PRESS RELEASE
October 19, 2005

County Counsel John Sansone gave his annual report to the San Diego County Board of Supervisors today pointing out an astounding litigation success rate of 98 percent in cases filed against the County.

The high success rate saved taxpayer money and established a clear “no deep pocket” attitude directed at litigious individuals, said County Board of Supervisors’ Chairwoman Pam Slater-Price.

According to Sansone, the County paid out only $122,500 in judgments during the entire fiscal year. Of the 103 cases filed against the County that were resolved by court ruling or dismissal, the County Counsel attorneys prevailed in 101 cases.

“The County Counsel’s Office is a layer of defense against those who seek to pocket taxpayer money by filing meritless lawsuits or arguing against decisions by the County Board of Supervisors designed to protect the public good,” Slater-Price said. “I am proud our team of taxpayer defenders in the Office of County Counsel.”

The litigation record in FY 2004-2005 continues the litigation successes the County has achieved over the past three fiscal years. During that time period the County Counsel attorneys prevailed in over 96 percent of its cases (309 wins and 11 losses).

Bucking recent trends to settle lawsuits out of court, County Counsel sought a court decision/dismissal in 72 percent of the cases. Settling out of court was limited to when it was advantageous to County taxpayers. This strategy was at the direction of the Board of Supervisors.

Sansone said his office places a high priority in advising, assisting and training County officials and employees on aspects of the law to avoid lawsuits. With such diligence in place, he said, the County moves forward knowing it is on solid legal footing. He added that his office held 81 countywide education and risk mitigation training sessions with over 3,242 employees, appointees and related workers during the year. In addition, 76 specialized training sessions on juvenile dependency matters were also provided to County Social Workers.

County Counsel held these “Risk Mitigation, Training and Litigation” sessions at no additional cost to the taxpayers by using in-house attorneys rather than hiring outside legal consultants or attorneys to conduct the classes.

“Substantial training for county employees has resulted in a major cost savings to the public,” Slater-Price said. “Additionally, this process has had a significant positive impact on the public’s confidence in our dealings with local businesses, other government entities and the citizens of the region.”

The California State Association of Counties awarded the prestigious Statewide Challenge Award last year to County Counsel’s office for this Risk Mitigation, Training & Litigation Program.