A BULL’S-EYE FOR DART’S NEW ATTORNEYS

It was probably one of the most competitive events ever to occur in Dallas, but the players weren’t in the game for public entertainment. In fact, the sports arena was a stately room in the Belo Mansion, and the sweat pouring from the brows of the contenders was the sweat of Dallas attorneys, not athletes.

They were competing for the opportunity to act as general legal counsel to Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) as it begins the task of developing an areawide mass transit system. After the DART Board placed ads in local newspapers and legal publications last December, 38 law firms replied that they were interested in looking at requests for proposals (RFPs). Of those, 28 firms actually sent proposals to be reviewed by DART’s legal committee.

The attorneys selected are Henry Gilchrist of Jenkens & Gilchrist, who will act as general legal counsel, and Marshall J. Doke of Rain Harrell Emery Young & Doke, who will act as counsel for procurement.

DART’s legal committee chairman, attorney Robert H. Power of Robert H. Power and Associates, says he was most impressed with Gilchrist’s presentation but that the committee didn’t want to miss the expertise of Doke, who, Power says, is one of the nation’s leading experts on government and international contract law.

Gilchrist and Doke are not the only attorneys working with DART, however. Before the RFPs were sent to general legal counselors, they were sent to the nine local law firms that specialize in financial counseling. The committee retained attorney Ray Hutchison of Hutchison Price Boyle and Brooks last December. He and his firm then helped to draft RFPs for the general legal counselors.

The other members of DART’s legal committee include William Clark of Clark West Keller Butler & Ellis; Tom James of Blanchette & James; Lee Simpson of Wald Harkrader & Ross; Raymond D. Noah of Raymond D. Noah & Associates Inc.; and Nick Nadolski, president of Micro-pac Industries in Garland (the only non-attorney). The committee won’t be disbanding anytime soon, though; it plans to monitor the new legal counselors.

Power says that one thing his committee will watch out for is duplication of effort by the three law firms. He adds that although most of the legal work will fall into the hands of the three firms selected, other firms in the Dallas area will be called in at times to help with specific issues as DART progresses. Power said that the feeling of citywide participation is important to the Dallas legal community.

Observers of the first citywide competition say privately that the potential for gaining and losing friends in the legal community was great. But Simpson, Power and Hutchison say they have heard only praise from legal firms not selected for the way the competition was handled.

Although it’s too early to estimate the dollar value of DART’s legal requirement, the DART Board officials guess that it could expend nearly $8 billion in contracts as it builds an area mass transit system.