Resolutions - Jersey City

CITY OF JERSEY CITY
Office of the Corporation Counsel
280 Grove Street
Jersey City, New Jersey 07302
Telephone: (201) 547-4667
Fax: (201) 547-5230
Jerramiah Healy, Mayor Bil Matsikoudis, Corporation Counsel
July 13, 20 II
Council President and Members of the Municipal Council
City Hall-280 Grove Street
Jersey City, NJ 07302
Re: Resolution Authorizing the Professional Services Agreement to Eric Bernstein, Esq.
to Provide Legal Services to the City of Jerse:r City in Connection with Labor and
Employment Matters
Dear Council President and Members of the Municipal Council:
On the Agenda for the Council's consideration is a Resolution reappointing the Law Offces of
Eric Bernstein, Esq. to assist the City with legal matters related to labor and employment issues. Over the
past two ytars, the Law Department has suc~eeded in shifting much, ofthe legal work connected to labor
and employment matters in-house. This has substantially reduced our reliance on outsiåe labor counsel,.
which historicaily has been the City's number one expenditure for legal ser/ices. The City is no longer
utilizing the services of Schwartz, Simon ari'Edelstein for labor negotiations. .
Indeed, the Law Offices of Eric Bernstein, Esq. did not even exhaust the
$58,000 authorization
that it wa.s given for the previous year, which was leftover from its 2009 authorization. However, we are
required to annually seek a reauthorizatioti öfMr.Bernstein's Contract pursuant to N.J.S~A. 48:j 1-15.
Although we have successfully managed to shiftmost legal matters related to labor and employment to
our legal staff, occasional conflicts and certain complex issues require utilization of outside counsel with
Mr. Bernstein'5 expertise.
Therefore, it is respectfully requested that you vote in favOl bfthe above resolutic)l.
C~ -
c:- Z~
Very tru Iy yóurs,
WM/igp
c: Rosemary McFadden, Chief of Staff
Jack Kelly, Business Administrator
Joai~nc I\,1onahan, First Assistant Corporation Counsel
Robert Byrne, CityCerk
WILLILAM MATSIKOUDIS
CORPORATION COUNSEL