Former Council President Carney challenges payments to town attorney

How can taxpayers know “whether we got our money’s worth” when lawyer doesn't disclose what he did for the money?

By Deb Carney

Statement presented to the Town Council, October 7, 2013:

The Town of Charlestown spends tens of thousands of taxpayer dollars every year on legal costs.  We have a right to know where the money went, how it was used and whether we got our money’s worth.

Since January 1, 2013, Charlestown has used the services of six different attorneys - Peter Ruggiero, Robert Craven, Joseph Larisa, bond counsel services through Moses Afonso Ryan Ltd, Dan Kinder and John Mancini.

Attorney Ruggiero’s bills provide a detailed breakdown of his time spent doing work for the town.  The bills include the hourly rate, the amount of time spent, and a description of what the work was related to.  His bills explain how much was spent on outside experts, and also the time his colleagues spent on Charlestown matters. The taxpayers know exactly what we are paying for.

Attorney Craven’s bills provide the same level of detail and explanation as Atty. Ruggiero’s.

Attorney Larisa’s bills also provide explanation and detail.

Charlestown had one bill from Attorney Kinder, who handles labor-management issues, for $427.50.  His services were only used once and his bill included a breakdown of time spent and the matter that was covered.

Moses Afonso Ryan Ltd, Bond Counsel, also submitted one bill for $9,225.00.  This bill included how much the town paid for each of the leases and loans investigated.

The final bills presented were from the law offices of Michael Kelly for Attorney John Mancini.  There were two bills submitted, each for $17,500 for a total of $35,000. On the first invoice dated May 28, 2013, the description states “this amount will be applied as a retainer towards our fees as well as towards the expert’s fees.”  

The second bill, dated July 15, 2013, requests the second payment of $17,500 and notes, “The same will be applied to the payment of legal fees, expenses and fees for the chosen experts.”  No other detail was given.

Attorney John O. Mancini - What did he do for that $35,000?

Submitting two invoices, asking for a total of $35,000 of taxpayer money, without providing any sort of breakdown of times, or names of “chosen experts” or expenses is unacceptable billing. 

The Engagement of Legal Services letter dated May 14, 2013 and signed by Attorney Mancini states, “My billing rate for this type of matter is $275.00 per hour.  The billing rate for any of our associates shall be between $200.00 per hour and $225.00 per hour and $110.00 to $125.00 per hour for services provided by paralegals and legal associates.” 

The letter continues, “If payment is not received on an outstanding invoice within 30 days, interest will be added at the rate of 12% per annum.”

The taxpayers are also paying a flat fee of the equivalent of 6% of the total invoice in lieu of charging for phone calls, postage, copies and other miscellaneous expenses.

[From Mancini's retainer contract] “The town will be responsible for out-of-pocket expenses such as filing fees, printing and copying.  Additionally, the Town will pay any and all fees and expenses for reports and testimony as may be necessary, in a timely manner. These charges will be direct expenses and will be itemized on the invoice.  We will send a monthly invoice for our services which shall itemize the time expended and any fees or costs incurred on the Town’s behalf.  If an expense is significant, we may ask the Town of Charlestown for payment of this expense in advance.” 

Neither of these two bills, meet the terms outlined in the letter of agreement, and four months is plenty of time to submit an itemized bill.

According to the records provided, the Town made the second payment of $17,500 to Mr. Mancini on July 31, 2013 for a bill that once again tells us nothing about what we actually paid for.  How much was spent on legal work and at what rate?  $275.00 per hour?  $200.00 per hour?  $110.00 per hour?  How much went towards paying for expert reports and testimony?  Who are these experts?  Will we receive copies of any reports we paid for? 

If you took your car in for repair and were handed a bill for $5,000 that simply stated, “For fees”, would you pay it, or would you ask for a breakdown of what your $5,000 went towards?   I feel confident most people would want to know what exactly they were paying for.  Was it the brakes?  A new transmission?  How much was the cost of labor?  If you’re writing the check and the money is coming out of your pocket, you’d want to know.

This $35,000 is coming out of all of our pockets.  We have a right to know what exactly our $35,000 paid for.  The bills note some of this money went towards experts fees.  Who are these experts?  How much were they paid of this $35,000?  On what days did they perform services and for many hours?  

What days did Atty. Mancini perform services?  How much time did he spend performing these services?  Was it him or a paralegal?  We don’t know.  The bills violate the terms of the Letter of Agreement.

I am asking the Council to support transparency in the legal bills submitted by Atty. John Mancini.  I am asking that his bills mirror the same level of transparency provided by the other 5 attorneys that represent Charlestown.  

I ask that the Council request a breakdown of the services provided by Atty. Mancini that supports the $35,000 expenditure of taxpayer money.