Kansas billed over $250K to defend congressional map — with battle in high court still to come

The state's tab for two months of defending a hotly-debated set of congressional maps in court has already stretched over a quarter of a million dollars — even though the constitutionality of the maps is far from resolved.

The Overland Park law firm Foulston Siefkin was tapped to bolster the state's defense of the maps against a trio of lawsuits claiming the new lines run afoul of the Kansas Constitution.

Lawyers from both sides sparred in Wyandotte County District Court earlier this month, with the trial wrapping up on April 11. A ruling is expected in the next week but it will almost certainly be appealed to the Kansas Supreme Court.

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A copy of an invoice billed to Attorney General Derek Schmidt's office, obtained via the Kansas Open Records Act, shows a charge of $257,460.07 for work on the lawsuit as of April 8.

That includes over $150,000 in work by the firm's partners, which would appear to include two of the attorneys, Tony Rupp and Gary Ayers, who handled the bulk of the arguments during the trial.

All-in-all, Foulston Siefkin has billed over 736 hours to the state for its work on the cases. The firm is one of several law practices frequently enlisted by the Attorney General's office to pitch in on civil litigation.

Clint Blaes, a spokesperson for the attorney general's office, noted that Schmidt asked the Kansas Supreme Court to take the case up without going through the district court process — something the high court declined to do.

"When that court declined and instead made clear that a trial court must hear the case first it became necessary to obtain additional help to prepare for both a trial and the inevitable appeal simultaneously all while under the urgency of the candidate filing deadline," Blaes said in an email.

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Blaes added the plaintiffs in the case have used nearly two dozen attorneys and said staff attorneys in the AG's office "have all along been vigorously preparing for the Supreme Court appeal while also working closely with the trial team."

Solicitor General Brent Laue handled some of the pre-trial hearings and was present during the trial but did not question witnesses or make opening or closing arguments.

The rates charged to the AG's office "represent a discount from Foulston’s normal hourly rate structure," according to a copy of a contract between the firm and the state.

It is unclear if the bill includes other, extraneous costs, such as procuring expert witnesses. One witness called by the defense, Alan Miller, a professor of law economics at Western Ontario University, said he had been paid $51,000 for two weeks of work by the defense.

Taxpayer funded legal bills from high-profile lawsuits have become an issue of contention in recent years.

"Passing unconstitutional laws is costly, and that cost is born by the taxpayers who have to foot the bill," said Sharon Brett, legal director for the ACLU of Kansas. "And that's unfortunate."

The state failed in its attempt to defend a voting law in federal court, touted by former Secretary of State Kris Kobach, that required a person to provide proof of citizenship when registering to vote.

Because the law was struck down, the state was forced to pay the legal fees of those challenging the measure. The final bill after negotiations was $1.9 million.

Andrew Bahl is a senior statehouse reporter for the Topeka Capital-Journal. He can be reached at abahl@gannett.com or by phone at 443-979-6100.