Litigation Specialist

State of California; California (MO); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

CoBen benefit allowance

Employer paid life insurance

Additional vacation/annual leave

Job summary

State of California's Office of Legislative Counsel seeks a Litigation Specialist to lead the agency's litigation portfolio, serving as the top attorney for complex matters. You will provide representation and strategic advice to the OLC, Assembly, Senate, and clients, while drafting pleadings, motions, and briefs for court and administrative proceedings.

You will supervise outside counsel, monitor active cases, and respond to subpoenas and LORA requests, ensuring case files are well-organized

Qualifications

• Civil litigation experience including drafting pleadings, motions, briefs, and memoranda.
• Strong legal research and analysis skills, with familiarity with discovery processes.
• Experience presenting oral arguments before state or federal courts.
• Proven leadership in providing legal representation and advisory on complex matters.
• Experience coordinating with outside counsel or managing contract attorneys.
• Ability to handle multiple assignments under tight deadlines and high pressure.

Responsibilities

• Provide litigation strategy and representation for the OLC in state and federal courts.
• Draft, review, and revise legal documents and correspondence.
• Coordinate with outside counsel and oversee contract attorneys as needed.
• Monitor pending litigation and manage case status and files.
• Respond to subpoenas and records requests under LORA and related procedures.
• Advise clients on difficult and sensitive legal issues.

Skills

Civil litigation experience

Legal research

Oral arguments

Leadership in legal matters

Managing outside counsel

Budget and deadlines

Education

Juris Doctor (JD)

Job description

The Litigation Specialist serves as the OLC's top expert in litigation, acting as the primary attorney managing the OLC's litigation portfolio. This includes providing legal representation and advice to the OLC, Assembly, Senate, and other clients in difficult, complex, and sensitive litigation matters, focusing on pre-litigation advice, evaluation of claims, case-strategy development, and motion practice. The Litigation Specialist is responsible for drafting, reviewing, and revising legal documents such as pleadings, motions, writs, briefs, memoranda, and correspondence; appearing in state and federal trial and appellate courts and administrative proceedings; coordinating with, and overseeing the work of, outside counsel; monitoring pending litigation matters; tactfully and effectively communicating with clients, supervisors, colleagues, opposing counsel, or others; preparing responses to subpoenas and requests for records submitted under the Legislative Open Records Act (LORA); and performing various administrative functions such as scheduling, filing, document review, case status reporting, and maintaining appropriate case files. The position is also responsible for performing other legal work commensurate with the scope and level of responsibility of an Attorney V and the work of the OLC's Legislative Services Branch, which includes but is not limited to preparing legal advice and providing consultation to clients on difficult, complex, and sensitive issues in a variety of legal areas.

You will find additional information about the job in the Duty Statement.

All OLC employees are excluded from collective bargaining, and therefore, receive enhanced benefits, such as CoBen benefit allowance, employer paid life insurance, additional vacation/annual leave, and are not subject to State Disability Insurance payroll withholding. Additional information can be found on CalHR’s website under State Employee Benefits and Programs.

Minimum Requirements You will find the Minimum Requirements in the Class Specification.

• ATTORNEY V
• ATTORNEY IV

Desirable Qualifications

In addition to evaluating each candidate's relative ability, as demonstrated by quality and breadth of experience, the following factors will provide the basis for competitively evaluating each candidate:

• Civil litigation experience including drafting legal pleadings, motions, briefs, and memoranda of law in support of litigation matters; conducting legal research and analysis; familiarity with the discovery process; and participation in oral arguments before state and federal courts.
• Experience in representing clients in state administrative proceedings.
• Knowledge of scope and character of California statutory laws and provisions of the California State Constitution, including their relationship to judicial precedents and federal constitutional provisions and laws, rules, organization, and operation of the California State Legislature; rules of civil procedure; court rules; principles of legal research; purposes, organization, procedures, and work of the Office of Legislative Counsel; and legal principles and precedents and their application to difficult, complex, and novel legal problems.
• Perform and direct legal research; present statements of fact, law, and argument clearly and logically; draft and review a large volume of legal correspondence; work effectively under high pressure, tight deadlines, and long hours; analyze situations accurately and adopt an effective course of action; and follow instructions.
• Experience in a leadership role providing legal representation and advice on difficult, complex, and sensitive legal matters.
• Experience working with outside counsel, and/or managing the work of contract attorneys.
• Demonstrated ability to handle multiple assignments with accuracy and prioritize work to meet short deadlines.