Attorney 1-4

Closing Date: 3rd April, 2024

Description:

Serves the State and the Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) in a highly responsible legal, consultative, and administrative position within the Bureau of Legal Services as a specialized senior legal counsel to the Office of the Secretary of LDH on matters relating to the following programs/offices: 1) Medicaid Fee-for-Service (FFS); 2) Medicaid Managed Care; 3) Medicaid Waivers; 4) Medicaid Finance; 5) Medicaid Services [including, but not limited to, Pharmacy, Transportation, and Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment services]; 6) Office of Behavioral Health (OBH) Medicaid programs; 7) LDH Office of Aging and Adult Services (OAAS); 8) Pre-Admission Screening and Resident Review (PASRR); and 9) Federal litigation. Incumbent will work on special litigation project involving state and federal Medicaid issues and litigation projects of Department-wide impact or significance.
Minimum Qualifications:

• Possession of a license to practice law in the state of Louisiana.

Function of Work:
To assist an attorney of higher rank in the preparation of court cases and/or advisory opinions and may litigate and/or prepare advisory opinions in cases of a routine nature.
Entry.

Supervision Received:
General from a higher ranking attorney, administrative law judge, or other agency administrator/executive.

Supervision Exercised:
None.

Location of Work:
May be used in all agencies.

Job Distinctions:
Differs from Attorney 2 by the level of supervision received and the level of expertise required in the preparation of legal opinions/courts cases assigned or hearings conducted.

Examples of Work:
Attorney:

• Litigates routine cases in trial and appellate courts and before administrative tribunals under the supervision of a higher ranking attorney.
• Assists an attorney of higher rank in preparing major or complex cases for trial by drafting pleadings, interviewing witnesses, writing legal memoranda and briefs.
• Enters claims for collecting monies due the state.
• Assists in preparing proposed legislation.
• Drafts tentative rules and regulations and reviews rules, regulations, and bulletins prepared by administrative officers for conformity to the law.
• Investigates reports of violations of statutes and administrative rules and regulations.
• Prepares advisory opinions for review by a higher ranking attorney.
• Prepares or reviews legal documents, including contracts, licenses, deeds, and abstracts.
• Researches laws applicable to the above activities.
• To conduct hearings and to render decisions.

Attorney--Administrative Law Judges/Referees:
Convenes hearings that are of a routine nature; issues subpoenas; administers oaths; hears testimony; considers evidence; examines witnesses; maintains order; rules on motions, objections, admissibility of evidence and procedure; prepares and issues decisions and orders based upon all evidence gathered, research of pertinent statutes, pertinent jurisprudence, and independent assessment of acts based on credibility of witnesses and evidence.

Conducts pre-trial conferences with the attorneys to resolve preliminary issues and narrow the scope of the hearing to the facts actually in dispute.

Determines if there are jurisdictional or procedural issues to be disposed of and if so, decides the most appropriate manner (i.e. a limited hearing, an order to brief the issue, an order to amend the pleadings, a status conference, etc.) to address these issues.

Secures, compiles, and maintains all records of adjudications. Ensures that accurate records are maintained in the proceedings that evidence is properly marked and included in the case record, and that audio recordings are accurately marked and properly indexed and stores.

Conducts a continuous study of the current statues, regulations and case law related to areas of law for which hearings are assigned.

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