SCHNEE ADMITS REDACTING HIS INVOICES: April 8, 2024 BOS

A revealing and insightful look as Solicitor J. Chadwick Schnee pontificates to justify his unilateral actions redacting his own invoices. Chadwick Schnee of Schnee Legal Services is claiming, he decided that I would violate attorney client privilege regarding a review of his invoices for $14,192 and this permits him to unilaterally redact his invoices from my review.

No other supervisor reviewed these invoices, that is clearly stated at approximately 1:17 of this video the township manager clearly states no other supervisors asked to review these fees. As a elected township supervisor one of my duties is to review the bi-weekly payables distribution and vote to pay the vendors bills listed. The amount of Schneelegal.com invoices represented a significant percent of the total payables for this period at 6% of the total payables of $233,842.

Chadwick Schnee of Schneelegal.com unilaterally decided I did not have the right to review his invoices ( no other invoices were withheld or redacted of my other requests). As you listen to this short 5 minute clip you will hear the manager admit he did not redact them, he did not instruct Chad Schnee of Schneelegal.com to redact them, and the board of supervisors had never passed a resolution that he redact his invoices.

Subsequent to this meeting J. Chadwick Schnee sent me correspondence claiming I misunderstand the role of the solicitor. He goes on to pontificate that he is only empowered to take such actions as directed by the BOS or the township manager. As this video will support, the manager nor the BOS directed him to redact his invoices. He acted unilaterally !!

In this brief video clip, Chadwick Schnee pontificates excessively during the meeting. He references a case: Levy v. Senate of Pennsylvania to support unilaterally redacting his own invoices around 2:48. Where did this come from? Was he preparing to defend his actions? The case doesn't seem to have any relevance concerning my review of payables as is my responsibility. Marc Levy was a member of the Associated Press and he sent two written "Right to Know" requests to the Pennsylvania State Senate Right to Know officer. Right here huge difference, I am not with the Associated Press and this is not a Right to Know Issue. Mr. Levy wanted to see "all bills, contracts and payment records related to the hiring of any outside lawyer or law firm to represent Senator Robert J. Mellow. What does this have to do with my duties as an elected official? What is Chadwick Schnee trying to hide?

The Board as Chairman Piho states (interesting that he made a unilateral decision, anyone catch that?) at about 4:33 of this video that I am allowed to review Chadwick Schnee of Schneelegal.com invoices unredacted.


A little follow up to the Levy case Chadwick Schnee referenced during his pontificating during this meeting. In this case the Commonwealth court concluded that descriptions of legal services generally were not protected. Only if the invoice contains legal advice or confidential information would it require redaction. What competent attorney would put legal advice or confidential information in an invoice? The court went on to conclude that general descriptions are not protected by attorney-client privilege because they do not reveal confidential communications. Also, it appears that this case suggests that in general client identities are not protected by attorney-client privilege. Additionally the case documents state that legal services such as "memo", "telephone call", or "research" were not protected by attorney-client privilege.

Yet, every single word was redacted on his invoices and he in fact charged us for these redaction which were not directed by the manager or the board of supervisors. Thus, creating billable hours and false billings, in essence once again OVER BILLING!

​This document is 18 pages long.....was Chadwick Schnee preparing to defend his position? Did he charge the township somewhere in his invoices to research this bombastic claim that this case law allows him to unilaterally redact his own invoices? You decide.