BELL : After 26 Years, City Hires New Law Firm
In an effort to boost the city’s sagging finances, the City Council dismissed a law firm that represented Bell for 26 years and accepted a bid from a new counsel for one-third the cost.
The council voted last week to accept a proposal from the Los Angeles firm of Oliver, Barr & Vose to represent Bell for $120,000 to $150,000 per year. The firm, scheduled to start providing the city with legal services this week, was selected from among 17 contenders.
The city paid the Los Angeles firm of Burke, Williams & Sorensen, which has represented Bell since 1968, an average of $475,000 per year--more than $2.3 million over the past five years, said Robert A. Rizzo, chief administrative officer.
Councilman George Cole said the council had not only been “looking everywhere across the board” to save money, but that it was also searching for “more aggressive legal coverage.”
Almost 75% of California cities contract out for their legal services because it is less expensive than maintaining an in-house legal staff, said attorney Edward Lee of Oliver, Barr & Vose.
The move is part of an effort to shore up Bell’s general fund, which has been ailing since the 1992 closure of the California Bell Club, once the state’s largest poker parlor, Rizzo said. The casino once brought the city $2 million a year.
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