Legal Fee Reimbursement Will be Requested by Commissioner Underhill

How much will it cost to reimburse the legal fees of a commissioner who prevailed in a lawsuit filed against him?

Upon hearing about the dismissal of the defamation case against Commissioner Underhill last week, our attorney notified us that the issue would more than likely be on the board's agenda for our meeting on the 17th of this month.

This does not surprise me, as the issue between Commissioner Underhill and the Plaintiff was settled via a summary judgment in Commissioner Underhill's favor.

And I have confirmed with knowledgeable staff on this that the request for reimbursement is coming, it will be asked of the board.  So far, though, nobody has seen an invoice or an amount paid for this victory.

I do know that the discussions about whether or not to pay the legal fees became heated several months back;  many in the public were opposed to paying these fees, as the thought process then was that the conduct at issue which drew the suit appeared to be outside of the "duties of a commissioner."

But with this ruling and with this order--that previously accepted line of thinking might be changing (which, incidentally, benefits all public officials that are outspoken on social media).

From the judge's order in Commissioner Underhill's Ruling:

"It is not beyond the orbit of the county commissioner to engage in discussions with the public regarding matters pertaining to policy. Denial of immunity in the context of this mutually desired debate, including statements intended to undermine the messenger to attack the message, would relegate the immunity to be so uncertain to chill communication.....

   ....The absolute privilege of affording immunity has  been  proven"

Those are pretty strong words from the judge----yet I anticipate much public comment on this prior to a vote by the board on paying the legal fees.

I anticipate much discussion among the board members, too.

If the board votes to pay the fees, I think the matter ends abruptly.

If the board votes NOT to pay the fees, I believe we, ourselves, would be subject to a lawsuit to compel us to pay.

What else could happen?  Well, the board could wait to see if any appeal would be filed to this judge's ruling--and wait for final disposition of the appeals.  I guess it is not outside the realm of possibility that the Board could disagree with the Judge's opinion that the conduct that drew the suit was within the scope of this commissioner's duty?  That seems unlikely though.

Much of this could hinge on how much the fees are/were for this victory---that's my opinion.  Could it be less than $5,000.00?  Nobody knows.

Regardless of cost, regardless of what anyone thinks about this commissioner or this suit--this was a very profound ruling in today's ever-changing political world as it collides with the world of social media and free speech.

It will be an interesting discussion on the 17th.