6073478 ACR 21-218, Karen L. Dunn and Brian D. Netter Distinguished Service to the District of Columbia Recognition Resolution of 2016
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A CEREMONIAL RESOLUTION
21-218
IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
May 31, 2016
To recognize the Council of the District of Columbia’s pro bono counsel, Karen L. Dunn and Brian D. Netter, for their contributions to the advancement of autonomy in the District of Columbia by successfully defending the Local Budget Autonomy Act of 2012, and for their distinguished service to the District of Columbia.
WHEREAS, in December 2012 the Council of the District of Columbia adopted the Local Budget Autonomy Act of 2012 (“Budget Autonomy Act”), a Home Rule Charter amendment that permits the District to spend its own tax-and-fee revenues, which was subsequently ratified, on April 23, 2013, by District voters with 83% approving the amendment;
WHEREAS, in early 2014, during consideration of the Fiscal Year 2015 budget, the then-Mayor and the Chief Financial Officer made known their intent not to comply with the Budget Autonomy Act, immediately throwing into disorder the ongoing budget adoption process;
WHEREAS, in February 2014, the Council engaged the services of Bois, Schiller & Flexner LLP Partner Karen L. Dunn and Mayer Brown LLP Partner Brian D. Netter to advise the Council, and to defend the Budget Autonomy Act and the will of the District residents that approved the underlying Charter amendment;
WHEREAS, in April 2014, the Council, represented by Ms. Dunn and Mr. Netter, initiated a suit against the Mayor and Chief Financial Officer seeking declaratory and injunctive relief;
WHEREAS, Ms. Dunn graduated magna cum laude from Brown University, received her J.D. from Yale Law School, and has an extensive record of government service, having served in all 3 branches in government: as Associate Counsel to President Barack Obama; as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; as Communications Director and Senior Advisor to Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton; and as a law clerk first to Judge Merrick B. Garland of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, then to Justice Stephen G. Breyer of the Supreme Court of the United States;
WHEREAS, Ms. Dunn is currently a Partner at Bois, Schiller & Flexner LLP and has been recognized both locally and nationally for her work on high-profile civil and criminal litigation as well as strategic counseling and crisis management;
WHEREAS, Mr. Netter graduated summa cum laude from the University of Michigan, received a Master of Science in Engineering from the University of Michigan, received his J.D. from Yale Law School, where he served as Reviews Editor for the Yale Law Journal and received multiple awards in moot court competition, and has had an impressive career that includes serving as a law clerk first to Judge Judith W. Rogers of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, then to Justice Stephen G. Breyer of the Supreme Court of the United States, as well as serving as counsel in a number of high-profile cases on constitutional law and a range of other issues;
WHEREAS, Mr. Netter is currently a Partner at Mayer Brown LLP, where he is co-leader of the firm’s Supreme Court and Appellate group and has been recognized both locally and nationally for his work in appellate litigation;
WHEREAS, Ms. Dunn and Mr. Netter – who married in 2009 – collaborated as a legal team for the first time in order to litigate on behalf of the Council and the people of the District of Columbia, and to defend the Budget Autonomy Act;
WHEREAS, Ms. Dunn and Mr. Netter, working on a pro bono basis, worked tirelessly over the course of 2 years, as the litigation moved through different forums and with changes to parties involved, making oral arguments before the United States District Court for the District of Columbia and the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, and submitted countless briefs and motions in both federal and District courts on behalf of the Council;
WHEREAS, Ms. Dunn and Mr. Netter spent countless hours reviewing and scrutinizing documents in various archives relating to the enactment of the Home Rule Act, and pursuing interviews with current and former members of Congress and staff;
WHEREAS, Ms. Dunn and Mr. Netter provided zealous advocacy for the Council, spending nearly 2 years in complex and time-consuming litigation, all in an effort to advance the will of District voters and the morally correct position that underlies the Budget Autonomy Act;
WHEREAS, in March 2016, after taking a long and circuitous route through the courts, the litigation over the Budget Autonomy Act was resolved with the Superior Court of the District of Columbia order upholding the validity of the act and stating that the Council, the Mayor, and the District voters lawfully exercised their collective power to gain control over expenditure of local funds;
WHEREAS, the Council of the District of Columbia, and the residents of the District of Columbia, owe Ms. Dunn and Mr. Netter a debt of gratitude for the exemplary service and tireless efforts to advance local autonomy; and
WHEREAS, the Council of the District of Columbia recognizes the distinguished service of Ms. Dunn and Mr. Netter in defense of the Budget Autonomy Act, having been the Council’s distinguished counsel since the very beginning.
RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this resolution may be cited as the “Karen L. Dunn and Brian D. Netter Distinguished Service to the District of Columbia Recognition Resolution of 2016”.
Sec. 2. The Council of the District of Columbia recognizes and honors Karen L. Dunn and Brian D. Netter for their defense of the Local Budget Autonomy Act of 2012 and their advancement of autonomy for, and service to, the District of Columbia.
Sec. 3. This resolution shall take effect immediately upon the first date of publication in the District of Columbia Register.
