Closing Date: 29th March, 2024
Description:
Job Summary:
With supervision, performs legal work for the City, and does related work as required. Incumbents perform mostly routine, but some complex, legal assignments and work is subject to review by senior level attorneys.
Essential Job Functions:
- Prepares advice about the daily operation of a municipal corporation consistent with applicable local, state and federal law, regulations and policies, including advice as to alternative legal and administrative solutions to problems which are subject to review by higher level attorney;
- Conducts legal research to interpret and apply legal principles to various matters;
- Provides legal advice and representation to City officials and employees;
- Attends meetings of the City Council and various commissions, committees and boards and renders legal advice on issues raised by matters on the agenda as required;
- Organizes, interprets, and applies legal principles and knowledge to assigned legal problems and writes legal opinions or may assist higher level attorney with more complex legal decisions;
- Under supervision of the City Attorney or other senior attorneys prepares draft, revised and finalized oral and written legal opinions to the Mayor and Council, City Manager, and Department Directors and other City staff;
- Assists with preparation of depositions, investigations and litigation, and may conduct less complex litigation in court as assigned; may recommend appeals or settlements;
- Negotiates, drafts and reviews contracts, licenses, leases, deeds, insurance, and other agreements;
- Participates in, and sometimes takes lead in, negotiations, meetings, depositions, administrative hearings, and courtroom proceedings;
- Drafts and reviews pleadings, motions, memoranda of law, and other legal documents;
- Reviews or drafts routine legislation, resolutions, ordinances and policies, or may assist higher level attorney;
- Assists in the enforcement of City and department policies and procedures, and the maintenance of proper records and reference materials;
- Assists in answering communications from the general public relative to municipal ordinances and legal matters affecting the City;
- Meets with clients, members of the general public, members of the City Council, Department Directors, and other elected officials;
- Performs other related job duties as assigned by the City Attorney.
Qualifications:
Education and Experience:
Juris
Doctorate from American Bar Association accredited law school; and at
least two (2) years of experience as an attorney, whether in government,
in-house or private law firm practice. The ideal candidate is a
licensed practitioner with capabilities and experience in legal
research, analysis, writing, and the ability to apply skills and address
issues in numerous substantive areas. The successful candidate will be
able to demonstrate substantial, successful, hands-on experience in
drafting memoranda and pleadings; preparing and rendering legal advice.
Special Qualifications:
Admission to the Bar of the State of Maryland.
Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:
- Knowledge of common law and of local government, state and federal laws and precedents as gained through completion of a juris doctorate degree and experience in the practice of law;
- Knowledge of the rules of evidence, judicial procedures and methods and practices of legal research;
- Knowledge of the organization and functions and goals of the City government;
- Knowledge of the relevant federal, state and local law;
- Knowledge and understanding of general principles of legal ethics with an emphasis on ethics and accountability in the context of municipal administration;
- Skill in negotiating agreements and crafting solutions which accommodate conflicting interests and viewpoints;
- Skill in oral and written communication sufficient to develop defenses of, and justification for, decisions reached;
- Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships at all levels, both internal and external.
- Ability to analyze complex legal issues, facts and evidence including those needed for civil proceedings and court cases;
- Ability to prepare complex contracts and other legal documents, and make court presentations effectively;
- Ability to prepare and render legal advice on administrative law, land use and permitting, litigation, and ethical matters;
- Ability to utilize personal computer and ability to deal tactfully with court officials, city officials and members of the public;
- Ability to organize, interpret and apply legal principles and knowledge in order to solve complex legal problems, prepare any necessary documents, and provide advice, counsel or representation as needed; and
- Ability to operate computers for data entry, word processing and/or recordkeeping purposes.
- Ability to work under tight deadlines and to organize workflow sufficiently to complete assignments with competing deadlines.
Physical/Mental Demands
The work is sedentary work, which requires exerting up to 10 pounds of force occasionally and/or negligible amount of force frequently or constantly to lift, carry, push, pull or otherwise move objects, including the human body. Additionally, the following physical abilities are required:
- Hearing ability: sufficient to perceive the nature of sounds at normal speaking levels with or without correction. Ability to receive detailed information through oral communication, and to make the discrimination in sound.
- Lifting ability: sufficient to raise objects from a lower to a higher position or moving objects horizontally from position-to-position. Lifting occurs to a considerable degree and requires substantial use of upper extremities and back muscles.
- Mental Acuity: sufficient to make rational decisions through sound logic and deductive processes.
- Reaching ability: sufficient to extend hand(s) and arm(s) in any direction.
- Repetitive Motion: Substantial movements (motions) of the wrist, hands, and/or fingers.
- Speaking ability: sufficient to express or exchange ideas by means of the spoken word including those activities involving, and the ability to convey, detailed or important spoken instructions to other workers, public officials, courts, and administrative bodies, accurately, loudly, quickly, and concisely.
- Visual ability: sufficient to perform an activity such as: preparing and analyzing data and figures; transcribing; viewing a computer terminal; and/or extensive reading and to operate a motor vehicle by both day and night.
- Standing or walking: sufficient to present material or speak persuasively in meetings, in courts, and before administrative bodies.
