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Village attorney asks commission to raise flat legal fee to $14,583 a month
Summary
Village attorney Brad told commissioners the firm’s flat-rate contract — currently $8,333 per month — no longer covers increased workload and asked the panel to consider raising the fee to $14,583. The finance director said the budget could absorb a higher amount but asked for market comparables before the first reading.
Brad, the village attorney, asked the commission at the Aug. 26 budget workshop to consider raising the flat monthly legal fee for the firm that serves the Village of Biscayne Park.
The firm’s current flat fee is $8,333 per month (about $99,996 annually), Brad said, and over a 10‑month look-back the village effectively has been paying what equated to $93.04 per hour in billable time. He proposed raising the monthly flat fee to $14,583.33 — an annual total of $175,000 — to better reflect the volume and type of legal work the firm provides.
Why it matters: a significant increase in the contractual legal fee would reduce discretionary funds available for other priorities. Commissioners asked whether the budget can absorb the change and requested market comparisons to judge competitiveness.
Brad said the firm’s proposed rate would still be below many specialized municipal rates and cited comparables from nearby local governments as reference points. Finance Director Paul said at a 9.4 millage projection the draft budget still shows discretionary capacity — and staff estimated that 1–2 rounds of budget updates and year-end surplus projections could add further leeway. Several commissioners asked the manager to solicit comparative proposals or pricing benchmarks so the commission could consider a counteroffer at first reading.
A commissioner asked whether the village’s current agreement was tied to billable hours; Brad responded that the contract is a flat rate but that the firm documents hours so the village can see work performed. Brad offered to take any counteroffer from the commission to the firm and requested commissioners provide a target figure.
Next step: The manager and finance director will gather market comparables and present affordability options at the first reading.
