Legislative Counsel Specialist- City Attorney’s Office

Legislative Counsel Specialist
– City Attorney’s Office

About Our Job

Employment Requirement : City Employees must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by September 30, 2021.

All persons offered a position will be required to provide valid proof of vaccination prior to starting employment.

The Denver City Attorney’s Office (CAO) is searching for a  Legislative Council Specialist to serve as legal counsel for the Denver City Council and to manage the CAO’s legislative matters. This position is a valued member of the CAO’s executive management team and reports to the Mayor-appointed City Attorney.

The Legislative Counsel serves as a trusted legal adviser to the City Council, City Attorney, Deputy City Attorney and CAO executive management team.

The Legislative Counsel advises clients on highly complex issues of municipal law and must demonstrate respect for the attorney client relationship that exists between the Legislative Counsel and City Council.

The CAO is one of the largest public law offices in Colorado, with over 100 attorneys and approximately 100 staff members, including paralegals, victim advocates, and other support staff members.

The CAO serves as chief legal counsel to all city agencies, departments, offices, boards, commissions and authorities, including the Mayor, the Auditor, the Clerk and Recorder and City Council.

The CAO provides an inclusive and diverse work environment in which every person has the opportunity to achieve the highest professional and personal development and is accorded the highest degree of dignity and respect.

The City Attorney’s Office is dedicated to providing an equitable, inclusive, and diverse work environment.

Through Diversity, Equity and Inclusion efforts, we respect and honor our differences, we create a culture of compassion, collaboration and common purpose of sharing our talents and creativity with each other and the City we serve.

We celebrate bringing our whole selves to work every day.

The Denver City Attorney’s Office embraces an environment of compassion, trust, belonging and inclusion where all voices are engaged and respected, and where we nurture the talents of our diverse employees.

We are an anti-racist office.

We are committed to removing barriers, providing opportunities, supporting everyone by embracing our differences, condemning inequalities and oppression, and respecting everyone’s unique qualities.

The successful candidate for this position must demonstrate these core operating principles and work ethic.

The Legislative Counsel has three main roles: (1) Advising City Council; (2) Completing Special Projects; and (3) Municipal Law Specialist & Ethics Counsel.

 

Advising City Council .

The Denver City Charter requires the CAO to provide legal representation to all city officers and employees acting within the scope of their employment, all departments and agencies, all boards and commissions, and to the other “independent branches” of government such as the City Council and the auditor’s office.

This position represents all elected members of the City Council.

The Legislative Counsel attends City Council meetings and advises City Council on all aspects of municipal law, including home rule authority, constitutional questions, separation of powers and charter provisions.

It is critical that the Legislative Counsel maintain an attorney client relationship with City Council while assisting the executive branch with special projects.

The successful candidate will have to identify when conflicts exist and address them appropriately.

The Legislative Counsel will also have primary responsibility for conducting legal research and drafting legal memoranda, ordinances, charter amendments or other legislative action requested by City Council.

Additionally, City Council maintains an active and engaged committee process.

The Legislative Counsel must attend committee meetings when requested and advise committees on procedural and substantive legal matters.

The Legislative Counsel also works closely with the Mayor’s Legislative Director and the other members of the Mayor’s Legislative Affairs team. 

Special Projects .

The Legislative Counsel may be assigned special projects by the City Attorney or Deputy City Attorney on a wide variety of topics.

It is expected that the Legislative Counsel will collaborate with relevant subject matter experts within the CAO and complete these projects in a timely and professional manner with little guidance and supervision.

Special projects have included, for instance, home rule analysis, 1st amendment issues, interpretation of charter provisions and high-profile matters involving the city.

Additionally, the Legislative Counsel will be responsible for assisting with media relations and press releases.

Frequently, the Legislative Counsel will be asked to assist with special projects assigned to CAO division directors involving complex areas of municipal law.

When feasible, the Legislative Counsel should prioritize teaming with less experienced attorneys so the project can also be leveraged as a training opportunity.

Municipal Law Specialist & Ethics Counsel . The world of municipal law is everchanging and it is the responsibility of the Legislative Counsel to update key members of the city and the CAO on the changes.

It is imperative that the Legislative Counsel stay abreast of all changes in the law at the local, state and federal level that may impact the city and report out the changes in a timely and efficient manner.

Annually from January to May, the Legislative Counsel assists the Mayor and the City Council to formulate positions on state legislation introduced in the Colorado General Assembly.

As part of this process the Legislative Counsel (a) works closely with the Mayor’s Legislative Director to analyze and advise the potential impact on the city, (b) coordinates with the CAO’s executive management team to gather information and determine potential impact of such proposed legislation and (c) helps develop a strategy for the city’s response.

The Legislative Counsel must also monitor trends and best practices around legal ethics and advise the City Attorney, Deputy City Attorney and Director of Administration of any recommended changes to the CAO’s existing policies or practices.

In the event of an ethics complaint against the CAO, City Attorney or Deputy City Attorney, the Legislative Counsel may be asked to oversee the CAO’s response to such inquiry.

From time to time, the Legislative Counsel may also be asked to oversee and advise on legal conflicts.

About You

We are looking for a skilled local government practitioner who is passionate about municipal law, exhibits good common sense and sound judgment and understands the city’s unique and diverse demographics.

The Legislative Counsel operates at the intersection of law and policy and must be able to balance political considerations when providing legal advice.

The Legislative Counsel should have extensive experience working with people at all levels of an organization and excel at developing relationships with varying client personalities.

The successful candidate must be able to work on and manage complex and varied issues, be accessible and responsive, quickly articulate complex issues in a simple manner in a public forum to a diverse audience, and have a proven track record of providing strategic advice and managing complex sensitive issues.

The Legislative Counsel must also demonstrate a global understanding of issues that impact the city.

Competitive candidates will also have:

• At least 10 years of increasingly responsible professional experience in a government legal setting, including at least 5 years advising legislative bodies.

  Experience in a similarly situated city to Denver with similar demographics is a plus. 

• Significant local government experience and demonstrated expertise in constitutional law and municipal law
• Excellent communication skills
• Substantial experience advising legislative bodies and working in a political environment
• Demonstrated track record of collaborating with a senior management team
• Significant experience resolving issues in a fast paced and complex legal environment
• Extensive knowledge of the local, state and federal legislative process 
• Strong legal editing, writing and analytical skills
• Mastered the art of delegation and collaboration
• Experience handling press and media inquiries, including educating the press on difficult legal matters

We realize your time is valuable, so please don’t apply unless you meet the following minimum qualifications:

• Education requirement: Doctor of Jurisprudence degree or Bachelor of Laws degree.
• Experience Requirement: Ten (10) years of experience at the type/level of Assistant City Attorney.

Education/Experience Equivalency: No substitution of experience for education is permitted.

License/Certifications: Possession of a license to practice law in Colorado from the Colorado Supreme Court at the time of application or possession of license from U.S.

states that have a reciprocity agreement with the state of Colorado, excluding the following states: California, Delaware, Florida, Louisiana, Maryland, Nevada, Rhode Island, and South Carolina.

The preceding list of non-reciprocal admission jurisdictions is intended to be used only as a guide, as rules and regulations of every jurisdiction are subject to change at any time.

Positions with the Denver City Attorney’s Office are dependent upon the rules and regulations in place at the time of application and subsequent hiring.

Licenses and certifications must be kept current as a condition of employment.

About Everything Else

Job Profile

CL0358 Assistant City Attorney Specialist

To view the full job profile including position specifications, physical demands, and probationary period, click here .

Position Type

Unlimited

Position Salary Range

$129,813.00
– $220,683.00

Starting Pay

Based on education and experience

Agency

City Attorney’s Office

The City and County of Denver provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, genetic information, age, or any other status protected under federal, state, and/or local law.

For information about right to work, click here for English or here for Spanish.

Denver is the nation’s top place to live, work, and play, and we need the best people working for the residents of Denver.

People who want to make a difference; people who want to give back; people who want to be at the heart of this city and have a hand in creating our future.

Equity, diversity and inclusion are cornerstones of our values at the City and County of Denver.

We celebrate uniqueness and strive to be a world-class city where everyone matters.

Join us!

Be a part of the city that you love. #WhereDenverWorks

For more information about our hiring process including ADA resources, assessments and testing, pre-employment, and onboarding, click here .

For information about employee benefits, click here .