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HomeMy WebLinkAbout#5288 agreement with Davis & Campbell RESOLUTION NO. 5288 A RESOLUTION APPROVING AN ENGAGEMENT AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY OF CANTON AND DAVIS & CAMPBELL L.L.C. WHEREAS, the City of Canton (the "City") is in ongoing litigation and/or settlement discussions with Navistar, Inc. regarding the former International Harvester property located in Canton, Illinois; WHEREAS, the City believes it would be in its best interests to finalize pending matters with Navistar in order to further development within the City; WHEREAS, pursuant to the Agreement for Legal Services for the City of Canton, approved pursuant to Resolution No. 5240, "[i]n the event certain litigation, arbitration, or other contested matters arise, which in the discretion of Attorney, would cause a substantial increase in legal services generally provided herein, the Attorney reserves the right to request reasonable, additional retainer( s) or fee( s), to be approved by the corporate authorities, prior to representing the City in relation to said contested matters, and in addition to the General Retainer set forth herein."; WHEREAS, the Mayor of the City of Canton has determined that it is necessary and in the best interests of the City of Canton to enter into an Engagement Agreement with DAVIS & CAMPBELL L.L.C. to provide certain legal services to the City, as set forth in Exhibit "A" attached hereto and incorporated herein, and in relation to matters pending with Navistar and related issues/matters. NOW,THEREFORE,BE IT RESOLVED BY THE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CANTON, ILLINOIS, AS FOLLOWS: 1. That the agreement attached hereto and incorporated herein as Exhibit "A" is hereby approved by the Canton City Council. 2. That the Mayor of the City of Canton, Illinois is hereby authorized and directed to execute an Agreement substantially in the form as"Exhibit A"on behalf of the City of Canton. 5. That this Resolution shall be in full force and effect immediately upon its passage by the City Council of the City of Canton, Illinois and approval by the Mayor thereof. PASSED by the City Council of the City of Canton, Illinois at a regular meeting this 17th day of November, 2020 upon a roll call vote as follows: AYES: Aldermen Andra Chamberlin, Quin Mayhew, John Lovell, Craig West, Angela Hale, Jeff Fritz, Angela Lingenfelter NAYS: None ABSENT: Alderman Justin Nelson APPROVED: M cv............. rpt cI owell, �, r AT f`�IS T: l ia, a vel y-Rock, City leak 401 MAIN STREET SUITE 1600 PEORIA, ILLINOIS 61602-1241 TEL: (309)673-1681 .AVIS & CAMPBELL L.L.C.C w. (309) 90 w.dcamplawsaw.com FILE NO. 32957-014 November 17, 2020 Kent A. McDowell, Mayor City of Canton 2 N. Main Street Canton, IL 61520 Dear Mayor McDowell: I am pleased that you have selected our firm to represent you with respect to matters involving the clean-up and development of the former International Harvester site and litigation/" and settlement discussions with Navistar, Inc. (and/or others pertaining to said property). '],'his letter will provide you with a comprehensive explanation of our business practices and sets forth the basic terms upon which we render service to our clients. 1. 1'ralessianal Undertaiirxg: The most important point in this letter is that we will do our utmost to serve you vigorously, effectively and efficiently. While Robert J.Coletta and I will have primary responsibility for your representation,other attorneys in the firm, may assist us in this matter. You should feel free to call upon any of them for advice in the event that I am temporarily unavailable. Occasionally we utilize legal assistants to perform work which does not require a lawyer's attention. If at any time you have any questions, concerns or criticisms, please contact me at once. 2. Fees: We take into account many factors in billing for services rendered, and we will review all statements before they are issued to ensure that the amount is appropriate. The principal factor is our schedule of hourly rates, and most statements for services are simply the product of the hours worked multiplied by the hourly rates for the attorneys and legal assistants who did the work. My current hourly rate is $185.00, the hourly rate for Robert J. Coletta is $310.00. Hourly rates may range from $165 to $385 for our other attorneys. Legal assistants are billed at the rate of$105 per hour. The hourly rates are billed on a quarter (.25) hour basis. The schedule of hourly rates is reconsidered annually with changes effective January 1. PEORIA,ILLINOIS CHICAGO,ILLINOIS WASHINGTON, D.C. AVIS & CAMPBELL L.L.C. 3. Costs: Often it is necessary for us to incur expenses for court costs (filing fees, process server fees, etc.) and for items such as copying costs, postage, telephone tolls and on-line research services. In order to allocate these expenses fairly and keep billable rates as low as possible for those matters which do not involve such expenditures, these items are separately itemized on our statements as"disbursements." 4. Bill ng : Our statements generally will be prepared and mailed during the month following the month in which services are rendered and costs advanced. We expect payment shortly after the statement date. Statements consist of the detailed diary entries describing the nature of the work and identifying the person who performed it,the date on which it was performed and the amount of time spent. Costs advanced are itemized on each statement. 5. Retainer: We are not asking for a retainer at this time. However,we do reserve the right to request a retainer in the future, in our discretion, depending upon the status of the litigation and/or settlement negotiations. 6. !Cornr���unleatlons: We expect to communicate with our clients via email. Emails and their attachments are not encrypted. Ifyou would like our attachments in a password protected format, please let me know. 7. Our Files,: You may have copies of our files on the particular matter for which we are engaged at any time during our representation. After the matter is resolved, we have the right to dispose of our files at such time as we deem appropriate, with the understanding that copies of our files will be made available to you, at your expense, while we retain them. We may be requested from time to time to furnish certain information or to confirm information in our files to third parties, such as accountants,government agencies and litigants(pursuant to a subpoena). By engaging us, you are authorizing us to respond to such requests in a reasonable manner. Time spent responding to such requests will be charged at our regular rates. 8. Termination: You will have the right to terminate our representation at any time. We will have the same right, subject to an obligation to give you reasonable notice to arrange alternative representation. We appreciate having this opportunity to be of service. Recognizing the terms on which we will provide service to you we ask that you sign the acknowledgment below and return this letter to me. Be sure to keep a copy for your records. If you or Council have any questions,please feel free to call me. I look forward to continuing to work with you. Ver truly yours, Christopher J. .1Lini_ Davis & Campbell L. -C. Page 2 of 3 DAMS & CAMPBELL L.L.C. Acknowledged: CITY OF CANTON, ILLINOIS By;, Date; / ¢ d t cDcaregl„ I or Page 3 of 3