The Hackensack firm filed a lawsuit earlier this month claiming Edison owes $67,700.84 plus interest for five years of services.
EDISON -- A law firm hired to handle the legal services to close the Edison Municipal Landfill says the township's bill is past due.
Sokol, Behot and Fiorenzo filed a lawsuit in Middlesex County Superior Court earlier this month claiming Edison owes $67,700.84 plus interest for five years of legal services.
Edison officials say the township will pay the balance once its landfill closure financial plan is approved by the state Department of Environmental Protection, which will allow the township to be reimbursed for the fees under the Sanitary Landfill Facility Closure and Contingency Fund Act.
The DEP temporarily suspended payments from the Sanitary Landfill Facility Closure and Contingency Fund in 2015 pending an updated financial plan, according to a letter between the township and law firm attached to the lawsuit.
"This is a process over which we have no control, nor should we be held hostage to it," the letter reads.
In a statement, Edison officials said, the attorney fees being sought are for legal work on the Landfill Closure and will be paid for from a state fund established for that purpose once Edison is allowed to access those funds.
The Hackensack-based firm was hired by the township in 2005 and has since billed Edison just under $130,000 for services it says were related to the landfill closure, according to the suit.
However, the DEP determined that $35,000 of the fees did not qualify for reimbursement and were not paid to the firm along with $32,000 in fees for legal services from 2010 to 2015, according to the suit.
The lawsuit filed on March 1 seeks the unpaid fees and cost of the lawsuit, as well as any other relief a jury finds appropriate.
Craig McCarthy may be reached at CMcCarthy@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @createcraig and on Facebook here. Find NJ.com on Facebook.