel to defend the county and the mayor's office in a lawsuit brought by plaintiffs identified in the meeting as Joseph Hone and Gwen Holden. Mayor Cutshall said Tennessee Risk Management declined coverage for the latest suit and that the county attorney may need to recuse because he could be called as a witness.

"Therefore, we're having to seek counsel outside," the mayor said when explaining why the matter was referred to the commission. Commissioners approved the motion to add the counsel-retention item to the regular calendar and later voted to authorize the mayor to retain outside counsel.

Several commissioners requested transparency about the expense and representation; one commissioner asked the mayor to provide the name of the law firm and attorney representing the plaintiffs "so this commission and the county will know who is costing us money." The mayor said he would provide information as appropriate; no firm name was entered into the public record during the meeting.

Separately, the commission addressed minutes from a special-called meeting tied to prior litigation. Commissioner Edna Green asked that the minutes explicitly list the docket number and the settlement amount so future readers of the minutes would have a clear public record. The commission accepted an amendment to the minutes that added the docket number and noted Green's reported settlement of $14,900, and attached the settlement agreement to the minutes.

No further details about attorney fees for the current litigation were released at the meeting; commissioners said they would return additional information if necessary.