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Finance director questions legal expenses
By jeanne starmack
CAMPBELL
The city’s finance director is questioning some of the mayor’s legal expenses in an ongoing court case between the two.
City finance director Sherman Miles also says he’s concerned about more legal fees adding up at the expense of the city as both parties continued in vain to work toward a settlement.
The case is set to be back in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court for a hearing Aug. 25. A settlement meeting between the parties Saturday failed.
The case dates back to April after Mayor George Krinos tried to suspend Miles without pay.
Miles sued to stop the suspension, and the city council joined him as plaintiffs, arguing that the suspension was improper and that council should have had a say in it. Miles reports to council as well as the mayor.
The plaintiffs obtained a temporary restraining order in April that allows Miles to stay on the job until the hearing, which is for a permanent injunction.
Miles said Monday that the legal expenses in the case are being covered by the city’s insurance only until those expenses reach $25,000.
He said that cap is for all cases that call for declaratory injunctive relief, such as the one between him and Krinos and another filed by Ohioans for Concealed Carry over a gun ban the city since repealed.
Miles also said the legal expenses will mean higher premiums.
Before insurance began covering Krinos’ bills, he used the Columbus law firm Bricker and Eckler. The city paid a $5,000 retainer fee to the firm, but Krinos said in May he was dropping the firm and would get a reimbursement of the retainer.
The insurance company only pays for attorneys it approves, Miles explained, so it won’t cover work done by Bricker and Eckler.
The firm only reimbursed the city for $1,153. Miles said the firm kept the remaining $3,846 but would not tell him what the money was used for, citing attorney-client privilege.
Miles said he did not expect the whole amount back, but he expected most of it. He pointed out the firm did not even file any court documents in the case.
He said that in contrast, the plaintiffs have bills of approximately $1,500 for their attorney, John Juhasz, not including what he’ll bill for a recent response to a counterclaim Krinos made in the case.
Krinos said he intends to ask Bricker and Eckler for a detailed invoice, but he said he isn’t surprised by the amount the firm kept.
There were two lawyers on the case, he said, at a $200-an-hour fee.
Negotiations will continue toward a settlement of the case, Miles said.
Krinos said that he has asked to have “everything dropped.” Miles said that Krinos wants the claim and the counterclaim dropped, but that would not protect his job.
“Once the claims are dropped, the next day, he’ll take action against me,” Miles said. “It’s because he wants me out. That’s one of his main priorities as mayor,” he said.
Miles said Juhasz may ask for a court order that would protect him. Negotiations will continue, he said.