Alaska Redistricting Board Meeting - Board Votes To Have Counsel Negotiate Legal Fee Payment With Girdwood Plaintiffs

[I first posted most of this when Board went into Executive Session.  Now I've added their motion and vote in public session after ES finished.  Took them an hour in ES. I also edited the title.]

12:30pm Roll taken - all there  Matt Singer, attorney, also there

Agenda - add #5 - let public know about legal issues and any decisions - edited agenda shown.  

John:  Being zoom bombed in chat  - agenda change adopted

John:  Minutes corrections?

Budd Simpson:  "because of expedited couldn't explain to Board"  should be "to the Court"

Minutes adopted with changes.

going into ES, there was a suggestion to give explanation of ES

Torkelson:  Board adopted plan May 15, no challenges by June 14.  So adopted.  Job now to discuss settling one or more of the litigants seeking attorneys fees.  

Binkley:  Thanks, good to keep public as informed as possible.

Motion to move ES for purposes that were articulated.

Matt:  Open Meetings Act - make clear to make it clear why going in - Statute - include statute that allows executive Session.  Go to meet counsel 44.3.10 1 and 4 - discuss legal strategies and potential attorneys fees.  

Binkley:  Hearing no objection, we'll go into ES and shouldn't be more than 30 minutes and possibility we'll come out of ES to take action.  

12:42 - Board adjourned to beak out room for ES.

1:45 back in public meeting

Binkley:  Anyone have motion to entertain?

Bahnke:  Motion to have counsel negotiate directly with Girdwood plaintiffs over fee.

Binkley:  Any objection?  No objection.  Passes

Binkley:  Motion to adjourn?  moved and seconded.  Adjourned.  

WHAT"S NEXT?

My assumption is that the Plaintiffs will ask for full legal fees.  They'll spell out their billing for their time in the Superior Court and also in the Supreme Court.  I'm guessing this will come out to be around $150,000.  I'm assuming the Board gave their attorney a limit on how much he could pay them.  If that limit is close enough to the total for the Girdwood plaintiffs, they'll settle and this will all be over. 

But if the plaintiffs think they are being low-balled, they have the option to go back to court.  From what I've heard, they would have to go to the Superior Court and the Supreme Court separately.  I assume the courts would, at least, tell them to take what the Board offered.  At best, the courts would award them full payment.  Both courts agreed with the plaintiffs' legal challenge and recognize that the challenge allowed them (the Courts) to correct a gerrymandered map.  

According to the Board's budget as of November 2022, there should be enough money to pay the total expenses if the $150,000 estimate is close.