Legal fees pass estimates months before Missoula, Mountain Water trial begins
“Already, the city of Missoula has exceeded its original estimate for legal costs in its quest to take over Mountain Water Co.
This spring, Mayor John Engen estimated the city would pay $400,000 total to its own lawyers and the same for attorneys representing the water company and its owner. The city planned to spend $4.24 million in overall transaction costs – including legal fees – to condemn the water utility.
Trial is set for March 2015.
But last week, Engen said the city already has paid nearly $400,000 in legal claims. He is recalculating the projected total bill for attorneys working on the city’s behalf.
“A lot of it has to do with how aggressive we think Carlyle has been,” Engen said.
The city of Missoula took Mountain Water and its owner, the Carlyle Group, to court to force a sale of the utility under eminent domain. The Carlyle Group, a global equity firm that bought Mountain Water in 2011, pledged a vigorous defense of its property, and it continues to estimate its own legal fees will top $1 million.”
Sxpaller, Keila. The Missoulian 8 September 2014.