INFORMATION 9.

1 Office of the Superintendent of Schools MONTGOMERY COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS Rockville, Maryland September 8, 2009 MEMORANDUM To: From: Subject: Members of the Board of Education Jerry D. Weast, Superintendent of Schools Legal Fees Report for June 2009

This report covers expenditures for legal fees to outside counsel for FY 2009 through the month of June 2009. A complete set of bills submitted and paid to each firm is available for your review in the Board office. The charts in Attachment A compare current expenses with those from the same period last year and provide information on the following: Non-special education legal expenses by firm Special education expenses for outside counsel, parent attorney fees, and other miscellaneous charges Special education expenses by firm

I also have provided, in Attachment B, a list of the categories that better reflects the type of legal advice and litigation services being provided to Montgomery County Public Schools by outside law firms for non-special education matters. The categories in Attachment B are defined as follows: Personnel: Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) complaints, appeals by personnel Facilities: construction, capital projects, use of facilities Procurement: contracts, bids Student: appeals, subpoenas Policy: development, implementation, interpretation (includes regulations) Financial: expenditures, state aid Collective bargaining: negotiations, arbitration hearings, grievances Miscellaneous: many categories grouped together under one charge

Members of the Board of Education

September 8, 2009

Non-special education legal expenses The total charges for non-special education legal expenses in June 2009 were $56,569. The cumulative total for FY 2009 was $946,341. This is 20 percent lower than the amount for FY 2008. The Carney Kelehan bill for June totaled $51,189. The largest amount ($22,089) was for policy matters, the largest part of which involved a Maryland Occupational Safety and Health Act (MOSHA) citation ($6,515). The next largest amount was for facilities matters ($11,749), the largest part of which involved stormwater management permits ($7,370). Personnel matters totaled $11,573, the largest part of which related to an Office for Civil Rights (OCR) complaint ($3,486). Procurement matters totaled $2,701 and are related to an extension of a procurement contract. The next largest amount was for student matters ($1,584), the largest part of which involved a student residency appeal ($990). Miscellaneous matters totaled $1,493, the largest part of which involved general counsel duties. The Venable bill for June totaled $5,380. The largest amount ($3,810) was for collective bargaining matters, all of which involved three employee grievances. Student matters totaled $1,570, all of which involved student transfer appeals. Special education legal expenses Special education legal fees for outside counsel for June 2009 totaled $55,279. The FY 2009 total of $510,735 is $257,067 (33 percent) lower than for the previous fiscal year. Total FY 2009 special education legal costs of $843,321 are $285,519 (25 percent) lower than for the previous fiscal year and $262,173 (45 percent) higher than the budgeted amount of $581,148. Jeffrey A. Krew had charges of $55,279 in June, including work on ten cases, seven of which are on appeal in state or federal court ($10,412) and three of which involved administrative hearings ($41,034). Additional charges were related to participation in Individualized Education Plan (IEP) meetings ($3,833). If you have any questions, please contact Mr. Larry Bowers, chief operating officer, at 301-2793626 or Dr. Marshall Spatz, director, Department of Management, Budget, and Planning, at 301279-3547. JDW:LAB:MCS:jp Attachments

ATTACHMENT A

FY 2009 NON-SPECIAL EDUCATION LEGAL EXPENSES

Outside Counsel GENERAL LEGAL EXPENSES Carney Kelehan* Hogan and Hartson Venable Miscellaneous SUBTOTAL Capital Budget TOTAL JULY $ 50,092 14,278 104 64,474 6,243 70,717 $ AUG 74,100 39,037 520 $ 113,657 2,624 $ 116,281 $ SEPT 58,186 21,090 936 80,212 3,463 83,675 $ OCT 62,055 5,781 32,666 2,455 $ 102,957 1,914 $ 104,871 $ NOV 61,506 1,156 12,989 6,158 81,808 4,201 86,009 $ DEC 44,776 2,295 6,887 3,448 57,406 5,027 62,433 $ JAN 57,100 3,267 8,073 68,440 5,110 73,550 $ FEB 48,045 3,877 2,470 54,392 3,346 57,738 MAR $ 44,414 1,213 28,728 695 $ 75,050 2,376 $ 77,426 APR $ 49,527 1,165 14,782 850 $ 66,323 3,984 $ 70,307 MAY $ 51,867 826 5,889 21,447 $ 80,029 6,736 $ 86,765 JUNE $ 43,819 5,380 $ 49,199 7,370 $ 56,569 FY 2009 YTD $ 645,488 15,703 193,674 39,083 893,947 52,394 946,341 FY 2008 YTD $ 477,072 123,682 140,749 16,275 757,777 428,468 1,186,246 % Inc/(Dec) 35.30% -87.30% 37.60% 140.15% 17.97% -87.77% -20.22%

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FY 2009 SPECIAL EDUCATION LEGAL EXPENSES

Type of Cost SPECIAL EDUCATION LEGAL COSTS Special Education Outside Counsel Hearing Officers, Court Reporters, Misc. Parent Attorney Fees Other Settlement Costs TOTAL Outside Counsel ATTORNEYS Carney Kelehan Hogan and Hartson Jeffrey Krew TOTAL JULY $ 13,179 250 $ AUG 68,771 120 17,719 0 86,610 AUG $ 68,771 68,771 $ $ SEPT 94,372 317 82,000 13,870 $ 190,559 SEPT 1,980 92,392 94,372 $ $ OCT 60,718 866 $ 61,584 OCT 3,015 57,704 60,718 $ $ 58,850 NOV 2,444 28,792 27,166 58,401 $ $ NOV 58,401 448 $ DEC 44,872 92,705 $ 137,577 DEC 130 4,353 40,388 44,872 $ $ 27,500 49,195 JAN 2,125 19,570 21,695 $ 30,186 60,397 FEB 40,000 $ 52,765 MAR $ 30,211 30,211 12,459 $ 12,459 26,026 $ 55,567 APR 1,386 21,509 $ 21,509 55,279 $ 55,279 $ 21,509 MAY $ 55,279 JUNE $ $ JAN 21,695 $ FEB 30,211 MAR $ 12,459 306 APR $ 29,269 $ 272 MAY $ 21,509 JUNE $ 55,279 FY 2009 YTD $ 510,735 1,713 193,290 137,582 843,321 FY 2008 YTD $ 767,802 2,420 230,101 128,517 1,128,840 % Inc/(Dec) -33.48% -0.09% -4.79% 7.05% -25.29% % Inc/(Dec) 257.02% -350.21% -37.56% -33.48%

13,429 JULY

FY 2009 YTD $ 79,680 38,284 392,770 510,735

FY 2008 YTD $ 22,318 116,443 629,041 767,802

4,969 8,210 13,179

27,883 $ 29,269

*Formerly Reese & Carney

ATTACHMENT B

STATISTICS FOR JUNE 2009 LEGAL FEES EXCLUDING SPECIAL EDUCATION

Category
Personnel Facilities Procurement Student

Total Charge
$11,573 11,749 2,701 3,154

Firm
Carney Kelehan* Carney Kelehan Carney Kelehan Carney Kelehan Venable Carney Kelehan

Charges by Firm
$11,573 11,749 2,701 1,584 1,570 22,089 -

Policy Financial Collective Bargaining Miscellaneous TOTAL

22,089 3,810 1,493 $56,569

Venable Carney Kelehan Carney Kelehan Venable Hogan and Hartson Jeffrey A. Krew Other

3,810 1,493 $51,189 5,380 0 0 0 $56,569

TOTAL *Formerly Reese & Carney Note: Totals may differ due to rounding.