(a) A local government may provide legal counsel to represent a defendant for whom the local government may pay damages under this chapter. The counsel provided by the local government may be the local government's regularly employed counsel, unless there is a potential conflict of interest between the local government and the defendant, in which case the local government may employ other legal counsel to defend the suit.
(b) Legal counsel provided under this section may settle the portion of a suit that may result in the payment of damages by the local government under this chapter.