Florida Senate - 2010                                     SB 138
       
       
       
       By Senator Rich
       
       
       
       
       34-00252-10                                            2010138__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to public meetings; amending s.
    3         286.011, F.S.; adding the risk manager and certain
    4         division heads of a governmental entity to the persons
    5         who may attend a private meeting discussing pending
    6         litigation; authorizing the required public
    7         announcement of an attorney-client session to be made
    8         immediately before the session; prohibiting an adverse
    9         party from attending the attorney-client session;
   10         prohibiting a person who attends an attorney-client
   11         session from disclosing any part of the discussion
   12         until the conclusion of the litigation unless ordered
   13         by the court; providing an effective date.
   14  
   15  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   16  
   17         Section 1. Subsection (8) of section 286.011, Florida
   18  Statutes, is amended to read:
   19         286.011 Public meetings and records; public inspection;
   20  criminal and civil penalties.—
   21         (8) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (1), any
   22  board or commission of any state agency or authority or any
   23  agency or authority of any county, municipal corporation, or
   24  political subdivision, and the chief administrative or executive
   25  officer of the governmental entity, the risk manager of the
   26  governmental entity, and the division heads of the governmental
   27  entity that is involved in pending litigation, as identified by
   28  the chief administrative or executive officer, may meet in
   29  private with the entity’s attorneys attorney to discuss pending
   30  litigation to which the entity is presently a party before a
   31  court or administrative agency, if provided that the following
   32  conditions are met:
   33         (a) The entity gives reasonable public notice of the time
   34  and date of the attorney-client session and the names of persons
   35  who will be attending the session.
   36         (b) The session commences as an open meeting at which the
   37  person chairing the meeting announces the commencement and
   38  estimated length of the attorney-client session and the names of
   39  the persons attending.
   40         (c) The entity’s attorney advises shall advise the entity
   41  at the a public meeting that he or she desires advice concerning
   42  the litigation, which advisory announcement may be made
   43  immediately before the attorney-client session begins.
   44         (d)(b) The subject matter of the session is meeting shall
   45  be confined to settlement negotiations or strategy sessions
   46  relating related to litigation expenditures.
   47         (e) A person who is an adverse party to the litigation is
   48  not permitted to attend the attorney-client session.
   49         (f)(c) The entire session is shall be recorded by a
   50  certified court reporter. The reporter shall record the times of
   51  commencement and termination of the session, all discussion and
   52  proceedings, the names of all persons present at any time, and
   53  the names of all persons speaking. No portion of the session
   54  shall be off the record. The court reporter’s notes must shall
   55  be fully transcribed and filed with the entity’s clerk within a
   56  reasonable time after the meeting.
   57         (g)(d) The entity shall give reasonable public notice of
   58  the time and date of the attorney-client session and the names
   59  of persons who will be attending the session. The session shall
   60  commence at an open meeting at which the persons chairing the
   61  meeting shall announce the commencement and estimated length of
   62  the attorney-client session and the names of the persons
   63  attending. At the conclusion of the attorney-client session, the
   64  meeting is shall be reopened, and the person chairing the
   65  meeting announces shall announce the termination of the
   66  attorney-client session.
   67         (h)(e) The transcript is shall be made part of the public
   68  record upon conclusion of the litigation.
   69         (i) A person in attendance at the attorney-client session
   70  agrees not to disclose any part of the discussion that took
   71  place during the session until the conclusion of the litigation
   72  unless ordered by the court.
   73         Section 2. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.