It's opened to sunlight a process that often draws charges of pay-to-play. [AmLaw Litigation Daily]

P.S. The sequel [St. Petersburg Times]:

Five law firms, including several political donors, were tapped Thursday to represent Florida's pension fund in mega lawsuits that could produce millions in legal fees.

The selection of a sixth firm was put on hold after Attorney General Bill McCollum got an anonymous letter alleging misconduct by the firm's partners. ...

Also Thursday, the SBA released documents showing one of the preferred law firms, Barrack, Rodos & Bacine, paid $5,000 a month to Akerman Senterfitt, a politically influential Florida law firm, to help secure state business. ...

All six law firms have come under scrutiny for pension fund pay-to-play in other states.