Professional Legal Services - Municipal Tax Attorney

The City of Bayonne, New Jersey, is actively soliciting Qualifications and Proposals for Professional Legal Services, specifically seeking a Municipal Tax Attorney. This critical engagement involves handling and representing the City in all tax-related matters, with a particular emphasis on managing and litigating tax appeals before the tax court. The selected legal professional will be responsible for a comprehensive scope of work that includes tracking, researching, fully litigating tax appeals or counterclaims, preparing settlement documents and related resolutions, and maintaining consistent communication with appropriate City of Bayonne personnel regarding case statuses. This initiative falls under a “fair and open” contracting process, adhering to the New Jersey Local Unit Pay to Play Law (N.J.S.A. 19:44-20.4 et seq.), ensuring transparency and competitive selection for these extraordinary unspecifiable services. Prospective contractors must meet stringent qualifications, including being licensed to practice law in the State of New Jersey for a minimum of ten (10) years prior to appointment. Eligibility to appear before all state and federal courts in New Jersey, as well as New Jersey administrative agencies and the Office of Administrative Law, is mandatory. Firms or individual attorneys must maintain a bona fide principal office within the State of New Jersey and provide evidence of past and present representation of municipal or governmental authorities. Furthermore, applicants are required to demonstrate knowledge of general New Jersey tax law and possess sufficient support staff to efficiently manage all aspects of tax appeals. Required insurance coverages include Workers' Compensation, General Liability ($1,000,000 per occurrence, $2,000,000 aggregate), Automotive Liability ($1,000,000 per occurrence, $2,000,000 aggregate), and Professional Liability ($1,000,000 per occurrence, claims-based), with the City named as an additional insured on relevant policies. Sealed proposals and responses must be submitted to the City Law Department, located at 630 Avenue C, 1st Floor, Room 15, Bayonne, New Jersey 07002, on or before the firm deadline of November 7, 2024, at 10:00 a.m. prevailing time. Required submission documents encompass standardized RFQ-RFP forms, a signed and dated Proposal, Qualifications and Costs Submission Form, a signed and notarized Non-Collusion Affidavit, a signed Disclosure of Ownership form, a Professional/Consulting/Extraordinary Unspecifiable Service Entity Information Form, a current NJ Business Registration Certificate, a NJ Certificate of Good Standing, and a Disclosure of Investment Activities in Iran Form. Proposals will be publicly opened on November 7, 2024, at 11:00 a.m. in the Law Department Conference Room. For further information or to obtain solicitation packages, interested parties may contact John F. Coffey II, Esq., Law Director, at the specified Law Department address.