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Appointing the law firm of Greene Espel as Special Counsel for Purposes of Providing Legal Advice and Counsel on behalf of the City of Saint Paul regarding a determination of indemnity and defense relative to Mayor Kaohly Her pursuant to Minnesota Statute Section 466.07 in the lawsuit captioned Axel Henry v. Kaohly Her and City of St. Paul, Ramsey County District Court, State of Minnesota, Court File Number 62-CV-26-6829.
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WHEREAS, Section 5.02 of the Charter of the City of Saint Paul provides that in any case of special or unusual circumstances, the City Council, upon the request of the City Attorney, may appoint special counsel to assist in providing for the legal business of the City; and
WHEREAS, the City of Saint Paul and Kaohly Her are named Defendants in the lawsuit involving Plaintiff, the Chief of the Saint Paul Police Department, Axel Henry; and
WHEREAS, Mayor Kaohly Her is a named Defendant in her individual capacity in the lawsuit; and
WHEREAS, in light of the allegations in this lawsuit, the City Attorney’s Office has determined it has a potential conflict in its representation of Mayor Kaohly Her; and
WHEREAS, in light of the allegations in this lawsuit, the City Attorney has also determined there is a potential conflict in the City Attorney rendering the decision pursuant to Minnesota Statute Section 466.07 as to the indemnification and defense by the City of Saint Paul of Mayor Kaohly Her in her individual capacity as a named defendant in the pending litigation, and
WHEREAS, in light of the potential conflict, the City Attorney seeks City Council approval for the appointment of the law firm of Greene Espel to serve as special counsel to the City of Saint Paul to conduct the independent determination of indemnity and defense pursuant to Minnesota Statute Section 466.07 as it relates to Mayor Kaohly Her in the above-captioned lawsuit; and
WHEREAS, the law firm of Greene Espel has extensive experience and expertise in employment law related litigation and matters to conduct this determination; and
WHEREAS, the City Attorney seeks City Council approval for the retention of services of the law firm of Greene Espel as outlined above at a discounted rate for the public sector not to exceed $325/hour.
THEREFORE, be it RESOLVED that the law firm of Greene Espel is appointed as special counsel for purposes of providing legal advice and counsel for the determination of indemnity and defense of Mayor Kaohly Her in the lawsuit captioned Axel Henry v. Kaohly Her and City of St. Paul, Ramsey County District Court, State of Minnesota, at a rate not to exceed $325.