CROMWELL >> Mounting legal bills are becoming an increasing concern for both the finance director and the Board of Finance.
During the finance board?s regular monthly meeting Thursday, Director of Finance Marianne Sylvester said, ?When you look at the last six months, we may need to do a transfer.?
The line item for the town attorney for labor negotiations ?took a hit in the first six months? of the 2012-13 fiscal year, which began on July 1, Sylvester said.
In those first six months, the town was, among other things, working to settle three outstanding grievance appeals that had carried over from the 2011-12 fiscal year, Sylvester said.
Those grievances have been resolved. And ?the bills we received for December were significantly lower,? Sylvester told the board.
The town this year allocated $75,000 for labor relations, Sylvester said. The money is paid to the firm of Kainen, Escalera & McHale.
While the labor relations bills appear to be moderating, the fees paid to the town attorney are averaging approximately $10,000 a month, Sylvester said.
The town has budgeted $100,000 for legal fees for the current fiscal year, Sylvester said. Those bills are paid to the firm of Murtha Cullina.
But if those bills continue to come in at or around $10,000 a month, the yearly allocation will be exceeded and the board will have to allocate additional funds, Sylvester said.
?Hopefully, the (supplemental appropriation) will not exceed $40,000,? Sylvester said. Continued...
During virtually every board meeting, finance board member Julius C. Neto expresses his concern about the steady growth in legal fees. The trend line for legal fees has been growing consistently over the past five to 10 years, Neto said.
Neto regularly punctuates his remarks about escalating legal fees with a gentle rise of his right hand, mimicking the motion an airplane makes as it climbs into the sky.
But Neto?s chief concern is the hard landing that could await the town if the growth in legal fees is not stabilized.
?Do we have a plan to try and manage these legal expenses?? he asked Sylvester Thursday.
?We will probably see a little savings in the medical insurance line item,? Sylvester said, ?so we should be able to absorb (the overage in legal fees) in our operating budget.?
?We?re on a slippery slope,? Neto said. ?We are projecting year-after-year increases, it just seems to me.?
?Attorney?s fees are very expensive. And they could become a runaway train if we can?t find a way to manage our expenses,? Neto said.
?The last five to 10 years, legal expenses have become like health insurance,? Neto said.
The reference to health insurance provided an opening for Sylvester to make a well-timed ? and well-delivered - humorous remark.
?We have a wellness program for health insurance,? Sylvester said. ?Maybe we need a wellness program for our legal expenses.? Continued...
The remark drew appreciative laughs from Neto and his fellow board members.
But even as he enjoyed Sylvester?s bon mot, Neto remained focused on the larger issue, however.
?We have to find a way not to request the attorney?s opinion. Are we going to the attorney on the first day? (The director of) human resources (HR) can deal with some of these issues? without automatically referring them to the town attorney, Neto suggested.
?HR does try to deal with many situations without referring them to the town attorney,? Sylvester said. ?But a lot of these (issues) are grievances that have escalated.?
?This is just one area; I?m not trying to pick on HR,? Neto said.
Finance board Chairwoman Loraine Caruso said she shared many of Neto?s concerns.
Board member Joe Corlis suggested the town ?try more mediation instead of going to court.?
?A lot of our legal efforts are (undertaken) to protect the town,? Sylvester said.
That said, Sylvester acknowledged, ?There is a balance we need to find.?
Source: http://www.middletownpress.com/articles/2013/01/28/news/doc5103323a42f87074095246.txt
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