Municipal Attorney Services

A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL
CITY OF BROOKSVILLE
201 HOWELL AVENUE
BROOKSVILLE, FL 34601
Contract Documents and Specifications for:
RFP-COB-2026-0008
Municipal Attorney Services
Project Solicitation Date: Friday, July 24, 2026
Pre-Proposal Conference: Thursday, July 30, 2026 @ 10:00 AM
Question Submission Deadline: Tuesday, August 4, 2026 @ 5:00 PM
Questions must be submitted via:
BidNetDirect, OpenBids, or procurement@cityofbrooksville.us
Proposal Submission Deadline: Wednesday, August 12, 2026 @ 10:00 AM
Proposal Opening: Wednesday, August 12, 2026 @ 10:00 AM
Proposal Pre-Evaluation Meeting/Special Council Meeting:
Thursday, August 20, 2026 @ 6:00 PM
* Council determines TOP FIVE firms to move forward to interview stage
Proposal Evaluation Meeting/Special Council Meeting:
Monday, August 24, 2026 @ 3:00 PM
* Public meeting and TOP FIVE firm interviews
Submit Proposal offer to:
City of Brooksville
Procurement Division
201 Howell Ave.
Brooksville, FL 34601

SOLICITATION
TENTATIVE PROPOSAL SCHEDULE
Listed above are the tentative dates and times of the project and schedule by which the actions
noted must be completed. If the City finds it necessary to change any of these dates and/or times,
the change will be accomplished by addenda. All dates and times are subject to change at the
City's discretion.
THE PROPOSAL PACKAGE
Each bid submitted in response to this RFP must contain the following documents:
1. Cover letter and executive summary;
2. Firm qualifications and municipal-law experience;
3. Identification and resumes of the proposed City Attorney, alternate attorney, and supporting
attorneys;
4. Description of availability, responsiveness, meeting coverage, and transition plan;
5. Representative municipal clients and references;
6. Litigation, land-use, labor, procurement, public-records, ethics, utility, and municipal-finance
experience;
7. Conflicts disclosure;
8. Fee proposal (Including Attachment A)
9. Required forms and certifications, including Attachments B - J
Pursuant to section 119.071(1)(b)2., Florida Statutes, sealed proposals, proposals, or replies received
pursuant to a competitive solicitation are exempt from public inspection and copying until the City
provides notice of an intended decision or until 30 days after opening the bids, proposals, or final
replies, whichever is earlier.
COMPLETION OF PROPOSAL SUBMISSION PACKAGE
It is the responsibility of the Proposer to ensure that all pages are included. All Proposers are advised
to closely examine this RFP.
All proposal attachments must be submitted on the proposal forms provided. Proposal attachments
submitted on Proposer's letterhead or quotation forms will be accepted; provided, an addendum may
be added to the proposal form to further explain qualifications.
Proposal forms must be neatly written in ink or typed and must be signed in ink by an officer or employee
having authority to bind the Proposer (where a signature is required). Failure to submit a duly signed
proposal may be cause for rejection of the proposal.
PROPOSAL PRICES
All prices shall remain valid for ninety (90) days after the date of proposal closing or other time stated

in the Special Terms. The City of Brooksville is not responsible for expenses incurred prior to award.
HOW TO SUBMIT A PROPOSAL
The original and six (6) copies of the proposal must be submitted in a sealed envelope.
ENVELOPES CONTAINING PROPOSALS MUST BE IDENTIFIED AS PROPOSAL RFP-COB-
2026-0008 marked on the outside of the envelope with title, and date proposals are scheduled to be
received.
All sealed proposals must be mailed or hand-delivered to:
City of Brooksville
Procurement Division
201 Howell Ave.
Brooksville, FL 34601
Any proposal received after 10:00 AM on Wednesday, August 12, 2026, whether by mail or otherwise,
will be returned unopened. The time of receipt shall be determined by the time clock located in City Hall.
Proposers are responsible for ensuring that their proposal is stamped by City personnel by the deadline
indicated.
Proposals submitted by telephone, facsimile or email shall not be accepted.
Submission of a Proposal implies a full understanding of this RFP. Any misunderstanding as to such
terms by the Proposer will not relieve the Proposer from performance.
This RFP consists of this document along with all attachments and forms incorporated or attached to
this RFP, all of which are incorporated herein by this reference.
PROPOSAL REJECTION
Proposals may be rejected for noncompliance to requirements after review by the City.
The City of Brooksville reserves the right to reject any or all responses and to waive any irregularities
or informalities.
The City reserves the right to reject any or all proposals in whole or in part; to award by any item,
group(s) of items, total proposal, or accept the proposal that is most advantageous and in the best
interest of the City.
PROPOSAL SYSTEM
The City of Brooksville officially distributes solicitation and addenda documents through the Florida
Online Bid System (www.BidNetDirect.com), Euna OpenBids (demandstar.com), and the City of
Brooksville website. Solicitation documents may be downloaded using these systems.

The City of Brooksville is not responsible for solicitation and addenda documents obtained from sources
other than the Florida Online Bid System, Euna OpenBids, the City website, or the City Procurement
Division. Vendors who submit responses and later claim they did not receive complete documents or
had no knowledge of any change, modifications, or additions made to the official solicitation documents
shall still be bound by the solicitation, including any changes, modifications, or additions to the official
solicitation documents.
Only vendors who properly register and obtain solicitation documents directly from the Florida Online
Bid System, Euna OpenBids, or the City website will receive addenda and other important information
if issued.
All addenda can be found on the City website, the Florida Online Bid System, Euna OpenBids, or
obtained through the City Procurement Division. Vendors are responsible for acquiring knowledge of
changes, modifications, or additions to official solicitation documents.
If you obtained a solicitation document or addenda from any other source than the Florida Online Bid
System, Euna OpenBids, or the City of Brooksville website, it is highly recommended that you register
as a vendor and download the official document at www.BIDNETDIRECT.com, demandstar.com, or
www.cityofbrooksville.us.
PRE-PROPOSAL CONFERENCE -
A Pre-Proposal Conference will be held on Thursday, July 30, 2026, at 10:00 AM, at Council Chambers
at the City of Brooksville City Hall, 201 Howell Ave., Brooksville, FL, 34601. The purpose of the pre-
proposal conference is to allow potential proposers an opportunity to present questions to staff, and
obtain clarification of the requirements contained in the solicitation. This conference will be held only
once, and is open to the public. Please contact the Procurement Division for further information.

RFP-COB-2026-0008
MUNICIPAL ATTORNEY SERVICES
SUMMARY OF WORK
I. Purpose
The City is seeking proposals from qualified municipal attorneys or law firms to serve as the City's
Municipal Attorney. The Municipal Attorney shall serve as the chief legal advisor to the City Council,
City Manager, boards, committees, and staff, providing timely, accurate, and practical legal advice on
matters affecting municipal government.
The selected firm or attorney shall possess extensive knowledge of Florida municipal law and
demonstrate experience representing municipalities of similar size and complexity.
II. Scope of Services
1. The person or firm is required to be knowledgeable in a variety of legal areas including, but not
limited to, the following, and other areas as described in this RFP:
* Ordinance and resolution drafting
* City Charter and City Code of Ordinances issues
* Contract law
* Municipal leases and agreements
* Code compliance matters and procedures
* Land Use and Zoning
* Prosecution of municipal ordinance violations in County Court
* State of Florida ethics laws
* Public Records, Sunshine Law matters
2. Attendance at all meetings of the City Council, and select boards and agencies.
The City Attorney shall represent the Council at each of its meetings, provide appropriate legal advice
and written opinions as necessary and provide parliamentary guidance concerning the conduct of
each of the meetings.
The City Attorney shall attend City Council Workshop sessions as needed, and City committee
meetings or other meetings as requested by the City Council or the City Manager, such as advisory
boards, when items under consideration warrant legal guidance.
The City Attorney also serves as the CRA Board attorney and shall attend all CRA Board meetings
and workshops.
The City Attorney shall attend the Planning and Zoning Board meetings and workshops as necessary.

3. As requested, the City Attorney will:
Draft and review ordinances, charter amendments, resolutions, contracts, and correspondence;
provide legal consultation on some City insurance matters; provide legal advice and written
opinions to the City Council and City staff on matters related to their official duties; perform all
duties and functions imposed by general and special laws upon City attorneys; monitor the
performance of any duties assigned to special counsel, if any, and review billings for accuracy.
4. The City Attorney shall prosecute and defend the City as to all civil complaints, suits and
controversies in which the City is a party. Specifically, the City Attorney is responsible for prosecuting
and defending the City in civil actions when no counsel is provided by liability insurance or when
the City's exposure exceeds its insurance coverage. The City Attorney may also represent an
employee or elected official who is individually named in a suit as a result of the execution of official
duties with the City, provided that any such representation does not give rise to a prohibited conflict
of interest or the appearance of a conflict.
5. As requested, the City Attorney will provide City staff with assistance and legal counsel relating to
the acquisition, lease or sale of real property and in the review and preparation of deeds, easements,
title searches and various real estate documents.
6. As requested by the City Council, City staff and Boards, the City Attorney will review situations in
which laws, regulations or rules can reasonably be construed or expected to impact the City's
interest.
7. The City Attorney is to maintain files consistent with the City Clerk's records management
requirements, and provide the City Risk Manager and the City Clerk copies of all pertinent pleadings
and orders in all litigation that the City Attorney is handling.
8. The City Attorney will perform other legal research and provide legal advice as requested by the
City Council and City staff.
9. The Public Risk Insurance Agency ("PRIA") currently provides the City with automobile liability and
general liability insurance coverage. As such, insurance matters are generally coordinated by the
City Risk Manager or designee with legal representation provided by PRIA selected attorneys for
cases covered under the policy. In addition, the City may retain or has retained outside counsel for
the following, but the City reserves the right to request an individual or firm to perform some or all
of these services:
* Negotiation of union contracts and representation of the City in labor matters
* Code Compliance (formerly, "Code Enforcement") proceedings
* Prosecution of City ordinance violations before the Special Magistrate or in Hernando
County Court
* Local Bond/loan counsel
* Litigation
* Other specialized matters as appropriate

Legal representation of the Board of Trustees of the General Employee Retirement System and the
Board of Trustees of the Police and Fire Retirement System is provided by counsel for each of the
Boards.
10. The City Attorney will provide the following performance expectations:
* Responsiveness
* Practical legal advice
* Excellent communication
* Timely completion of assignments
* Collaborative working relationships
* High ethical standards
* Proactive identification of legal risks
* Commitment to customer service
* Knowledge of municipal best practices
11. The City may request additional legal services, including:
* Special litigation
* Charter review
* Legislative advocacy
* Utility acquisitions
* Real estate closings
* Bond counsel coordination
* Special investigations
* Ethics training
* Sunshine Law training
* Public Records training
III. BILLING FORMATS FOR HOURLY SERVICES
If a firm is selected, each bill for services and costs should be submitted directly to the City Manager's
office in a form that includes at a minimum, the following information by billable increment:
Date of Clear Description of Name of Attorney Time Spent (in
Service Service Specifying Person Who increments of one
City Department, Requesting Performed tenth of an hour) X
Board, Case, Issue or Work Service Hourly Rate = Cost
Matter
Each different service performed must be listed separately.
The description of services must permit the City to perform a meaningful analysis of the services
provided. For example, an entry for "legal research" or "telephone conference" is not an acceptable
description of services. The subject matter of a telephone call or discussion and its participants, the
research performed if applicable and the purpose must be specified, as described above.
Retainer or fixed fee billings may use a "flat "or "retainer" amount.

Details regarding the authorization of work and billing of reimbursable expenses will be addressed in
the contract, if a firm is selected.
The City prefers but does not require enrollment in the Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) Payment
Program.
The City reserves the right to negotiate compensation with the selected proposer.
IV. Evaluation Criteria
Proposals will be evaluated using the following criteria:
Criteria Points
Municipal law experience 30
Qualifications of assigned attorneys 20
Understanding of City's needs 15
Responsiveness and approach 10
References and past performance 10
Fee proposal 15
Total 100
Interviews will be conducted with the highest-ranked firms prior to final selection.
The Procurement Administrator will review each submission during opening to determine inclusion of
all required attachments, and submission of requested information based on format detailed in this
packet. Any submissions received that do not include required attachments will be disqualified, based
on information provided in this solicitation. Each Council member will independently score each
submission, based on the above listed criteria. Depending on the number of submissions received, the
top five submissions will be determined based on ranked scoring matches up to and including 100 total
points. This ranking determination will be disclosed during the Pre-Evaluation Meeting August 20, 2026.
The Council may interview fewer than five firms if fewer than five proposals are reasonable competitive.
This will be determined during the comparative ranking at the Pre-Evaluation Meeting.

CITY OF BROOKSVILLE GENERAL PROVISIONS
These general terms and conditions apply in like force to this solicitation and to any contract resulting
therefrom.
Section 1.01 CONE OF SILENCE DURING SOLICITATION AND LOBBYING PROHIBITION
Definitions: The "Cone of Silence," as used in this RFP, means a prohibition on any
communication regarding the RFP, between:
a) a potential proposer, respondent, lobbyist or consultant, and:
b) a City Council member, City staff members including, but not limited to, the City
Manager and her staff, and the City Attorney.
Restriction; Notice: A Cone of Silence shall be imposed upon this RFP upon the advertisement
of the RFP.
Termination of Cone of Silence: The Cone of Silence shall terminate at the beginning of the
City Commission meeting (whether a regular or special meeting) at which the City Commission
considers an appointment or award of a contract. However, if the matter is postponed, the Cone
of Silence shall be re-imposed until such time as the matter returns to the City Commission for
an appointment or contract award.
Exceptions to Applicability: The provisions of this section shall not apply to:
a) Oral communications at any pre-proposal conferences;
b) Oral presentations before an Evaluation Committee, if any;
c) Public presentations made to the City Council members during any duly noticed public
meeting;
d) Communications regarding the RFP between a Respondent, lobbyist or consultant
and the City's Procurement Administrator designated as responsible for administering
the procurement process for the RFP, provided the communication is limited strictly to
matters of process or procedure already contained in the RFP;
e) Responses to any City request for clarification or additional information;
f) Contract negotiations during any duly noticed public meeting;
Penalties: Violation of this section by a Respondent shall render any RFP appointment or award
of contract to the Respondent voidable by the City Commission. Any person who violates a
provision of this section may be prohibited from serving on a City selection or evaluation
committee. In addition to any other penalty provided in this RFP, violation of any provision of this
section by a City employee may subject the employee to disciplinary action.
Please contact the City's Procurement Administrator for any questions concerning "Cone of
Silence" compliance.
Section 1.02 AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT
The City of Brooksville does not discriminate upon the basis of any individual's disability status. This
non- discrimination policy involves every aspect of the City's functions including one's access to,

participation, employment, or treatment in its programs or activities. Anyone requiring reasonable
accommodation to the solicitation documents or for the public meetings related to any solicitation
should contact the Procurement staff member named on the solicitation summary at least twenty-
four (24) hours in advance of the meeting. Please be advised that if you contact the City by email,
your email address will become a public record and may be subject to disclosure under the Florida
Public Records Act.
Section 1.03 ACCEPTANCE/REJECTION/MODIFICATION TO PROPOSAL
The City of Brooksville may (1) amend or modify this request, (2) revise requirements of this request,
(3) require supplemental statements or information from any firm, (4) accept or reject any or all bids,
(5) extend the deadline for submission of proposals, (6) waive non-material defects, and (7) cancel
this request, in whole or in part, if the City deems it in its best interest to do so. The City may exercise
the foregoing rights at any time without notice and without liability to any offering firm or any other
party for their expenses incurred in the preparation of proposal or otherwise.
Section 1.04 ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF ADDENDUM
Proposer/Contractors shall acknowledge receipt of any addendum to the solicitation by identifying
the addendum number in the space provided for this purpose on Attachment D, by letter, or by
returning a copy of the issued amendment with the submitted proposal. The acknowledgment should
be received by the City of Brooksville by the time and at the place specified for the receipt of
proposals. Failure to acknowledge an issued addendum will result in bid rejection and
disqualification.
Section 1.05 ANTITRUST
By entering into a contract, the Proposer/Contractor conveys, sells, assigns, and transfers to the City
of Brooksville all rights, titles, and interest it may now have or hereafter acquire under the antitrust
laws of the United States and the State of Florida that relate to the particular goods or services
purchased or acquired by the City under the said contract.
Section 1.06 APPLICABLE LAW
The resulting contract shall be governed in all respects by the laws of the State of Florida, and any
litigation with respect thereto shall be brought in the courts of the City of Brooksville, Hernando
County, Florida. The Proposer/Contractor shall comply with all applicable Federal, State, and local
laws and regulations. Lack of knowledge by the Proposer/Contractor will in no way be a cause for
relief from responsibility.
Section 1.07 ASSIGNMENT
The successful Proposer/Contractor(s) shall not assign, transfer, convey, sublet, or otherwise
dispose of any award or any or all of its rights, title, or interest therein, or delegate the duties
hereunder without the prior written consent of the City of Brooksville.