University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign awarded a contract for legal services in the estimated amount of $25,000 on Thursday, January 8, 2004 . The Office of University Counsel required immediate legal advice on compliance with HB 3412 and SB 702, both of which went into effect immediately upon passage during the fall 2003 legislative veto session. The legislation is very complex, and questions requiring interpretation of these laws needed to be addressed as soon as possible to ensure that the University is in compliance. Failure to comply with the laws could result in severe sanctions which would seriously disrupt University operations. Because there was insufficient time to conduct an RFP process, the University has contracted on an emergency basis for these services with Jenner and Block, a law firm that has previously demonstrated that it can provide high quality service to the University on ethics matters and already has knowledge of University policies and practices. This emergency/quick purchase was required due to a situation in which immediate action was needed to prevent any disruption in University services.
(Submitted by Kathe Shinham, State Purchasing Officer.)