Agenda Item
i. RFP 26-718 Board Attorney Legal Services/Law Firm Agreement ~ Added 2.6.2026
Summary: Presented by: Mr. Glinton R. Darien, Jr., Director of Legal Affairs, Division of Legal Services
Request: It is requested that the DeKalb County Board of Education (“Board”) select a law firm to serve as the attorney for the Board, pursuant to RFP 26-718, entitled Board Attorney Legal Services.
Why: The Board requires sound legal advice on various issues. Therefore, it is prudent for the Board to retain a law firm they determine to best represent its interests. The approval of a law firm will enable the DeKalb County School District (“District”) to continue the efficient provision of legal services for Board Attorney.
Details: This request is pursuant to the District’s Request for Proposal (“RFP”) 26-718, entitled Board Attorney Legal Services. That RFP noted that the selected law firm will be expected to provide advice to the Board during business and non-business hours. The selected law firm would also attend scheduled and called meetings of the Board when requested. The RFP mentioned that various issues arise during the course of business involving matters that will require guidance and advice from legal counsel. Because such services, at times, represent emergency situations, legal counsel will be expected to return a telephone call, or email, to the Board without undue delay.
The following is a summary of the sourcing efforts for RFP 26-718:
Posted to IonWave on November 13, 2025;
Advertised in the Champion Newspaper on November 13, 2025, and November 20, 2025;
Electronic notification was sent to 13 vendors from the District’s Vendor Bid List;
Electronic notification was sent to 401 vendors through the State of Georgia Procurement Registry; and
Electronic notification was sent to 751 vendors through ionWave.
In response to the solicitation, four (4) proposals were received by the December 18, 2025, deadline, and four (4) proposals were deemed responsive. These proposals were:
C. McKinley Law & Associates;
Denmark Ashby Matricardi, LLC;
Hall Booth Smith, PC;
Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein, LLP.
RFP 26-718 provides that the contract for legal services will contain four (4) one-year extension options. Therefore, an evaluation committee was formed to review the proposals. The members of the evaluation committee met on January 9, 2026, to discuss the law firms that submitted a proposal, score each law firm, and decide which law firms would be interviewed. After that discussion, the evaluation committee interviewed the following law firms on January 15, 2026:
Denmark Ashby Matricardi, LLC;
Hall Booth Smith, PC; and
Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein, LLP.
On January 30, 2026, the evaluation committee met to discuss the interviews and to rank the law firms. The final rankings are:
Denmark Ashby Matricardi, LLC;
Hall Booth Smith; and
Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein
Financial impact: The account code from which the expense will be paid is 100.2300.530002.00011.7080.9990.8010.080.0000.
Contact: Mr. Glinton R. Darien, Jr., Director of Legal Affairs, Division of Legal Services, 678- 676-0403.
Effective: February 13, 2026
Status: Approved by the Office of Legal Affairs
January 30, 2026
RE: Sourcing Efforts Letter – RFP 26-718 Board Attorney Legal Services
Mr. Eric Hilton,
Because the procurement process is constantly evolving and improving, the Purchasing Department has
developed a new customer service feature. The Purchasing Department is now providing a summary of
sourcing efforts to the internal client for RFP 26-718 Board Attorney Legal Services.
The Purchasing Department’s efforts include:
1) RFP 26-718 was posted to IonWave on November 13, 2025.
2) RFP 26-718 was advertised in the Champion Newspaper on November 13, 2025, and November
20, 2025.
3) Electronic notification sent to 13 vendors from the DCSD Vendor Bid List.
4) Electronic notification sent to 401 vendors through the State of GA Procurement Registry.
5) Electronic notification sent to 751 vendors through IonWave.
If you are aware of any additional sourcing engines, please let us know so we may include those in our
process.
Four (4) proposals were received and four (4) deemed responsive to the requirements of the
solicitation.
Please feel free to reach out to me at 678-676-0120 with any questions or concerns.
Regards,
Carla L. Smith
Carla L. Smith
Executive Director, Vendor Services
CLS\WFC
c: Mr. Glinton Darien
Robert R. Freeman Administrative Complex
1701 Mountain Industrial Blvd | Stone Mountain, GA 30083
678.676.0110 | www.dekalbschoolsga.org