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City Attorney’s Office <br />www.santa-ana.org/departments/city-attorneys-office/ <br />Item # 9 <br />City of Santa Ana <br />20 Civic Center Plaza, Santa Ana, CA 92701 <br /> Staff Report <br />February 17, 2026 <br />TOPIC: Agreement for Legal Services <br />AGENDA TITLE <br />Agreement for Legal Counsel Services with Horvitz & Levy LLP (General Fund) <br />RECOMMENDED ACTION <br />Authorize the City Manager to execute a legal services agreement with the law firm of <br />Horvitz & Levy LLP for legal services for appellate and litigation legal services for the <br />period of February 17, 2026 until February 16, 2028, with an option to extend for up to <br />one year, in an amount not to exceed $275,000 (Agreement No. A-2026-XXX). <br />GOVERNMENT CODE §84308 APPLIES: Yes <br />DISCUSSION <br />Horvitz & Levy LLP was founded in 1957. For 60 years, the law firm has specialized in <br />appellate law. The firm is excellence-driven to deliver success at the highest level. It <br />has assisted clients in complex, high-stakes cases across California and the Ninth <br />Circuit, with more than 1,500 appeals litigated and over 150 appearances before the <br />California Supreme Court since 2000. <br />The City seeks to retain Horvitz & Levy LLP because of the excellent work attorney, <br />Justin Sarno, has provided to the City. Mr. Sarno is a certified appellate specialist by <br />the California State Bar’s Board of Legal Specialization. Roughly 1% of California <br />attorneys hold this certification in appellate law. Before joining Horvitz & Levy and while <br />working for a different law firm, Mr. Sarno assisted the City in various litigation matters, <br />proving his superior skills in providing legal services to the residents of Santa Ana. In <br />particular, he successfully defended the City of Santa Ana both at the trial court level <br />and at the appellate level in a high profile case. That case resulted in a published <br />opinion in favor of the City, Cynthia Huerta, et al. v. City of Santa Ana, 39 Cal.App. 5th <br />41, which concerned whether a particular crosswalk constituted a dangerous <br />condition. The lawsuit arose from a tragic accident on Halloween night in 2014 when a <br />speeding motorist struck and killed three teenagers.