Commissioners voted to approve a "termination of legal services agreement" with KLG. In a separate motion, they approved hiring Ron Bultje of Dickinson Wright as interim corporation counsel. Commissioner Sylvia Rhodea was absent. An initial packet phrased the separation as a resignation. The attached agreement, signed by David Kallman, says the county wishes to return to an employee model for corporation counsel, rather than contracting with a firm. Teeples and Brugger said that number was inaccurate.
Teeples said KLG will continue to provide some assistance over the next three months, and is "waiving" a January invoice. Moss and Miedema thanked KLG for their work and said the move was rushed. More: Ottawa Impact campaigned on transparency. In their first meeting, they blindsided the community. The firm waives all claims for any prior payments and unpaid invoices for During the firm's two-year tenure with the county, KLG has overseen numerous legal quagmires, including a religious discrimination lawsuit , a wrongful termination lawsuit , alleged violations of the Open Meetings Act , and the months-long case between the Ottawa County Board and Health Officer Adeline Hambley , which ended in the retaining of her role.
Those complaints and concerns, Gibbs argued, led to his firing. Just over a month into KLG's original contract, the firm's agreement was amended to add a third year of services, running through Jan.
That amendment also added a "just cause" termination clause, tightening the contract so the board could only fire KLG for "gross negligence or criminal misconduct. Under the original agreement, either party could terminate the contract by providing written notice 90 days in advance.
The parties could still mutually agree to terminate services. The agreement was amended again in December , when the board voted to shorten the firm's contract and pre-pay, changing the end date of the agreement to Sept. Bultje has more than four decades of municipal law experience.
