Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Legal Counsel topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Hackensack Board appoints outside legal firm, approves hourly rates
Summary
The Hackensack Board of Education voted Feb. 11 to appoint a law firm to represent the district from Feb. 12, 2025, through Jan. 31, 2026. The board discussed hourly rates during the motion and approved the resolution after a roll-call vote.
The Hackensack Board of Education voted Feb. 11 to appoint a law firm (identified in the meeting as Fitzpatrick Cole and Giblin) as the district’s legal counsel effective Feb. 12, 2025, through Jan. 31, 2026.
During the motion the presiding officer corrected the paralegal hourly rate stated in the resolution and confirmed an attorney hourly rate of $185; the paralegal rate was recorded as $90 per hour. A trustee moved the resolution (motion by Trustee Gilmore) and Trustee Pringle seconded. The board then conducted a roll-call vote; the motion passed.
Board members discussed administrative oversight for billing and directed that bills be forwarded to the board secretary for review and processing. The motion was introduced after the board returned from executive session, which the presiding officer said had addressed legal and personnel matters.
The board did not read a detailed, line-by-line contract during the meeting; the resolution on the record named the firm and specified the engagement dates and hourly-rate framework. The presiding officer said the district will notify the public when confidential matters discussed in executive session can be made public.
The board scheduled no further public deliberations on the law firm appointment in this meeting; additional details about the firm’s engagement, including any written contract or scope of work, were not presented in the public portion of the transcript.
