Agenda Item
ASR
Control 23-000926 |
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MEETING
DATE: |
12/05/23 |
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legal entity taking action: |
Board
of Supervisors |
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board of supervisors district(s): |
All
Districts |
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SUBMITTING Agency/Department: |
Child
Support Services (Approved) |
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Department contact person(s): |
Juana
Larios (714) 347-4955 |
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Gladys
Hayashi (714) 347-4901 |
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Subject: Renewal
of Contract with Team Legal, Inc.
ceo CONCUR |
County Counsel Review |
Clerk of the
Board |
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Concur |
Approved Agreement to Form |
Discussion |
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3 Votes Board Majority |
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Budgeted: Yes |
Current
Year Cost: $218,750 |
Annual
Cost: FY 2024-25 $156,250 |
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Staffing
Impact:
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No |
#
of Positions: |
Sole
Source: No |
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Current Fiscal Year Revenue: N/A
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Prior Board Action: 1/26/2021 #11 |
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RECOMMENDED
ACTION(S):
1. |
Authorize the
County Procurement Officer or Deputized designee to execute Amendment # 1 to
renew and amend the service contract with Team Legal, Inc. for legal process
services commencing February 1, 2024, through and including January 31, 2025,
in an amount not to exceed $375,000, renewable for one additional one-year
term, for a revised cumulative total contract amount of $1,500,000. |
2. |
Authorize the
County Procurement Officer or authorized Deputy to make ministerial or
non-material changes to the contract and contract amendments. |
3. |
Pursuant to Contract Policy Manual
Section 3.3-113, authorize the County Procurement Officer or authorized
Deputy to exercise a contingency contract cost increase, not to exceed a
total of 10 percent of the annual Contract amount for the first year of the Contract,
including renewals, and within the scope of work set forth in the contract.
The use of this contingency contract cost increase is subject to approval
requirements established by the County Procurement Officer. |
SUMMARY:
Approval of
Amendment # 1 for legal process services with Team Legal, Inc. will allow the
Department of Child Support Services to establish and enforce court orders for
the financial and medical support of children.
BACKGROUND
INFORMATION:
In
accordance with Family Code 17402, the Department of Child Support Services
(CSS) will establish and enforce court orders for the financial and medical
support of children. In support of services and to establish court orders, CSS
contracts for legal process service to personally serve legal documents,
including, but not limited to: Summons
and Complaints; Summons and Petition; Order to Show Cause in Regarding
Contempt; Registration of Foreign Support Order; Subpoenas; Expedited Process;
Judgment Debtor Exam, Judgment; Court Order after Hearing; Wage Assignments;
and Order to Defendant. The establishment of support orders contributes to the
quality of life for children and families.
On January 26, 2021, as the result of a
Request for Proposals, the Board of Supervisors (Board) authorized Contract
MA-027-21010762 with Team Legal, Inc. for the provision of legal process
services in support of CSS for a three-year term in an amount not to exceed
$1,125,000, renewable for two additional one-year terms; and authorized Deputy
to exercise cost contingency increase not to exceed 10 percent under certain
conditions and execute contracts.
CSS
is seeking the Board’s authorization to execute the contract renewal with Team
Legal, Inc., for a one-year term, for the period of February 1, 2024, through
and including January 31, 2025, in an amount not to exceed $375,000, with the
option to renew for one additional one-year term. The Orange County Preference
Policy is not applicable to this contract renewal.
CSS
has developed Key Performance Indicators to monitor the Contractor’s
performance. Team Legal, Inc. has maintained an Outstanding rating based on the
County’s Contractor Performance Evaluation criteria.
Key Performance Indicators |
Contractor Performance Evaluation Rating
|
Achieved Rating % |
Due Diligence - measures the steps taken
to serve a document to satisfy requirement, such as appropriate number of
attempts and when the attempts were made. |
100% - 81% |
100% |
Summons and Complaints (S&C) proof
of service returned within 7 business days of successful service. |
100% - 81% |
95% |
Declaration of Non-Service (DONS)
returned within 7 business days of terminating service. |
100% - 81% |
94% |
During
the renewal process, Team Legal, Inc. requested an increase in their respective
rates, which have not been updated since the contract’s commencement in 2021.
See Attachment A. The request increases the flat rate for legal process
service. The service rate in Orange County and the Surrounding Counties will
increase from $45 to $50, resulting in an 11 percent increase, which impacts 94
percent of the services in the contract. The flat rates for the the remaining 6
percent of the services conducted outside of the Surrounding Counties will
increase by an average of 20 percent. Several market factors have impacted the
legal process services industry, specifically the increase in competitors’
rates to recruit and retain process servers. Team Legal, Inc. is requesting an
increase to recruit and retain employees to minimize impacts to services and
remain competitive. Additionally, Team Legal, Inc. has been impacted with the
increase in fuel costs, as legal documents are delivered personally. These
factors led Team Legal, Inc. to request an adjustment to the rates charged to
the County. The rate increase will be absorbed in the existing annual amount of
$375,000 due to fluctuating use of the contract and decrease in caseload and
case openings.
In
accordance with Board policy pertaining to service contract renewals, CSS will
return for Board approval to execute additional renewals.
The
Contractor's performance has been confirmed as satisfactory. CSS has verified
there are no concerns that must be addressed with respect to Team Legal, Inc.'s
ownership/name, litigation status or conflicts with County interests.
This
contract includes subcontractors. See Attachment D for information regarding
subcontractors and the Contract Summary Form. Due to the nature of the
services, this contract could require the addition of subcontractors. Should
the addition of a subcontractor affect the scope of work and/or contract
amount, the department will bring the item back to the Board of Supervisors for
approval.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
Appropriations for this renewal are
included in Budget Control 027 FY 2023-24 Budget and will be included in the
budgeting process for FY 2024-25. The Contract includes provisions allowing the
Department of Child Support Services to terminate the Contract, reduce the
level of services, and/or renegotiate the levels of services provided, as
necessary, if funding is not available.
STAFFING IMPACT:
N/A
ATTACHMENT(S):
Attachment A – Amendment #1 to
Contract MA-027-21010762
Attachment B – Family Code
Attachment C – Redline Contract
Attachment D – Contract Summary Form