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HomeMy WebLinkAbout5.422 Original Contract 5. "XL . ~.,-- AGREEMENT FOR INDIGENT LEGAL DEFENSE SERVICES THIS AGREEMENT is entered into between the City of Port Angeles (hereina~~ed "Cie and Clallam Public Defender (hereinafter called "Contractor") is entered into this ay of f) (I~ ~J. ,2008. REPRESENTATIONS 1. The City requires the professional services of the Contractor in order to provide indigent representation for misdemeanor and gross misdemeanor defendants that are prosecuted by the City of Port Angeles and under circumstances that legal defense is required either under the Constitution of the United States or under the Constitution and laws of the State of Washington. 2. The Contractor is qualified and capable of meeting the professional standards for providing criminal defense and related services for indigent misdemeanor and gross misdemeanor defendants facing commitment or incarceration for offenses prosecuted by the City of Port Angeles. AGREEMENTS NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of specified legal services to be provided by the Contractor and the monetary payments to be made to the Contractor by the City, as herein provided, the parties hereby agree as follows: 1. Term of Agreement. This agreement shall be in effect from the first day of January, 2009 through the 31st day of December, 2009; provided, however, in the event the state adopts legislation that requires a change in the services provided under this Agreement, either party may give notice of termination. This Agreement shall terminate 60 days following the date such notice IS gIven. 2. Scope of Work. The Contractor shall provide criminal defense and related services for indigent misdemeanor and gross misdemeanor defendants and certain other persons facing commitment or incarceration for offenses prosecuted by the City of Port Angeles. The Contractor's obligation to provide services, and the City's obligation to pay for such services, under this agreement shall be limited to cases or matters in which the District Court Judge or pro-tern judge or commissioner having j urisdiction over the case or matter makes a specific determination of indigence, based on a fair study of need, and appoints Contractor to the case or matter by court order. The Contractor's obligation to accept case assignments and provide services under this agreement shall be capped and limited to forty (40) case assignments per calendar month. -1- Appointments oflegal counsel for indigent defendants on City of Port Angeles cases exceeding the forty (40) case cap shall be to attorneys other than those employed by Contractor. The Contractor has the right, for good cause shown and with the Court's permission, to decline to represent or discontinue representing any individual, who by his or her request, action, conduct, or financial ability, waives the right to the assistance of counsel at public expense. In the event of a conflict of interest arising and precluding contractor from representing a client, and upon a finding by the Court that such conflict exists and precludes contractor from representing the defendant, and the court designates another attorney to represent the client, it shall be at the expense of the City. The Contractor will continue active representation and will complete cases which were assigned in the calendar year covered by the term ofthis contract briefly and with due diligence, and in the event that the Contractor is not awarded the contract for the following calendar year, the Contractor shall then be compensated at the hourly rate of$35.00 per hour. In the event that work is necessary on carryover cases and the Contractor is not awarded the contract, Contractor will be responsible for keeping a record of time worked under the term of this contract on cases for the City and must submit a monthly itemized statement of hours worked and request for payment to the City. Nothing in this agreement shall be construed to impair or inhibit the exercise of independent professional judgment when an attorney/client privilege has been established, nor shall this agreement require or authorize any attorney to engage in conduct prohibited by the Code of Professional Responsibility. In order to make sure that the Contractor's caseload is being handled efficiently and in cooperation with the efforts of the District Court and the City Attorney's Office, the Contractor agrees to comply with the following guidelines to the extent possible: a. A specific Public Defender shall be assigned to each case as soon as notice is received of the District Court appointment. b. The Public Defender shall meet with the client and discuss the City Prosecutor's plea offer before the arraignment. c. The Public Defender shall attend the arraignment for each case and be prepared to respond to the plea offer. d. To the maximum extent practicable, the Contractor shall arrange for backup coverage for Public Defenders who are unable to make scheduled court appearances due to vacation or other such reasons that allow advance notice, in order to minimize continuances. 3. Compensation. Based upon the anticipated case load of approximately 435 cases for the 2009 calendar year, payment from the City to the Contractor shall be $46,664.65 for calendar year 2009 to be made on a monthly basis with each monthly payment equal to 1/12th of the total amount as herein stated. -2- ,'-~ For purposes of this Agreement, the term "one case" shall mean all proceedings concerning a single defendant charged with one or multiple misdemeanors or gross misdemeanors from first appearance to final case disposition. Each appointment to represent a single defendant on a appeal shall constitute one case. Each appointment for a single defendant alleging a violation of the terms or conditions of probation shall equal one-third (1/3) case. This caseload contemplates the assignment of no more than one full-time attorney acting in compliance with the rules of professional conduct. This agreement may be periodically reviewed and renegotiated as necessary by either party with respect to case load, but in the event that Contractor's court assignments/appointments exceed, or are predicted to exceed, more than 435 cases, the contract shall be renegotiated unless the contractor waives the right of renegotiation or does not give the City notice of intent to renegotiate at least 90 days before the end of the calendar year 2009, as applicable. 4. Independent contractor. The status of the Contractor hereunder is that of an independent contractor and the Contractor shall not be construed to be an employee or employees of the City of Port Angeles. As an independent contractor, the Contractor is not entitled to any benefits available to employees of the City, and the Contractor is responsible for withholding any monies required to be withheld from Contractor's employees pursuant to local, state or federal law, including but not limited to worker's compensation, social security, income taxes, use taxes and business and occupations taxes collected by the State of Washington. 5. Records. The City shall have the right to reasonably audit business records of the Contractor (exclusive of attorney-client confidential records) which are relevant to the performance of this Agreement. Such review may occur upon thirty days notice to the Contractor, and may include, but not be limited to, on-site inspection by City agents or employees of all financial and non- privileged records or other materials which are pertinent to this Agreement and its performance, and any and all non-privileged communications relevant to the performance of this Agreement. The Contractor shall preserve and maintain all financial records and records relating to the performance of this agreement for three years after contract termination and shall make such records available for review by the City upon request. 6. Modifications. Either party may request changes in the agreement; however, any and all modifications shall be in writing and signed by each of the parties. 7. Default. In the event that the Contractor defaults by failing to perform any of the obligations of this agreement, the City shall have available all contractual remedies under the laws of the State of Washington. If the City chooses to terminate the agreement for default by the Contractor, the City may at its option obtain performance of the work elsewhere and shall be entitled to recover any extra cost or damage to the City resulting from such default by deduction from any money due or coming to the Contractor. The Contractor shall bear any extra expenses incurred by the City in completing the work, including all increased costs for completing the work, and all damage sustained, or which may be sustained by the City by reason of such default. -3- I- . 8. Nondiscrimination. The Contractor shall not discriminate against any person on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, marital status, Vietnam era veteran's status, disabled veteran condition, physical or mental handicap, or national origin. 9. Indemnification/Hold Harmless. The Contractor shall defend, indemnify and hold the City, its officers, officials, employees and volunteers harmless from any and all claims, injuries, damages, losses or suits including attorney fees, arising out of or in connection with the performance of this Agreement, except for injuries and damages caused by the sole negligence ofthe City. 10. Insurance. The Contractor shall procure and maintain for the duration of this agreement a policy of professional liability insurance providing coverage of at least $1,000,000 against professional liability in connection with the work to be performed by Contractor under this agreement. 11. Applicable Law. This Agreement shall be construed and interpreted in accordance with the laws of the State of Washington, and in the event of dispute the venue of any litigation brought hereunder shall be Clallam County. IN WITNESS THEREOF, the parties hereto have executed this Agreement as ofthe day and year first written above. CITY OF PORT ANGELES CLALLAM PUBLIC DEFENDER, CONTRACTOR BY Jiq, ~ (,'1.,.~~ Gary r un, Mayor BY ~APPROVED AS TO ~ / <' 5( ~?- - ~.. William E. Bloor, City Attorney (( ATTEST: G \Legal_ BackupIAGREEMENTS&CONTRACTS\2008 Agmts&Contracts\2009PubhcDefenderContract 12-8-08 wpd -4-