POSTED: Monday, September 14th, 2009 at 1:00 am

BY: dmc-admin

Wanted: Law firms or attorneys interested in a consistent source of revenue for the next two years.

Milwaukee County is currently soliciting applicants to bid on a contract for guardian ad litem (GAL) services within the Children’s and Family Division of the county court system.

This marks the first time in more than three decades that the county has issued an open request for proposals for the work, which has been contracted out to the Legal Aid Society of Milwaukee since 1970.

But given that Milwaukee is facing a budget crunch and some attorneys and firms are experiencing a dip in clients, county supervisor Joe Sanfelippo said it is a perfect time to give private attorneys a chance at the work.

“Ten years ago the economy was humming along and law firms had work coming out of their ears,” he said. “But in this economy, law firms are hurting just like every other business.”

Based on the current contract, Sanfelippo estimated the value of the 2010-2012 deal at more than $1.5 million annually, with at least 2,800 children’s cases and another 800 family cases.

He suggested a consortium of small firms or perhaps one large firm could be candidates for the contract.

“I don’t have a preference, but for one or two smaller firms, this could be a majority of their caseload for the year,” said Sanfelippo. “It’s a guaranteed $100,000 a month which can go a long way towards covering law firms’ overhead.”

But solo family lawyer James R. Donohoo said it might be difficult for a private firm or group of attorneys to put together a “confident” bid.

Given the high volume of cases, he said many lawyers could be hesitant to invest time into a proposal without a guarantee it will be worth it.

Firms or attorneys interested in the contract have to detail their case assignment process, how many GALs will be on-staff and a budget plan.

The deadline to submit proposals is September 18.

“My gut reaction is, sure it’s a flow of money, but you have a lot of expenses to get this flow of money and it’s not like a firm getting some big personal injury case,” Donohoo said.

Good for attorneys?

Family law attorney Catherine A. La Fleur has done GAL work for the county. She likes the concept, but she too questioned whether private attorneys will want to lock themselves into a set rate on every case.

“I doubt it's a huge benefit to practitioners unless they are low on work or have very low overhead,” she said. “I guess you have to see who bids and if they are seasoned lawyers as opposed to people simply looking for work.”

Legal Aid Society executive director Thomas R. Cannon argued that the county should not sacrifice quality just to save money.

He said the organization, which has 18 lawyers and nine social workers on its GAL staff, will submit a proposal by the deadline.

“I think you have to be cautious in dealing with services to young children that you don’t just take the cheapest, most cut-rate proposal,” Cannon said.

Conflicts of interest also need to be considered, said family law attorney Katharine A. Neugent of Burbach & Stansbury SC, in Milwaukee.

She questioned whether an agency other than Legal Aid could handle the caseload, especially if the firm also does divorce or criminal work.

“A significant number of parents in these cases have been involved in criminal activity, so if the agency does lot of criminal work, there could certainly be conflicts,” Neugent said.

Given Legal Aid’s track record, Cannon said he is confident the agency will be able to retain the contract.

But Sanfelippo said the county wants to explore the “best bang for its buck.”

The way to do that is put it out for bid so the market can determine what the work is worth, he said.

He said he hopes to receive at least three proposals by the deadline, after which time they will be reviewed by a committee prior to going to the full county board.

Board chairman Lee Holloway has already expressed his opposition to the initiative during public remarks at the Legal Aid Society’s 93rd Anniversary Luncheon on September 3.

He noted the reputation Legal Aid has in handling GAL cases and said the county should not be bidding out for legal services.

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