Assistant General Counsel

ADMIN TRIALS AND HEARINGS; New York (NY); On-site; USD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

The City of New York’s Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings (OATH) seeks an Executive Agency Counsel to manage legal matters, FOIL responses, privacy and ethics issues, and provide legal advice to executive agency staff.

The role requires admission to the New York State Bar and several years of supervising attorneys; strong writing, research, and communication skills; familiarity with government proceedings is a plus.

Qualifications

• Admitted to the New York State Bar and four years of recent, responsible legal experience after admission, including supervisory experience.
• Ability to manage FOIL responses, privacy issues, ethics/conflicts, and provide legal advice to agency staff.

Responsibilities

• Review FOIL requests, subpoenas, and other record requests; respond and maintain expertise in FOIL.
• Develop and maintain expertise in privacy laws and ethics issues; ensure agency compliance.
• Prepare agency reports and interpret legal documents; provide guidance to management.
• Liaise with NYC Law Department and other City agencies; participate in special projects as needed.

Skills

Oral communication

Written communication

Interpersonal skills

Analytical skills

Research skills

Multitasking

Organizational skills

Education

New York State Bar admission

Tools

Microsoft Word

Excel

Outlook

Job description

ABOUT OATH:

The City of New York’s Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings (OATH) is the nation’s largest administrative tribunal, holding more than 250,000 trials and hearings a year. As the City’s central, independent administrative law court, OATH adjudicates a wide range of matters filed by nearly every city agency, board and commission. OATH also houses the Center for Creative Conflict Resolution which provides mediation and restorative justice support to City government agencies and the general public, and the Administrative Judicial Institute, a resource center that provides training, continuing education, research and support services for administrative law judges and hearing officers.

JOB DESCRIPTION

The Office of the General Counsel (OGC) provides legal services and guidance to executive agency staff, tribunal personnel, and the Clerk’s Office. The OGC plays a key role in supporting and strengthening the agency’s legal foundation and mission through legal analysis, research and writing, and advice.

The OGC seeks a dynamic and thoughtful attorney to serve as Assistant General Counsel. This person will have extensive responsibility for all legal matters affecting the agency. His or her primary responsibilities will be to serve as a Records Access Officer, Agency Privacy Officer, and Ethics/Conflicts Officer.

Duties

• Reviewing and responding to Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) requests, subpoenas, and other record requests;
• Developing and maintaining expertise in FOIL through review of caselaw and advisory opinions;
• Maintaining agency compliance with Identifying Information Laws and address privacy issues;
• Maintaining agency compliance with Chapter 68 and address ethics issues;
• Preparing agency reports;
• Serving as Parliamentarian for meetings;
• Reviewing, preparing, and interpreting legal documents;
• Providing legal advice and drafting memoranda;
• Identifying and researching new or evolving legal issues;
• Liaising and collaborating with the NYC Law Department and other City agencies;
• Maintaining a high degree of professionalism;
• Performing Special Projects as requested by the General Counsel.

Additional in-house counsel work may include reviewing policies and procedures, providing legal guidance to management and working with Law Department litigators on state and federal lawsuits that involve OATH. Exceptional writing, research, and analytical skills, and good interpersonal and communication skills are required. The ideal candidate pays attention to details, thinks strategically, and exercises sound judgment. Commitment to public service is an asset.

The ideal candidate works well in a team comprised of attorneys and non-attorneys, enjoys working in a fast-paced environment, and is able to multitask.

EXECUTIVE AGENCY COUNSEL - 95005

Minimum Qualifications

Admission to the New York State Bar; and four years of recent full‑time responsible, relevant, satisfactory legal experience subsequent to admission to any bar, eighteen months of which must have been in the supervision of other attorneys, in an administrative, managerial or executive capacity, or performing highly complex and significant legal work.

Incumbents must remain Members of the New York State Bar in good standing for the duration of this employment.

Preferred Skills

• Familiarity with administrative proceedings (preferably with OATH, but not required), judicial proceedings, court processes, and/or state or municipal government.
• Experience working within a government agency and/or in an in‑house capacity at an institution.
• Basic knowledge of, or expressed interest in, transactional law, rulemaking, and/or municipal law.
• Strong oral communication skills, including the ability to liaise with internal staff and external stakeholders.
• Excellent writing, communication, interpersonal, analytical, research, problem‑solving, multitasking and organizational skills.
• Knowledge of Microsoft Word, Excel, and Outlook.

Public Service Loan Forgiveness

As a prospective employee of the City of New York, you may be eligible for federal loan forgiveness programs and state repayment assistance programs. For more information, please visit the U.S. Department of Education’s website at https://studentaid.gov/pslf/.

Residency Requirement

New York City Residency is not required for this position

Additional Information

The City of New York is an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and providing a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment based upon any legally protected status or protected characteristic, including but not limited to an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender identity, or pregnancy.