(a) Purpose and Intent. The purpose of this section is to provide authority for the Mayor and City Treasurer, with the concurrence of Council by resolution or motion, to indemnify with City funds or provide liability insurance for any officer, agent or employee of the City.
It is the intent of the section to provide indemnification and liability insurance coverage as extensive as permitted by West Virginia Code 8-12-7, as amended, unless otherwise restricted or limited by this section.
(b) Indemnification. The City shall indemnify all of its elected or appointed officers, agents or employees against any and all legal liability, including, but not limited to, expenses, costs, damages, judgments, fines, settlements, court costs, reasonable attorneys' fees, and any other amounts actually and personally incurred in connection with, arising from, growing out of, by reason of or in any way connected with, any acts or omissions of the City, or its officers, agents or employees while acting within the scope of their official duties.
The indemnification shall extend to any such officer, agent or employee of the City who was or is a party, or is threatened to be made a party, to any proceeding by reason of the fact that such person is or was an officer, agent or employee of the City, without regard to the period of time in which such official duties were performed, and without regard to the fact that the performance of such official duties may have been professional in nature.
The idemnification shall be provided to such officers, agents or employees of the City by the purchase of insurance as provided in subsection (c) hereof, or by the expenditure of funds from the general fund of the City as provided in subsection (d) hereof.
(c) Insurance. The Mayor and City Treasurer, with the concurrence of Council, shall have plenary power and authority to contract and expend public funds for the purchase of one or more policies of public liability insurance, which may include professional liability insurance, providing the City and its officers, agents and employees insurance coverage for any and all legal liability, including, but not limited to, expenses, costs, damages, judgments, fines, settlements, court costs, reasonable attorneys' fees and any other amounts actually and personally incurred in connection with, arising from, growing out of, by reason of or in any way connected with, any acts or omissions of the City, or its officers, agents or employees while acting within the scope of their official duties.
(d) Expenditures From General Fund. If the insurance coverage provided pursuant to subsection (b) hereof is deemed to exclude an act or omission of the City or any of its officers, agents or employees, or if an insurance carrier refuses to provide coverage for the City or any of its officers, agents or employees for any reason, expenditures from the City's General Fund shall be made for payment of any and all of the legal liability contemplated by subsection (b) hereof.
(e) Exclusions. No indemnification shall be made under this section to any officer, agent or employee of the City for: any conversion or diversion of public funds; any criminal act as defined by the laws of the United States, any State, municipality or other governmental body; any criminal act which could or does result in civil liability to any third party or the City, any act or omission committed by such officer, agent or employee while the same was insane or mentally incompetent; any amounts in settling or otherwise disposing of a threatened or pending proceeding without approval of the City, any expenses incurred in defending a threatened or pending proceeding which is settled or otherwise disposed of with approval of the City.
Provided however, none of the exclusions contained herein shall be interpreted to inure to the benefit of any liability or other insurance carrier of the City, unless specifically contained in the contract of insurance between the City and such carrier.
(f) Indemnification by Independent Agencies. Any of the independent agencies of the City shall likewise have plenary power authority to adopt a resolution at a regular or special meeting called for that purpose, providing for the expenditure of the public funds of such agency to indemnify its elected or appointed officers, agents or employees for any acts or omissions while acting within the scope of their official duties in the manner and to the extent provided in this section.
(Ord. 1520. Passed 2-20-86.)