The Board of Trustees of the Houston Community College System held a Sp...ollege, Codwell Hall, 555 Community College Drive, Houston, Texas, 7700
MEETING OF THE LEGAL COMMITTEE
OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES
HOUSTON COMMUNITY COLLEGE SYSTEM
April 19, 2001
Minutes
The Board of Trustees of the Houston Community College System held a Meeting of the Legal Committee on April
19, 2001, at the HCCS Administration Building, Chancellors Conference Room, 12th Floor, 3100 Main, Houston,
Texas.
COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT
Abel Davila, Chair
Carol H. Smith
COMMITTEE MEMBERS ABSENT
Bruce A. Austin
ADMINISTRATION
Bruce H. Leslie, Chancellor
Jose Villarreal, Vice Chancellor, Economic Development
Nat Campos, Executive Director, Human Resources
Keith Harris, Records Management Officer
Brenda Cox, Interim Assistant to the Chancellor
OTHERS PRESENT
Arturo Michel, Bracewell & Patterson
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The Board of Trustees of the Houston Community College System held a Sp...ollege, Codwell Hall, 555 Community College Drive, Houston, Texas, 7700
Other administrators, staff, visitors and representatives from the news media
CALL TO ORDER
Mr. Davila called the meeting to order at 4:20 p.m. and declared the meeting convened to consider matters
pertaining to the Houston Community College System as listed on the duly posted meeting notice.
Legal Services The Committee discussed the hiring of an in-house counsel to handle management related
legal work as deemed appropriate. This person will serve in an advisory capacity to the Chancellor and the Board.
An outside firm or firms would still be retained to handle litigation and certain real estate issues. From time to time,
special counsel may be needed for such projects as redistricting or bond counsel.
The in-house counsel will report directly to the Chancellor with a "dotted line" reporting authority to the Board. The
duties and responsibilities of the in-house and outside counsel will be clarified through policy revision and in
compliance with educational law. Mr. Davila stressed the need for the in-house counsel to remain politically neutral.
Mrs. Smith advised the Chancellor to identify problems that hindered the last attempt to utilize in-house counsel.
Once the role of this position has been defined, RFPs will be sent out to various firms. Mr. Michel will provide
documentation indicating the type of work done over the past year and time spent on various matters to help
administration determine the proper scope of this position. Keith Harris, Records Management Officer, was present
for a discussion on the need for legal guidance in the area of records management.
Dr. Leslie advised that the position was advertised and several applications were received. A selection committee
will be formed to screen candidates. Trustees Davila and Smith declined to serve on the committee. After the
committee completes its charge, the Chancellor will bring three finalists to the full Board for consideration.
Adjournment
With no further business to come before the Committees, the meeting was adjourned at 4:50 p.m.
Minutes Prepared by:
____
Linda Gray, Administrative Assistant
Board Services
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The Board of Trustees of the Houston Community College System held a Sp...ollege, Codwell Hall, 555 Community College Drive, Houston, Texas, 7700
Reviewed, Finalized and Submitted by:
____
Herman Litt, Secretary
Board of Trustees
Minutes Approved:
_______________________________
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