Update below
I posted this weekend about a blow-up in New Albany, where the city was furious that the city attorney had appeared as local counsel in a class action suit against Toyota, who is someday hoped to open a giant auto plant near New Albany, a plant that’s had huge effects on local governments, both in the form of their committments related to the plant and Toyota’s contributions to things like schools.
Well, tonight the aldermen in New Albany met, they voted 4-1 to fire the city attorney, and he says he’s going to sue to enforce his contract. It did not make things right that he offered to withdraw from the calss action suit against Toyota. The Daily Journal reports:
The New Albany Board of Aldermen voted 4-1 to fire longtime New Albany city attorney Robert “Bobby” Carter Monday night.
The vote came after Carter was part of filing a federal lawsuit against Toyota for a Union County woman.
Toyota’s newest facility sits just a few miles southeast at Blue Springs, in Union County, awaiting the corporation’s production go-ahead in the midst of a global recession and a massive product recall.
Carter filed the class-action lawsuit on behalf of Belva Simmons of Union County, who claims her 2007 Camry is one of thousands under the recall because of sudden acceleration problems.
She’s seeking damages for the loss of value of her vehicle and because, she claims, Toyota has known about its vehicle problems for years.
Carter had offered to withdraw from the lawsuit.
New Albany Mayor Tim Kent said the city would have an acting attorney in place soon.
Carter told the New Albany News-Exchange that the board has violated his contract and he will be filing a lawsuit.
Update
The Daily Journal adds detail with a passage (highlighted) that sort of startled me:
Officials were concerned about the appearance of the situation for a town that expects to benefit considerably from the Blue Springs plant, which has been put on hold until the economy improves.
Kent said a local Toyota official who told him the suit would have no effect on Toyota’s plans to build vehicles at the Blue Springs plant and was just an expected part of business.
The mayor said city and county officials were much more upset than the Toyota representative but conceded that even though the company expected the suit, it would have been preferable if it had been filed in South Mississippi rather than the northern part, as far as appearance was concerned.
Carter contended he did nothing wrong because the filing was part of his private practice and there was no conflict of interest with Toyota. He did say that, in hindsight, he wishes he had talked with the city officials about it, but that attorneys file lawsuits and other paperwork for each other all the time.
“I did not want to say anything before the (city board) meeting because I had extended them an olive branch,” Carter said later Monday night. He said that if the city did fire him he would be willing to stay on in a consulting capacity during the transition period for a fairly nominal fee in order to keep his medical insurance.
“The board rejected that olive branch and that was punitive,” he said.
Carter also said he feels the board’s action is not justified and, although it is out of character for him, he will file suit himself.
He said he has a right to sue because the city violated this one-year contract as city attorney and the city also fired him without cause.
He added that aldermen have been committing actions that he warned were illegal and that he can document those actions.
“They asked me to resign but I told them I had done nothing wrong, or unethical. I said I would resign with certain conditions attached (regarding the insurance) but they rejected that,” he said. “I then told them to do what they had to do and I would do what I have to do.”He said he is obtaining his own legal counsel immediately and plans to sue the aldermen in their role as city officials and also as individuals. “That’s because they have stepped outside the legal bounds of their authority; their action has been purely punitive,” he said.
Carter’s partner in Sumners, Carter and Mueller, Thad Mueller, is attorney for the Union County Board of Supervisors and it has been reported that board also has been very upset about the suit being filed, asking Mueller to separate himself from the law firm.
Mueller said Monday that he still is the county board’s attorney and did not want to comment further, pending the result of Monday’s meeting.
Carter promised to elaborate on his charges later. “There’s more to be said and I will say it, in print or in court,” he said.
I had always been under the impression that suing your client, or ex-client, betrayed a serious lack of judgment on one’s own part.
“He added that aldermen have been committing actions that he warned were illegal and that he can document those actions.”
Wouldn’t the attorney be party to these acts? I mean if he knew they were breaking the law and did nothing? If it involved a court proceeding wouldn’t he be in trouble also? Amazing what can hit the fan when politicians and lawyers have it out. This could real interesting…….
Seems to me that there’s been a violation of Rule 1.2 of the Mississippi Rules of Professional Conduct.
Carter’s action in originally filing the lawsuit indicated poor judgment. His comments to the paper about his firing have confirmed that he has poor judgment.
And a question that has come to mind is this: His law partner is the attorney for the Union County Board of Supervisors, but as often as cities and counties get sideways over issues, was there an inherent conflict-of-interest in one firm representing both entities?
Cities, counties and school districts commit actions on a daily basis that are considered “illegal” but do not rise to the level of being criminal.
Could be as simple as paying bills without having approving the claims docket, violations of state purchasing laws or a multitude of de minimus violations of state law.
He probably made the statement in a “I’m gonna tell moma what you did” moment and regrets that he said it.
Common sense tells me that if the had anything on the board he never would have been fired.
WS
“Purely punitive” is the art of good politics.
I know Mr. Carter and he is a fine man. Sounds like maybe some other issues are being played out under the guise of this. As a businessperson (not an attorney) I frequently encounter those who misunderstand what the role of an attorney is and attribute the cases they take to statements of personal belief or greed rather than whether or not someone is entitled to redress under the law- its the same mis-perception that plagues criminal attorneys, and it appears to be playing in here.