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HomeMy WebLinkAboutC21-138 Berg Hill Greenleaf RuscittiBERGHILLGREENLEAFRUSCITTILIPEmail:jam@bhgrlaw.comApril29,2021ViaE-Mail:bryan.treu@eaglecounty.usEagleCounty,ColoradodoBryanR.Treu,CountyAttorneyP.O.Box850Eagle,CO81631Re:OmnibusEngagementAgreementDearBryan:OnbehalfofBergHillGreenleafRuscittiLLP,mayIexpressourappreciationforyourselectionofourfirmtorepresentEagleCounty(the“County”)regardingfuturetortandcivilrightslitigationnowthatEagleCountyhasreconfigureditsinsurancecoveragetoahighdeductible/excessmodel.TheCountyhasindicatedthatdesiresourpublicentitypracticegrouptoprovidedefendsuchlitigationmovingforwardandtoprovideadditionalconsultationservicesasneeded.Thefollowingdocumentsouragreementtoperformthesefutureservicesunderanomnibusengagementdocument.Weshallassumesuchrepresentation,understandingthatwewillchargeforourservicesatthethencurrenthourlyratesperemployee(currentratesaresetforthonExhibitA,attachedhereto).Chargesarecalculatedinsixminuteincrements.WewillgiveCountyatleast30daysadvancenoticeofanychangeinourfirm’sbillingrates,astheyareperiodicallyincreasedtoaccommodateincreasesinthecostofoperations.CountywillberequiredtopayallcostsandexpensesincurredbyourfirmonCounty’sbehalf.Costs,expensesandfeesarepayableregardlessoftheoutcomeofthecaseormatter.IntheeventwearerequiredtotravelonCounty’sbehalf,wewillchargeatourregularratesfortraveltime.OurfirmagreestoperformlegalservicesonCounty’sbehalffaithfullyandwithduediligence.WeareauthorizedtopayonCounty’sbehalfanybillsassociatedwiththismatter,whetherincurredbyCountyorus,butwehavenoobligationtopaythesame.Whethersaidbillsarepaidbyusornot,Countywillremainliableforthesameuntildischargedinfull.Wewillnotincurexpensesinexcessof$250.00intheaggregatewithoutfurtherauthorizationbyCounty.\tfnllw\t1\ilawBoUlder.CO1712PearlSt.8030?BHGRLA’.VCOMDenver,CO152517thSt.,80202Office303 4021600-_—-‘Cheyenne,WY1673CentralAye.,Ste 204,82001‘—‘Fax303402.1601Irvine,CA300SpectrumCenter,Ste400,92618JoshA.MarksPartnerC21-138 April29,2021Page2Inregardtoallservicesrenderedbyourfirm,wewillcustomarilybeincurringphotocopying,postage,longdistancecalls,andother“outofpocket”expenses.AlloutofpocketexpensesthatwereasonablydeemnecessaryintherenditionoflegalservicesonCounty’sbehalfwouldbeatCounty’sexpense(e.g.,computerizedlegalresearch,duplicationofdocuments,litigationsupportdocumenthostingservices,etc.),except,however,anyunusualexpenses(e.g.,useofanindependentexpertorprofessionalorsecuringasurvey)wouldonlybeincurredafterCountywouldhaveapprovedthesame.Anyoutofpocketcostsorexpensesover$300.00willbeforwardedtoCountyfordirectpayment.Wesendinvoicesatleastmonthly,butwemaybillmotefrequentlydependinguponthenatureandmagnitudeoftheservices.Invoicesaredueuponreceipt.Wewillsendinvoicesviae-mailunlessCountyspecificallyrequestsinwritingthatwemailthem,oryoufailtoprovideuswithane-mailaddress.Thisfirmhasaclienttrustaccountinwhichretainersandotherfundsbelongingtotheclientwhichareeithernominalinamountorexpectedtobeheldforashorttimearedeposited.Ourclienttrustaccountisaninterest-bearingaccount,andtheinterestispayabletotheColoradoLawyerTrustAccountFoundation(COLTAF)anon-profitfoundation.IntheeventthatCountydoesnotwishtheinterestonitstrustaccountfundstogotoCOLTAF,andCountyexpectsthefundstobeheldintrustforCounty’sbenefitwillbesubstantialandnotheldforashortperiodoftime,sothattheestablishmentofaseparateaccountisjustified,pleaseadviseusinwritingofCounty’sdesires,andwewillmakereasonableandappropriatebankingarrangements.Otherwise,anyfundsheldforCountyoronCounty’sbehalfwillbedepositedintothefirm’sCOLTAFaccount.Inanyeventwewillreviewatreasonableintervalswhetherchangedcircumstancesrequirefurtheractionsaffectingthedepositofsuchfunds.CountyagreesthatwemaywithdrawfromitsrepresentationuponwrittennoticebeingsenttoCountyifanybillisnotreasonablypaidaftermailing,ifCountyhasrefusedtofollowouradvicetoanextentthatwedeemprejudicialtoourcontinuedrelationship,ifCountyhasrefusedtocooperatewithusinourrepresentationofthecaseorifaconflictofinterestarisesthatwouldprecludeourjointrepresentation.Wewillretainalldocuments,files,andotherinformation,pertainingtoCounty’smatteruntilfullpaymentismade.ItisagreedthatCountywillbearallcostsofcollection,includingreasonableattorneys’fees,ifpaymentsarenotmadeasagreed.Countywarrantsandacknowledgesthatithasthefinancialabilitytodischargeallfees,costs,andexpensescontemplatedbythisagreement.IwillbetheattorneyinchargeofCounty’saccount,andtherefore,willbetheappropriatecontactpersonforservicestoberenderedonCounty’sbehalfbyourfirm.Notwithstandingthat,pleasedonothesitatetocallanyotherattorneywhoisworkingonCounty’smatter. April29,2021Page3Manyclientsusecordlessphones,cellphones,faxmachines,voicemessaging,hand-helddevices,e-mailorsimilardevicesorcommunicationsystemsandwishtocommunicatewithourFirmviathesemediabecausetheymaypromotemoretimelyresponsesandefficiency.However,moderncommunicationsystemssuchasthesemaynotbeassecureasthemailingofhardcopiesofdocuments,face-to-facemeetings,orphonecallsthroughlandlinesandmaybemoreeasilysubjecttointerceptionthanmoretraditionalformsofcommunication.Bysigningthisfeeagreementbelow,Countyconsentstotheuseofmodernmeansofcommunication,includingbutnotlimitedto,cellphones,faxmachines,voicemessaging,hand-helddevices,e-mailorsimilardevicesorcommunicationsystems.IfCountywishestocommunicateusingpasswordprotectedorencryptede-mail,pleasenotifyusofthisfactinwritingandwewillaccommodateCounty’srequest.Similarly,ifCountywishestocommunicateonlywithusviatraditionalmedia(letterssentviaU.S.Mailortelephonelandlines),pleaseadviseusofthisfactinwritingandwewillaccommodateCounty’srequest.Regardlessofthemodeofcommunicationused,pleasekeepinmindthatcommunicationsbetweenourofficeandCountyaregenerallyconfidential.OurFirm’sguidelinesregardingcommunicationsandpreservationofelectronicdataisattachedatExhibitB.TheCountyagreestotheseguidelinesaswell.TheFirms’Document/DataManagementPolicyisattachedforCounty’sreviewandinformationasExhibitC.Bysigningbelow,youconsenttothispolicyandtothemanagementofyourfileaccordingly.Inaddition,bysigningbelow,Countyacknowledgesthatwehavemadenoguaranteeregardingthesuccessfuldeterminationofanyfuturematterandallexpressionsrelativetheretoaremattersofourpreliminaryopinionsbasedonourcurrentknowledgeofthesubjectmatters.YoursignaturebelowalsoisacknowledgementthatyouhaveappropriateauthoritytoretainusunderthisagreementandthattheCountyhasappropriatedsufficientfundsinthecurrentbudgettopayourinvoicesmovingforward.Notwithstandinganythinginthisfeeagreementtothecontrary,intheeventweareunabletowithdrawascounselforyouinanypendingaction,whetherthroughorderoftheCourtorotherwise,wewillcontinuetorepresentyouuntilsuchtimeaswearelegallyabletowithdraw.Intheinterim,youwillremainresponsibleforallattorneys’feesandcostsincurredinconnectionwithourcontinuedrepresentationofyou,andyouherebyagreetopayallsuchfeesandcostsinaccordancewiththetermsofthisfeeagreementuntilsuchtimeaswearelegallyabletowithdrawascounselforyou.Ifalloftheforegoingisagreeablewithyou,pleaseindicateyourapprovalonthelinesprovidedbelow,andreturnaPDFcopyofthesignedacknowledgmenttomeviae-mail,fax,or April29,2021Page4regularmail.Electronicsignatures,DocuSignorothersimilarmeansofacceptancearevalidasoriginalsignatures.Pleaseretainthefullysignedcopyofthisletterforyourinformationandrecords.Thereceiptbyyouofafullyexecutedcopyofthisagreementisacknowledgedbyyoursignaturehereto.WelookforwardtorepresentingCounty.Verytrulyyours,VVJoshA.MarksREADANDAPPROVEDthis-dayofApril,2021.COUNTYOFEAGLE,COLORADOBy:BRYANR.TREUIts:CountyAttorney April29,2021Page5EXHIBITATimekeeperRatePartners$280.00/hourAssociates$250.00/hourParalegals$150.00/hour April29,2021Page6EXHIBITBPRESERVATIONOFCONFIDENTIALCOMMUNICATIONSANDELECTRONICDATAOurcommunicationsmaybesubjecttotheattorney/clientprivilege,whichmeansthatneitherCountynoranyonefromtheFirmmaybecalledtotestifyaboutthenatureandsubjectmatterofourcommunicationswithCounty.However,thatprivilegecanbelost,andthecommunicationsrequiredtobedisclosedattrialifthecommunicationsaresharedwithathirdparty.ThisriskisheightenedwiththepotentialthatourcommunicationscouldbeinadvertentlydisclosedpursuanttoaColoradoOpenRecordsActrequest.InordertoprotecttheconfidentialnatureofourcommunicationswithCounty,weaskthatCountyrefrainfromsharingorrelatingourcommunicationstoathirdparty,withtheexceptionofitsexcessinsurers.IntheeventCountybelievesthatcommunicationswithourofficeshouldbesharedwithathirdparty,weaskthatCountyconsultwiththeattorneyinchargeofCounty’scasebeforedoingso.Inthatway,Countyandtheattorneycandeterminewhatinformationshouldbeprovidedtothethirdparty,whentheinformationshouldbeprovided,howtheinformationshouldbeprovidedandwhetherthatinformationshouldcomefromCountyorfromtheattorney.Giventheeaseofforwardingemailsandvoicemails,itisextremelyimportanttothesuccessofCounty’smatterthatCountykeepsthispolicyinmindandresiststheurgeto“forward”toor“copy”thirdpartiesourcommunicationswithCounty.Countyagreestofollowourfirm’spoliciestocomplywithrulesrequiringpreservationofelectronicdata.Essentially,allelectronicdataispotentiallydiscoverableinlitigation.Thisincludese-mailsentorreceivedbyanyemployee,other“active”informationstoredonservers,orinformationstoredonbackuptapesorothermediathatarecapableofrestoration,eveniftheinformationwasdeletedatsomepriortime.OnceCountyreasonablyanticipateslitigation,Countyagreestosuspendroutinedocumentretention/destructionpolicyandputinplacea“litigationhold”toensurethepreservationofrelevantdocuments.Countyagreestoworkwithussowecanoverseecompliancewiththelitigationhold,andmonitorCounty’seffortstoidentify,retain,andproducerelevantdocuments.Thiswillinvariablyinvolvespeakingwithinformationtechnologypersonnelwhocanexplainsystem-widebackupproceduresandtheactualimplementationofrecyclingpolicy.Itwillalsoinvolvecommunicatingwith“keyplayers”inthelitigationinordertounderstandhowtheystoredinformation.Countyunderstandsthatitisnotsufficienttonotifyallemployeesofthelitigationholdandexpectthatthepartywillthenretainandproduceallrelevantinformation.AsCounty’slegalcounsel,wemusttakeaffirmativestepstomonitorcompliancesothatallsourcesofdiscoverableinformationareidentifiedandsearched.Countyunderstandsthatfailuretocomplywiththesepreservationobligationscouldresultinseveresanctionsbeingimposedbythecourtincludingmonetarypenalties,thegivingofanadverseinferenceinstructiontothejuryattrial,orevendismissalof April29,2021Page7certainlegalclaimsordefenses.Countyagreestopayallcostsandfeesassociatedwithcomplyingwithelectronicdatarequirements. April29,2021Page8EXHIBITCDOCUMENT/DATAMANAGEMENTPOLICYBERGHILLGREENLEAFRUSCITIILLPJANUARY2019DOCUMENTRETENTIONPOLICYTheFirmrecognizesthatrecordsandinformationmanagementisthesystematiccontrolofallrecords,regardlessofmedia,fromtheircreationorreceipt,throughtheirprocessing,distribution,organization,storage,andretrievaltotheirdestruction.Informationflowsthroughtheorganizationintheformofpaperandelectronicrecordssuchaswordprocessingdocuments,spreadsheets,e-mail,graphicalimages,andvoiceordatatransmissions.Inaddition,theFirmacknowledgesthatinformationcanbestoredonavarietyofstoragemedia;therefore,theFirm’sretentionpoliciesapplyhowevertherecordsandinformationarestored.ActiveclientrecordswillgenerallybestoredonsiteandontheFirm’scloud-baseddocumentmanagementservice,Netdocuments.TheFirmutilizesathird-partycloud-baseddocumentmanagementsystemtoincreasesecurity,efficiency,productivity,andeaseofaccesstorecordsbytheFirmandtheclient.TheFirmhaschosenNetdocumentsbecauseitprovidessecurityandprivacycertificationsandcomplianceconsistentwiththeFirm’slegalandethicaldutiesregardingclientinformationandrecords.ByretainingtheFirm,theclientconsentstotheFirmutilizingNetdocumentsforfileandrecordretentionandmanagementpurposes.Fromtimetotimeactiveclienthardfilesmaybesentoffsiteduringperiodsofinactivityandtocreatemorestorageroomonsite.TheFirmutilizesanoffsitestoragefacilitythatprovidessecurityandprivacyconsistentwiththeFirm’slegalandethicaldutiesregardingclientinformationandrecords.ByretainingtheFirm,theclientconsentstotheFirmutilizingoffsitestorageforfileandrecordretentionandmanagementpurposes.Onceamatterconcludes,anyoriginalclientdocumentsmaybereturnedtotheclient,anyduplicateorextradocumentswillberemovedfromthefileanddestroyed,andtheremaininghardfilemaybeshippedoffsiteforstorageasneeded.AnypartofthematterthathasbeenstoredinNetdocumentswillcontinuetobestoredthereconsistentwiththeFirm’sdocumentretentionpolicy. April29,2021Page9Providedthattherearenopendingand/orthreatenedlegalproceedingsknownbytheFirmthatrelatedtothematterandthefirmhasnotagreedtothecontrary,thefollowingretentionperiodsareestablishedforrecordsaccordingtodepartmental,fiscal,andlegalrequirements.Retentionperiodsshallrunfromtheterminationoftherepresentationortheterminationofthematterifthefirmrepresentstheclientinmultiplematters.Retentionperiodsareasfollows:CriminalFiles:5yearstolifeofclientdependingupontypeofcrimeand/oroutcomeofcaseperColoradoRulesofProfessionalconduct1.16A,unlessthereisanappealofafelonyconvictionorsentence,andinthatinstance,thefilewillberetainedfor8years.LitigationFiles:7yearswithnoticetoclient;10yearswithoutnoticetoclientEnvironmentalFiles:15yearsEstates&TrustsFiles:IndefinitelyuntiltheminorchildreachesmaturityStockcertificates,corporatetaxreturns,SecretaryofStatefilings,andretirementaccountdocumentation:PermanentlyServer:Backedupnightly.Electronicdatamaybestoredupto12months.NetDocuments:Documentmanagementonlinestorage.Maintainedremotely,encrypted,andbackedupwithredundantdatacenters.PCs:Uponanemployee’sterminationoracomputerupgradeforanactiveemployee,thePCusedbythatindividualiswipedcleanandeitherputbackintousebyanotherFirmemployee,donatedordestroyed. April29,2021Page10DOCUMENTDESTRUCTIONPOLICYOncerecordshavereachedtheirdesignatedtimefordestruction,theyshouldbedestroyedoreliminatedfromallstoragemedia;thatis,filecabinets,inactivestorage,magneticmedia,“cloud”storage,”andanyothermeansofelectronicstorageorbackup.TheFirm’srecordmanagerwillberesponsibleformonitoringanddeterminingwhenrecordsarereadytobepurged.TraditionalpaperrecordstobedestroyedwillbesenttoashreddingfacilityandthedestructiondatewillberecordedintheFirm’sdocumentmanagementsystem.Electronicrecordswillbephysicallydestroyedand/orscrubbedbyuseofascrubbingsoftware.Ifthepartnerinchargeofafiledeterminesthatitisnecessarytodeviatefromtheseretentionanddestructionpolicies,thepartnershallinformtheFirm’srecordmanagerwhoshallrecordthepartner’sinstructionsintheFirm’sdocumentmanagementsystem