Assistant General Counsel II

SALARY DETAILS

APPLICATION OPEN DATE

09/04/24

INFORMATION ABOUT LAUSD

The salary for this position is projected to increase by 4% on January 1, 2025. Hybrid and/or work from home options are currently unavailable for this vacancy.

We are LAUSD. We are at the forefront of innovation in public education, focused on a clear and inspiring vision of the future for all of our students as they venture forward on their journey as lifelong learners. Here, you will have the opportunity to exercise your potential in a role supporting the business of education. Our work directly contributes toward the goal of ensuring that our students graduate ready for the world – ready to thrive in college, career and life.

LAUSD is the second largest school district in the nation with an enrollment of nearly 575,000 students. We serve an area totaling 710 square miles, with over 1,190 schools and educational centers, and we employ over 74,000 individuals, making us one of the largest employers in our city.

DEPARTMENT OR SCHOOL SITE

The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) Office of the General Counsel (OGC) seeks attorneys to join our dynamic team to address various legal issues impacting the second largest public school district in the nation and the largest school district in California. Ideal candidates must have strong skills in research, writing, and analysis with a deep interest in working in a collaborative and fast-paced environment with a talent for identifying and resolving issues impacting students. Working on this legal team is an opportunity to be involved in meaningful and impactful work in public education.

The LAUSD OGC is at the forefront of novel legal issues affecting large scale educational issues. Attorneys in this organization have a unique opportunity to be intricately involved and engaged in directly supporting and defending policies that affect the delivery of public education on a large scale.

The LAUSD OGC is a team of 120 dedicated and passionate lawyers, staff, and administrative professionals led by a dynamic and supportive leadership team. We encourage attorneys interested in public service to apply to work with the LAUSD OGC. We believe that a multiplicity of worldviews makes us thrive as an office. Like the LAUSD, we are widely and regularly viewed as one of the most diverse and inclusive law offices in the country.

PROJECT

INFORMATION ABOUT CURRENT VACANCIES

The current vacancies are on the Facilities Legal Services team and the Labor & Employment Legal Services team.

The Facilities Legal Services Team is seeking attorneys who have experience in real estate law and/or construction law to support the work carried out by the Facilities Services Division in connection with: the acquisition and disposition of real property; the development, leasing, licensing, joint-use, and joint occupancy of real property; and the District’s multi-billion dollar construction and modernization program.

The Labor & Employment Legal Services team addresses legal issues arising from all aspects of employment, including those questions arising under collective bargaining agreements in place with the District. The lawyers of the team appear on behalf of the District in state and federal court in lawsuits by former and current employees, in arbitration proceedings, and represent the District’s interests before the Public Employment Relations Board and other administrative agencies.

This recruitment and resulting eligibility list may also be used to fill future vacancies in other specialized areas.

BENEFITS

A career with LAUSD offers great rewards including a competitive package of compensation, benefits and recognition for your contribution.

Insurance: District paid premiums for your choice of several medical, dental, and vision for you and your dependents; and life insurance plans.

Retirement: Membership in the California Public Employee Retirement System (CalPERS).

Vacation: 24 days each year.

Paid Holidays: Up to 13 days.

JOB DUTIES / RESPONSIBILITIES

As a member of a team of lawyers and support personnel:

• Litigates matters on behalf of the District in a specific area of the law.
• Provides day-to-day preventive legal counseling and informal dispute resolution to a District organizational unit.
• Provides specific expertise in one or more subject matter areas of law.
• Drafts and revises memoranda, opinions, contracts, rules, policies, and other documents to meet the needs of the District organizational unit to which assigned.
• Oversees matters related to outside counsel; coordinates with outside counsel on matters for which they have primary responsibility; and assists in discovery, reviewing materials, drafting documents, developing legal strategy, and reviewing bills.
• Trains non-lawyers as required.
• Performs related duties as assigned.

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS

EDUCATION:

Graduation from a recognized college or university with a bachelor’s degree and a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from an American Bar Association (ABA) accredited institution or an institution accredited by the Committee of Bar Examiners of the State Bar of California; a J.D. degree from an ABA accredited institution is preferred.

EXPERIENCE:

Four years of experience as a practicing member of the Bar.

SPECIAL:

Authorization to practice law in California by the California State Bar Association.

A valid California Driver License.

Use of an automobile.

SPECIAL NOTE:

An employee in this class may be subject to the reporting requirements of the District’s Conflict of Interest Code.

This class description is not a complete statement of essential functions, responsibilities, or requirements. Entrance requirements are representative of the minimum level of knowledge, skill, and/or abilities. To the extent permitted by law, management retains the discretion to add or change typical duties of a position at any time, as long as such addition or change is reasonably related to existing duties.

DESIRABLE QUALIFICATIONS

The ideal candidate for this position will possess strong organization, communication, collaboration, and interpersonal skills along with creativity and significant litigation knowledge. The ideal candidate enjoys immediate responsibility, regular client contact, and the chance to effectuate meaningful change and tackle the most cutting-edge and novel legal issues affecting public education in a collegial environment. The OGC leads the way with its cadre of some of the foremost experts in education law and dedicated staff of professionals committed to the ideals of public service and public education. We highly prioritize attorney growth and satisfaction. To that end, the office’s environment promotes mentoring and are afforded opportunities to participate in both in-house legal education and outside programs.

The ideal candidate must be skilled in one of the areas of legal specialization practiced in the OGC with a background that matches the responsibilities and expectations for effective job performance on the legal team to which assigned. A primary responsibility is litigation in both courts and administrative hearings. General knowledge necessary includes provisions of the California Education Code, Government Code, and Code of Civil Procedure as well as other laws - both federal and State relevant to responsibilities; basic concepts and applications of data processing systems, legal software applications, and methods of legal research; alternative dispute resolution mechanisms and other forms of informal dispute resolution; training, employee evaluation, employee relations, and progressive discipline; government contracts; intellectual property; electronic commerce; tort liability and litigation; workers compensation; and risk management.

Additionally, the ideal candidate will be a skillful litigator and/or advice and transactional attorney who can handle multiple assignments in State and federal courts and administrative agencies, develop and build consensus and resolve conflicts, have very strong legal research, computer, writing, and oral communication skills. The ideal candidate will have a proven track record of developing the trust and confidence of clients, using an understanding of broad concepts to integrate legal input into major District policy decisions, and have a commitment to public service and serving the needs of the Los Angeles Unified students and community.

EMPLOYMENT SELECTION PROCESS

The selection process will tentatively include an evaluation of Training and Experience (T&E) Evaluation, and/or Technical Interview.

In a typical T&E, the training and experience shown on your application materials is evaluated in relation to the background, experience, recency of related experience and competencies identified for successful performance in this job. For this reason, it is recommended that your application materials clearly show all of your relevant background and specialized skills, knowledge, and abilities. Those candidates who receive the highest T&E scores will be invited to participate in the interview process.

Interested applicants, please apply using our online application system and upload a professional resume or curriculum vitae. Please ensure that your resume clearly indicates the extent of your professional experience and expertise as it relates to this position. Additionally, please specify how your background and your skill set match the description of our ideal candidate for this position.

Please be sure to include correspondence from @lausd.net as an approved sender so that messages aren't accidentally placed into your spam/junk e-mail folder.

APPLICATION PROCESS

DO YOU NEED TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE WITH THE ON-LINE APPLICATION? Email us at helpmeapply@lausd.net

To find out whether the application deadline has been extended, visit the website at: https://careers.lausd.org. The Los Angeles Unified School District intends that all qualified persons shall have equal opportunities for employment and promotion.

Reasonable accommodations in completing an application and testing are available to individuals with disabilities. Please call (213) 241-3455 for more information.

ADDITIONAL POSTING INFORMATION

The Los Angeles Unified School District is committed to providing a working and learning environment free from discrimination, harassment, intimidation, abusive conduct, or bullying. The District prohibits discrimination, harassment, intimidation, abusive conduct or bullying based on actual or perceived race or ethnicity, gender/sex (including gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding/lactation status and related medical conditions), sexual orientation, religion, color, national origin (including language use restrictions and possession of a driver’s license issued under Vehicle Code), ancestry, immigration status, physical or mental disability (including clinical depression and bipolar disorder, HIV/AIDS, hepatitis, epilepsy, seizure disorder, diabetes, multiple sclerosis, and heart disease), medical condition (cancer related and genetic characteristics), military and veteran status, marital status, registered domestic partner status, age (40 and above), genetic information, political belief or affiliation (unless union related), a person's association with a person or group with one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics, or any other basis protected by federal, state or local law, ordinance, or regulation in any program or activity it conducts or to which it provides significant assistance.

For inquiries or complaints contact our Equal Opportunity Section, (213) 241-7685.

Selection and promotion are based on a competitive employment assessment process. Candidates who pass all parts of the assessment process are placed on a hiring (eligibility) list based on their assessment score. Hiring departments may make job offers to candidates on the top three ranks of the hiring list. Eligibility typically lasts for 12 months. The hiring list resulting from this assessment process may be used to fill open positions in related job classifications.

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