Senior Labor & Employment Counsel — Public Sector

illinoiscircuitcourtofcookcounty; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 108,000 - 146,000; Full time

Job summary

Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois in Chicago seeks a Staff Attorney to support the Adult Probation Department with high‑level legal work. The role reports to the Chief Probation Officer and also to the OCJ HR office, demanding integrity, discretion, and teamwork.

Responsibilities include advising on labor and employment laws and CBAs, researching legal issues, representing management in hearings, drafting policies, coordinating with outside counsel, and handling grievance matters and

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree and Juris Doctor degree.
• Licensed and in good standing to practice law in Illinois.
• Minimum of 5 years of legal experience in negotiation, litigation, arbitration, and other adversarial proceedings in public sector labor matters.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Excellent interpersonal skills.
• Excellent computer skills including Microsoft Word and Excel.
• Ability to work as a team player and integrate with legal and non-legal personnel.
• Experience applying federal statutes impacting employees (FMLA, ADA, Titles I & II, FLSA, Title VII).
• Experience administering public sector collective bargaining agreements.

Responsibilities

• Advise management in all departments under the APD with respect to compliance with labor and employment laws and CBAs.
• Conduct legal research on labor and employment law issues.
• Represent management as counsel in administrative hearings for departments under APD.
• Develop, review and update employment policies and procedures.
• Coordinate with outside counsel and facilitate information gathering and discoveries as needed.
• Serve as hearing officer for grievances filed at the APD level by unions.
• Investigate complaints alleging illegal discrimination and/or sexual harassment and take appropriate action.
• Coordinate collective bargaining strategy with directors of court administrative departments.
• Negotiate and draft settlement agreements, memoranda, position statements, and responses to agency complaints.
• Advise on accommodations under the ADA within the court system.
• Other duties as assigned.

Skills

Legal experience

Written & oral communication

Interpersonal skills

Teamwork

Research skills

Education

Bachelor's degree & JD

Tools

Microsoft Word

Microsoft Excel

Job description

Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois in Chicago seeks a Staff Attorney to support the Adult Probation Department with high‑level legal work. The role reports to the Chief Probation Officer and also to the OCJ HR office, demanding integrity, discretion, and teamwork.

Responsibilities include advising on labor and employment laws and CBAs, researching legal issues, representing management in hearings, drafting policies, coordinating with outside counsel, and handling grievance matters and