A Trip in the Way Back Machine
Public Record Request for Legal Invoices :
March 2012
K & P = Kopelman and Paige
The response:
K & P for professional services through Feb 29, 2012 $5,097.55
K& P for professional services through Mar 27, 2012 $7,417.47
K & P for professional services through April 30, 2012 $4,289.47
K & P for professional services through May 31, 2012 $7,986.67
The total cost for 4 months of legal invoices $24,791.16
And then - Let's Make A Deal!
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Town counsel can only provide legal advice to the extent that they are asked to provide advice. As you can see from the invoices above, in the past, town counsel was heavily involved in the day to day operation of the Town of Templeton; at great cost, both financially and operationally.
Many of Templeton's current financial problems can be traced back to one item:
"On 4/12/2012 KIG Review new version of annual town meeting warrant;..." Read between the lines and you may figure it out.
In closing, Templeton has no permanent town administrator. Templeton has just received a 31 page financial management letter. Templeton does not have any stability in the treasurer/collector position. Templeton is taking on the largest capital project in its history - the elementary school.
Now is NOT the right time to destabilize the legal function of the town!
There is a difference between due diligence and further destabilizing the town.
As this trip in the way back machine has shown, it CAN get worse!
ReplyDeleteAt the selectmen working meeting on Monday night, a comment was made that the board will solicit requests for proposals for town counsel for FY 18 which begins on July 1st.
Sometimes people do listen.
As issues are pointed out things don't appear as they sometimes look.
The issue of review of new version of town meeting warrant. What that means is the selectmen voted on a warrant, voted to send to town counsel for review and Jeff Ritter sent it as the last thing he did after being fired. The interim town coordinator who followed then took that already voted warrant and started making changes to it, I believe you will find Bob Columbus as chairman of selectmen at that time. I have the "new warrant" with red lined changes in email form. This was done without a vote by selectmen, I was a selectmen at this time and very much in a minority (single) opinion that this should not happen. Sort of mirrors the actions of the current board and I do not believe in coincidences.
ReplyDeleteIsn't this the same warrant that the DOR official explained as a "accident" by the interim town coordinator ?? Some accident !
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