[ga] Legal Expenses Review
Dear Stuart, I think the GA's role is also to audit what the ICANN budget. I am interested in having your comments and responses on the following points in reference to the BoD Decision upon your proposition quoted at the end of this document. - on this $ 90.000 paid to Jones, Day, Reavis & Pogue how much was a preparation to the reject of the proposed contract by the ccTLDs, how much will be usable for the next ccTLD round? - I suppose that internal legal budget share (Louis Touton and Theresa Swinehart, plus secretariat, lodging expenses, travel and living, etc...) is around $ 30.000 a month. On that budget how much was dedicated to the preparation of the afore said reject that everyone took for granted from previous experience? - has any person of the Staff and BoD been made aware by these legal Counsels and internal legal advisors that when discussing a proposed contract it is sometimes of interest to involve the other party in some kind of a negotiation, and to take into account the other party's propositions? Has the legal counsels been aware that the ccTLDs have worked out a contract they are ready to sign for one year? - knowing that ccTLDs donate the ICANN $ 1.000.000 a year, I would like to know how much is spent on a yearly basis on the preparation of the always rejected contract since the beginning of the ICANN? Knowing that ccTLD registrants foot that costs, would it no be reasonable to stick to the existing statu-quo permitting good operations for more than 15years and documented by RFC 1591 and ICP-1? - if the target is to replicate with ccTLDs the success of .biz and .info, what are the provisions entered in 2002/3 etc.. budgets to respond the legal cases made by the various national registrant communities. Do the contract with Jones, Day, Reavis & Pogue allows a refund in case of non satisfactory advises having led to a conflicting situation were existed none. (I am sorry but I am not familiar with this practice: I use to call on lawyers to settle conflicts, not to build them: in such cases I call on fortune soldiers {Charles Mollon tells me that may be Jones Day is a mercenary commando under disguise. I don't think so: they would be cheaper)). I thank you for your comments and responses to theses questions and for your response to the additional questions Fellow Members from his Honorable Assembly might want to add. I just want to add that I am genuinely upset by such an unnecessary expense and the fact that ICANN yet cannot foot the NCDNHC budget ($55.000) spend the travel cost ($2500) of the DNSO candidates to the BoD, foot the travel costs of the GA Chair and Alt.Chair ($2500), cannot foot the travel of NC Members ($25.000), that is in total less than what they have lost with Jones Day in July. I am also upset at ccTLDs as they continue to foot that kind of waste instead of investing into a serious ccTLD management program and into a secondary server system. Jefsey Morfin <quote> "Payment of Legal Expenses Whereas, ICANN had significant needs for legal services in the month of July 2001 concerning ccTLD agreements, including preparation of a program under which ICANN would be capable of negotiating and entering up to five ccTLD agreements per month; Whereas, Jones, Day, Reavis & Pogue provided extensive legal services to meet these needs; Whereas, ICANN received an invoice from Jones, Day for US$ 88,711.68 for these legal services rendered in July 2001; Whereas, the President reviewed the invoice and determined that in his opinion it represents a proper indebtedness of ICANN, is for authorized services, and should be paid; Whereas, the President has advised the Executive Committee that ICANN has adequate funds to pay this invoice; Whereas, in resolution 99.121 the Board delegated to the Executive Committee the authority (with exceptions not here relevant) to exercise all the Board's powers in the oversight of the management of ICANN's affairs, including in financial matters; Whereas, the President advised the Executive Committee's members of his opinion that the invoice should be paid; Resolved [EC01.17] that payment to Jones, Day, Reavis & Pogue of US$ 88,711.68 for legal services provided to ICANN in ccTLD agreements during the month of July 2001 is hereby approved and authorized. http://www.icann.org/minutes/prelim-report-16oct01.htm " Regards </quote>
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