School district hires Minden woman for her legal services

Churchill County School Board trustees hired a Minden attorney to provide legal services to the district and board at a school board meeting Thursday.

Sharla Hales promised that the school district would be her only client before she was selected from a field of three lawyers who applied for the job.

Hales will be paid $6,080 a month, which will cover 40 hours monthly. If more than 40 hours a month is required, she will charge $160 an hour for her services.

Hales offered legal services at a lower rate than her competitors because she does not have the breadth of experience of Stephen Rye of Yerington or the Carson City law firm of Allison, MacKenzie, Pavlakis, Wright & Fagan.

"I know I'll have a learning curve, but I'm used to having a learning curve," Hales said.

She offered to devote whatever time necessary to research education law, and will not charge for the time necessary to become familiar with changes in the law.

Rye would have charged $5,000 a month for between 25 and 40 hours. The Carson City firm offered services at $240 an hour.

Hales is member of the Douglas County School Board and served as its president in 2005. She is also president-elect of the Nevada Association of School Boards.

She will be available and on-call to the district, Hales told trustees.

"You would have all my loyalty," she said. "Education law is my sole interest as an attorney."

Board member Paul Hinz abstained from voting because he serves on the Nevada Association of School Boards with Hale.

Hale said her husband is also an attorney who could fill in for her in an emergency. She also told the board she checked with the Nevada Commission on Ethics before applying for the job in Fallon. She learned it is ethically permissible for her to provide legal services to Churchill County while serving in Douglas County as an elected school board member.

Trustee Rich Gent said he wants to ensure that the district's lawyer keeps the board in compliance with the Nevada Open Meeting Law.

"I'm looking for someone to get up in my face and tell me we're wrong," Gent said.

Hales said she is up-to-date with the requirements of the law and promised to help the board adhere to it.

"I've lived with the open meeting law and would have no problem stopping you in mid-sentence," she said.

Board President Greg Koenig estimated it would cost the district $72,960 a year to hire Hale, based on 38 hours of work per month. She will charge for one way for travel. The district has budgeted $100,000 for legal services next year.

Don Lattin, with Maupin, Cox & LeGoy of Reno, previously charged the Churchill County School District $200 an hour for legal services. Lattin notified the district in January that he would no longer be available to the board.