Whenever the law provides for the appointment of a solicitor
by an elected or appointed official, if a lawsuit is brought against
that elected or appointed official in his official capacity, the primary
responsibility to provide a defense shall be that of the appointed
solicitor. It is recognized and acknowledged that the solicitor's
compensation does not contemplate compensation for protracted legal
defense of the elected or appointed official who appoints him. Should
such a lawsuit be filed, the solicitor and the official shall appear
before the Commissioners and, if necessary, the Salary Board for appropriate
increase of compensation to acknowledge the additional effort required
to defend the elected official.
Should the solicitor not feel competent, or for any reason not
be able to represent the elected or appointed official, the office
holder shall make a request to the county to provide the services
of either a County Solicitor or an independent counsel at compensation
determined by the Commissioners to be appropriate and lawful.
All elected and appointed officials and any county employees
who are named as defendants in civil lawsuits (any noncriminal proceeding),
filed in state or federal court or any administrative board or agency,
when the civil action arises out of the manner in which the elected
or appointed official or officer or employee shall have conducted
the duties of his office, then and in that event the county shall
provide a solicitor or attorney to represent said individual who has
been named in the civil proceeding.
The county shall endeavor to obtain and maintain adequate insurance
to provide the county with adequate protection for all of the county's
officers and employees. However, the failure to obtain such insurance
does not hereby create any obligation on the part of the county to
do so.
Nothing in this chapter is intended or shall be interpreted
to waive or modify any immunity provided to the county by law.