Office of the Attorney General
Commonwealth of Virginia
Special Counsel Guidelines
When it is impracticable or uneconomical for the Office of the Attorney General (“OAG”) to provide legal services to the Commonwealth, the Attorney General strives to appoint firms and attorneys to provide the highest quality legal services at the most reasonable cost.
Firms are appointed on the basis of quality of services offered, cost and availability. Qualified Virginia firms are given preference in order to increase local business opportunities, and to decrease rates and travel costs. Further, this Office considers firms’ qualification as SWAM (small, women- and minority-owned) businesses.
Typically, the Attorney General issues Solicitations for Proposals (SFPs) to allow firms to bid competitively for routine work or to be available to serve state agencies on an as-needed basis.
Whenever practicable, this Office appoints multiple firms to allow state agencies to choose their attorneys. Unless an appointment states otherwise, client agencies and their OAG counsel are presumed to rotate case assignments to appointed counsel evenly among appointed firms, unless location, specialization or availability concerns require otherwise.
This Office typically does not appoint counsel on a contingency fee basis, and does so at this time only for Debt Collection, Department of Labor and Industry (DOLI) representation, and potentially for Virginia Retirement System (VRS) Asset Recovery actions.
The following SFPs are currently appointed to special counsel:
- SFP No. 2005-01 --- Tobacco Indemnification & Securitization
- SFP No. 2005-04 --- Tobacco Counsel
The following SFPs have been appointed for a term through June 30, 2013:
- SFP No. 2011-01 --- Intellectual Property
- SFP No. 2011-02 --- Bankruptcy
- SFP No. 2011-03 --- Debt Collection
- SFP No. 2011-04 --- VA Workers Compensation Commission
- SFP No. 2011-05 --- VDOT Title Examination
- SFP No. 2011-06 --- VDOT – Eminent Domain
- SFP No. 2011-07 --- DRM – Local Governments & Constitutional Officers
- SFP No. 2011-08 --- DRM – Medical Malpractice
- SFP No. 2011-09 --- DRM – Automobile Liability
- SFP No. 2011-10 --- Division of Child Support Enforcement (DCSE)
- SFP No. 2011-11 --- Department of Medical Assistance Services (DMAS)
- SFP No. 2011-13 --- FCC / Communications
- SFP No. 2011-14 --- Construction
- SFP No. 2011-16 --- Benefits – ERISA
- SFP No. 2011-17 --- VRS – Asset Recovery
- SFP No. 2011-18 --- VRS – Investment
- SFP No. 2011-19 --- Immigration
- SFP No. 2011-20 --- University of Virginia – Bond Counsel
- SFP No. 2011-21 --- VCU – Bond Counsel
- SFP No. 2011-22 --- Virginia Tech – Bond Counsel
- SFP No. 2011-23 --- University of Virginia – Charitable Trust
- SFP No. 2011-26 --- UVAMC – Medicare/Medicaid Regulatory; Transactions
- SFP No. 2011-29 --- Virginia Port Authority - PPTA
- SFP No. 2011-30 --- Virginia Resources Authority – Revolving Funds
- SFP No. 2011-31 --- Virginia Port Authority – Admiralty & Maritime Labor Issues
- SFP No. 2011-32 --- Virginia Port Authority – Bond
- SFP No. 2011-33 --- Virginia Port Authority – Complex Contractual & Real Estate Matters
- SFP No. 2011-34 --- Treasury
- SFP No. 2011-37 --- VDOT – Privatization
- SFP No. 2011-38 --- Commonwealth Transportation Board (CTB)
- SFP No. 2011-39 --- Virginia College Building Authority (VCBA)
- SFP No. 2011-40 --- Virginia Small Business Financing Authority (VSBFA)
If you have any questions, please direct them to Chief Deputy Attorney General Chuck James and his executive assistant Juliana Comer at (804) 786-2435 or jcomer@oag.state.va.us.
Rev. 7/01/11