Laserfiche WebLink
1 <br /> <br />WS – Item 11 <br />WORK SESSION STAFF REPORT <br />Work Session Item No. 11 <br /> <br /> <br />Date: May 7, 2018 <br /> <br />To: City Council <br /> <br />From: Jeff Karlson, City Administrator <br /> <br />Re: Selection of City Attorney <br /> <br /> <br />Background <br /> <br />The City Council interviewed four firms for civil legal services on April 9 and April 16. <br />The Council directed staff to place this item on the May 7 work session for further <br />discussion. Below is a summary of proposals from the firms that were interviewed. <br /> <br />Campbell Knutson <br /> <br />The firm employs 15 attorneys and 10 legal assistants. Over 90% of the firm’s revenue is <br />generated by public sector clients. The lead attorney would be Matt Brokl. He has 12 <br />years of experience with Campbell Knutson representing municipal clients. Brokl’s <br />practice areas are general municipal, land use, litigation, and real estate. He was the city <br />attorney for Burnsville, Monticello, and Orono prior to accepting a position as Associate <br />General Counsel for Buffalo Wild Wings. Since returning to Campbell Knutson to <br />resume his career in municipal government, he is the city attorney for Lonsdale and <br />Montrose. <br /> <br />Campbell Knutson provides city attorneys for nearly two dozen cities and one township, <br />which includes the following metro cities: Arden Hills, Burnsville, Chanhassen, Edina, <br />Elk River, Farmington, Lakeville, North St. Paul, Plymouth, and St. Louis Park. <br /> <br />They proposed the following rates: <br /> Lead/Attorney/Shareholders: $155.00/hr. <br /> Attorneys: $145.00/hr. <br /> Legal Assistants/Law Clerks: $ 85.00/hr. <br /> <br />The minimum increment of time for billings is .10 hours (6 minutes). <br /> <br />Kennedy & Graven <br /> <br />Kennedy & Graven is the largest law firm in Minnesota that practices primarily local <br />government law. Their staff consists of 29 attorneys, 7 paralegals, and 14 support staff. <br />The firm practices in all major areas of municipal relating to cities. They are the <br />appointed city attorney in 32 cities, including Brooklyn Center, Brooklyn Park, Crystal,