L.A. Unified will not consider new contract for lawyer who said teen shared blame for sexual abuse

The Los Angeles Unified School District’s on-again off-again relationship with an outside attorney lambasted for his remarks in a student sexual abuse case appears decisively off -- at least for the next five years.

The Board of Education is set to approve new contracts for outside law firms Tuesday, but for the first time in nearly three decades it appears that Ivie, McNeill & Wyatt will not be considered for district work. The Los Angeles firm does not appear on the list of 59 firms recommended for contracts by the district’s legal office.

One of the firm’s partners, W. Keith Wyatt, was removed from district work last fall after telling a radio station that it was more dangerous for a teen to cross a street in traffic than to have sex with her teacher.

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Wyatt was referring to a case involving a 14-year-old who was sexually abused by her teacher at Edison Middle School and has sued the district for negligence. The attorney argued in court that the girl was partly to blame because she concealed her relationship from her family and school officials.

David Holmquist, the district’s general counsel, announced last November that Wyatt would be barred from further legal work. Later that month, he informed L.A. schools Supt. Ramon Cortines and board member George McKenna that the firm would keep four cases and begin receiving new work from January, but that Wyatt would not be permitted to participate, according to a Nov. 24 email obtained by The Times.

However, Holmquist acknowledged last month that Wyatt had, in fact, been rehired for two cases in February and three in June. Explaining the reinstatement, Holmquist said Wyatt and his firm had “learned from their mistakes” - which was not to speak to reporters without district permission.

Holmquist also said the firm had done “outstanding legal work” for the district during their 28-year relationship.

But a former district employee said Wyatt’s firm was placed on probation and not given work for more than a year after a 2006 analysis found its average cost was significantly higher than four other firms that handled liability cases.

According to the analysis, which was obtained by the Times, Wyatt’s firm charged an average $37,289 per case among 101 completed between July 2000 and September 2006. The four other firms, which the analysis did not identify, charged between $30,200 and $20,900.

In addition, Wyatt’s firm often failed to meet district guidelines to submit initial evaluations of cases within 30 days, instead averaging 105 days, according to Mildred Miyazaki, then deputy director of the district’s risk management and insurance services.

Miyazaki said she and others persuaded Holmquist to put Wyatt’s firm on probation. She retired in 2008 but said she “about fell off my chair” when she learned of Wyatt’s remarks to KPCC-FM (89.3) in the teen sex abuse case.

Holmquist fired Wyatt again last month after school board member Monica Ratliff and others strongly objected to his reinstatement. Holmquist did not respond to a request for comment.

In materials prepared for Tuesday’s board meeting, Holmquist said 78 firms submitted proposals for outside legal work. Five of 81 current firms were not re-selected, including Wyatt’s firm. Among the 59 that made the cut, 10 are new. If approved, the firms will be offered three-year contracts with two one-year renewal options.

Holmquist said outside firms are used to handle excess cases, provide a needed expertise or take on far-reaching work, such as class-action lawsuits. But he said his office increasingly relies on in-house attorneys, cutting outside legal bills to $6.4 million last school year from $22 million in 2001-02.

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