Missouri is just embarking on what could be a years-long court battle over the way it funds public schools
KELLY WIESE, Kansas City.com, October 9, 2004
Associated Press

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - Missouri is just embarking on what could be a years-long court battle over the way it funds public schools. And already, more than one-half million dollars has been spent on the case, largely on attorneys' fees.

Missouri taxpayers could get hit with an especially large bill, because they will be paying private firms both to defend and challenge the law.

Most states around the country have had their methods of paying for education challenged at one time or another, and some groups have racked up millions of dollars' worth of legal expenses.

In many states, the attorney general's office handles the defense of the state's school spending decisions, and it's not unusual for private lawyers or nonprofit organizations to represent schools in lawsuits without getting paid, legal experts say.

But in Missouri, both the school districts that brought suit and the attorney general's office defending the state are paying private lawyers to help with the case, in addition to work done by the attorney general's office staff.

The private attorneys already have cost about $645,000, according to figures provided to The Associated Press.

The lawsuit by school districts claims Missouri does not spend enough on public schools and distributes what money there is unfairly.

The school districts that filed the lawsuit hired Husch & Eppenberger, with Jefferson City attorney Alex Bartlett leading the case. Bartlett successfully handled a 1990 case that led to the formula that's now under attack.

Plus, another batch of districts has stepped in to the case separately, agreeing with the plaintiffs on inadequacy of funding but worried over what could happen with its distribution. They hired their own attorney, Audrey McIntosh.

The state in January hired the Atlanta-based law firm Sutherland, Asbill & Brennan to assist the attorney general's office in defending against the lawsuit. The attorney general's office said legislative leaders were involved in selection of the firm, which has helped defend other states that faced challenges of their school funding systems.

Before the case is over, the litigation cost could be in the millions, experts say. A look around the country illustrates their point.

The firm that Missouri hired also worked for New York state, which lost its case last year.

The firm's services cost New York taxpayers $11.4 million. Attorneys for the schools asked the courts to make the state pay them $20 million for their work on the case, but failed.

The cost of a school lawsuit in South Carolina is estimated at more than $10 million. The state has spent $3.7 million in legal fees and expenses defending its funding system. Officials said South Carolina school districts have spent $2.25 million, while a law firm said it has contributed $4.6 million in time and resources representing the school districts. That court fight began more than a decade ago.

In Arkansas, the school-funding system was declared unconstitutional in 2002 after a decade in court. The state Supreme Court ordered the state to pay the school district's lawyers $3.4 million, but that was far less than the more than $30 million they sought.

Missouri is paying the Sutherland firm a base rate of $295 an hour per lawyer for at least seven lawyers, up to $90 an hour per paralegal, plus reimbursement for things such as travel and hotels, according to documents provided to The Associated Press. Payments are made through the state's Legal Expense Fund, whose budget is approved by the state Legislature.

As of this week, the state has paid the firm more than $251,000, including legal fees, travel and other expenses, the attorney general's office said.

Meanwhile, Bartlett said his firm charges the districts an hourly rate of as much as $200 per lawyer, which he said is about 25 percent lower than its typical rates.

The districts that sued, calling themselves the Committee for Educational Equality, spent more than $244,000 through late September, mostly on legal fees, according to its leader, Tyler Laney, the Crane School District superintendent.

In all, 256 of the state's 524 districts are part of that group and are contributing to the case based on the number of students. The other group of districts, with 34 dues-paying members, said it has spent about $150,000 so far.

Laney said it's "disturbing" that the money is going to lawyers rather than schoolchildren, but said it's time the state Supreme Court weighs in on the issue.

He said experts the districts want to use "come at a premium price" and the group originally estimated it would cost $1 million to challenge the school funding method, but with the Sutherland firm getting involved, that may not be enough.

© 2004 AP Wire and wire service sources. All Rights Reserved.
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