Attorney

NOTICE OF REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS

The Town of White Springs, Florida (the “Town”) hereby gives notice of its intent to seek statements of qualification and transmittal letters (proposals) from interested firms in response to this Request for Qualifications (the “RFQ”) to provide the professional services described herein. Proposals must be received by 2:00 P.M. on Tuesday, October 31, 2023.

All submittals shall be publicly opened and recorded as soon as practicable after the deadline. Late submittals shall not be accepted or considered. Proposals may be submitted by mail, in person delivery, or electronically to clerk@whitespringsfl.us by the date and time stated above. Any proposals received after the due date and time specified will not be considered.

Questions regarding this solicitation shall be submitted in writing to clerk@whitespringsfl.us no later than five working days before the deadline. Responses to those questions considered material to the solicitation will be made available as formal addenda. It is the responsibility of prospective proposers to ensure they are aware of all addenda issued relative to this solicitation.

The Town reserves to itself the right to accept any proposal deemed to be in the best interest of the Town or to waive any informality in any submittal. The Town may reject any or all proposals and re- advertise.

OVERVIEW

The Town is soliciting statements of qualification from qualified and experienced law firms to provide a full range of municipal legal services serving as the Town’s legal counsel on a contractual basis. The Town Attorney will perform all duties pursuant to the Town Charter and Code of Ordinances. The services sought by the Town include serving as the attorney of record or being responsible for the oversight of the attorney of record in any matter and to perform all duties under the Charter and Code. The selected Town Attorney shall have been admitted to practice in the State of Florida for no less than five (5) years at the time of their appointment, be a member of good standing in the Florida Bar and have experience in the practice of law for a Florida unit of local government. The Town Attorney may be a law firm or an individual attorney that shall perform the duties of the Town Attorney under such terms, conditions, and compensation as may be established by the Council. The selection of Town Attorney shall be at the Town’s discretion and shall be made in a prompt manner after the receipt and evaluation of all RFQ responses.

The Town desires to hire a qualified firm and/or qualified attorney that possesses experience and expertise in such areas as, without limitation:

1. Ordinance and resolution drafting.
2. Land use and zoning matters.
3. Procurement/preparation and evaluation of RFPs, RFQs, and bidding issues.
4. Code compliance and environmental issues.
5. Police and police-related and/or constitutional issues.
6. Litigation.
7. Ad valorem tax issues.

 8. Public works issues.Construction and construction-related issues.

1. Public Utilities.
2. Real estate and real estate related transactions and matters.
3. Property liens and foreclosure matters.
4. Eminent domain and inverse condemnation.
5. Drafting of development agreements, proportionate share and impact fee agreements, traffic impacts and mitigation, platting, and service agreements.
6. Sunshine, public records laws, conflict of interest and other ethical issues.
7. Preparation of legislation and/or development of policies and procedures.
8. Elections issues.
9. Charter review and preparation of charter amendments/ballot amendments.
10. Contract law and administrative law, including interpretation of governmental agency rulings.
11. Various grant regulations and compliance issues including Federal and State matters.
12. Corporate and commercial Law.
13. Monitoring, reviewing, and advising on all state and federal legislation that may affect the Town’s interest or business and compliance issues.

PRICE PROPOSAL

The responsive Firm or Attorney should submit price proposals UNDER SEPARATE COVER, in order for the council to consider qualifications as the primary means of evaluation. The price proposal should contain the proposed monthly retainer rate and hourly billing rate of the primary legal advisor to the Town and hourly billing rates of any backup legal advisor(s) and support personnel to the Town in the event that the primary legal advisor is unable to represent the Town at any given meeting or on any given matter.

REQUIREMENTS OF PROFESSIONAL SERVICES

1. Attendance at all meetings of the Town Council, generally once per month. The number of council, special, executive session, and/or called meetings may vary each month and may be scheduled as required. The Town Attorney shall represent the Mayor and Council at each of these meetings, provide appropriate legal advice and/or written opinions, as necessary, and provide parliamentary guidance concerning the conduct of each of the meetings of the Council.
2. The Town Attorney shall attend Planning & Zoning Board meetings and workshop sessions as needed, generally one per month.
3. As requested, the Town Attorney will:
   1. Draft and/or review ordinances, charter amendments, resolutions, contracts, and correspondence.
   2. Provide legal consultation on some Town insurance matters; and provide legal advice or written opinions to Town staff on matters related to their official duties.
   3. The Town Attorney shall prosecute and defend the Town on all civil complaints, suits, or controversies in which the Town is a party. Specifically, the Town Attorney is responsible for prosecuting and defending the Town in civil action when no counsel is provided by liability insurance or when the Town’s exposure exceeds its insurance coverage. The Town Attorney may also represent an employee or elected official who is individually named in a suit as a result of the execution of official duties with the Town. When the Town’s insurance coverage is activated on a given matter, the Town Attorney shall cooperate as necessary with the legal counsel designated by the Town’s liability insurance carrier to ensure that the matter is dealt with in an expedient and professional manner.

1. The Town Attorney will provide the Town staff with assistance and legal counsel relating to the Town’s acquisition or sale of real property and in the review or preparation of deeds, easements, and title matters.
2. The Town Attorney will provide the Police Department with legal counsel and/or coordination on certain matters, nuisance abatement matters, and other matters primarily under the jurisdiction of the Police Department and other police-related matters.
3. The Town Attorney will perform other legal research and provide legal advice as requested by the Mayor, Town Council, or Town staff.
4. Remain current on federal, state and Florida local government law and legislative issues that may pertain to the operation of the Town and provide direction, as appropriate, to the Mayor, Town Council, and staff.
5. Participate in labor and other negotiations when requested.
6. Submit monthly reports of activities performed, including but not limited to status and updates on active files. Invoices shall be submitted monthly for services rendered.

TERM OF ENGAGEMENT

The Town anticipates that the contract will have an initial period of three (3) years with two (2) options to renew at three (3) year each for a total of nine (9) years. Initial contract term and option years, as applicable, will be determined during the negotiation process and shall be specified in resultant agreement.

Position Open Until Filled