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Motion of the Council of Allegheny County amending the Rules of Council, Article VII, entitled “Solicitor Contract Term,” in order to provide for periodic requests and review of proposals for the position of County Council Solicitor.
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Whereas, since shortly after its inception, Allegheny County Council has executed contracts with attorneys and/or law firms to provide legal advice and counsel as the solicitor to County Council; and
Whereas, when requests for proposals for the solicitor position were most recently published in 2022, it marked the first time that such proposals were requested by County Council in two decades; and
Whereas, while the contract term for the Council’s solicitor has typically lasted for approximately one year, Council’s history of simply renewing the same firm’s contract each year effectively eliminated any formalized opportunity for other lawyers and/or firms to make Council aware of their qualifications, staff members, and abilities; and
Whereas, it is the judgment of Council that a lack of competitive bidding for the Council’s solicitor position has the potential to lead to inefficient use of revenues derived from the County’s taxpayers, by reducing (or eliminating) competition among qualified applicants; and
Whereas, as the demographics of the legal profession continue to change (for example, according to the American Bar Association, only 31% of practicing attorneys were women in 2010, but that number has increased to 38% in 2022), simply renewing the contract of a single solicitor may also prevent County Council from accounting for these types of changes in its selection of a solicitor; and
Whereas, it is accordingly the desire of Council to establish a regular timeline for requesting competitive bids for the Council solicitor position;
The Council of the County of Allegheny therefore hereby moves as follows:
For the reasons delineated herein, the Rules of Council, Article I, Rule E.1.i., is hereby amended as...
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