Perrysburg Township trustees are suing a Toledo law firm, contending that one of the lawyers asked for several thousand pages of copies in a public records request but did not pay for them.

The suit, filed yesterday in Lucas County Common Pleas Court, names Cosme, D’Angelo, & Szollosi and lawyer Joshua Hughes. It requests complete payment for the copies and punitive damages in excess of $3,000 “for intentionally causing the expenditure of public money for a private purpose with no intention to make repayment and to deter abuse of the public records law of the State of Ohio.”

The suit says the firm requested copies of all documentation pertaining to the Perrysburg Township fire station/EMS/police facility addition project. Because the request meant copying hundreds of documents, the township notified the firm it would be outsourced, and the firm would be responsible for the billing. The total was $1,343.79.

According to letters with the suit, Mr. Hughes responded that the firm was not liable for extra “office supplies” such as binders, and that only fair copy costs and postage would be paid. The township received a check for $338.89.