(A) As to all bills for litigation completed prior to the effective date of this section, submitted to the city for defense of the city as a party, the bills will be made available for review by individual City Councillor in the offices of the City Attorney. Such City Councillor shall, prior to review of the bills, state in writing that they will keep the information obtained confidential. That upon written or oral request by any person other than a City Councillor, bills will be made available for release to the public. When a privilege or request for continued confidentiality is asserted, redactions of bills, deleting those privileged or confidential materials, will be made available. The redacted bills will include identification of all work performed and by whom it has been performed. Redactions will be done under the direct supervision of the City Attorney. Privilege and confidentiality are used herein as established in the Rules of Evidence for the courts of New Mexico and the United States and as the terms may be construed by those courts. The City Attorney shall establish an informal dispute resolution process for disputes concerning whether redacted material is privileged or confidential.
(B) As to all bills previously submitted to the city for litigation completed prior to the effective date of this section for defense of a city employee, appointed or elected official, sued in his or her individual capacity, as opposed to official capacity, the bills that include privileged communication or confidential communications between the attorney and the individual will not be made available to anyone other than the represented individual. However, upon written request by any person, redactions of the bills, deleting privileged or confidential materials, will be made available. The redacted bills will include identification of all work performed and by whom it has been performed. Redactions will be done under the direct supervision of the City Attorney. Privilege and confidentiality are used herein as established in the Rules of Evidence for the courts of New Mexico and the United States and as the terms may be construed by those courts.
(C) As for all bills submitted to the city following the effective date of this section for defense of the city as a party, members of the City Council and authorized members of the City Council staff, shall have unrestricted access to outside counsel billings during the course of the legal work and after its conclusion. The bills will detail all work done by outside counsel and shall be available to the public upon submission to the city for payment. Any privileged or confidential communications deemed necessary in the conduct of the litigation shall be submitted separately from the bills and included in an explanatory letter. Any attorney or law firm who shall have an outside counsel contract shall agree not to assert a work product privilege against the city for information contained in any bill or invoice.
(D) All bills submitted to the city shall comply with such rules and regulations the City Attorney may deem necessary.
(Res. 59-1994, approved 7-6-94)