Assistant Corporation Counsel

Salary : $40.61 - $83.57 Hourly

Location : Madison, WI

Job Type : Full time (1.0FTE)

Job Number : 2024-00580

Department : Corporation Counsel

Opening Date : 01 / 10 / 2025

Closing Date : 2 / 7 / 2025 11 : 59 PM Central

FLSA : Non-Exempt

Bargaining Unit : ATT

Description

Dane County Corporation Counsel has a current vacancy for a full time (1.0 FTE) Assistant Corporation Counsel in General Legal Services - Civil with Real Estate / Affordable Housing Emphasis.

APPLICANTS MUST UPLOAD A RESUME WITH THE APPLICATION.

The Eligibility List created will be used to fill future vacancies over the next six (6) months.

Equity, Definition and Examples of Duties

COMMITMENT TO EQUITY AND INCLUSION

As an employer, we strive to provide a work environment where diversity and differing opinions are valued, creativity is encouraged, continuous learning and improvement are fostered, teamwork and open / honest communication are encouraged, and meeting customer needs through quality service is a shared goal. All employees must be able to demonstrate multicultural competence - the awareness, knowledge, and skills needed to work with others who are culturally different from self in meaningful, relevant, and productive ways. Applicants from traditionally underrepresented populations including women, racial and ethnic minorities, and persons with disabilities are especially encouraged to apply.

DEFINITION AND EXAMPLES OF DUTIES

Under the direction of the Corporation Counsel, this classification provides legal services in one (1) or more of the following areas : Airport Legal Services, Child Support Agency, General Legal Services or Permanency Planning. Appointees will be expected to perform other related work assigned by the Corporation Counsel and must be able to perform considerable independent legal research in both federal and state law as necessary. Appointees may be assigned to one (1) of several work sites, some of which are physically located in other county departments.

AIRPORT LEGAL SERVICES : This position provides legal advice to the Dane County Regional Airport staff, the Airport Commission, and maintains regular contact with airport consultants. Duties include drafting ordinances related to airport regulations; and drafting, reviewing, and negotiating on a variety of leases, contracts, including real estate, construction, architectural, engineering, design and professional services contracts; advising on procurement laws, open records and open meetings laws; monitoring proposed legislation and court decisions related to airport activities, and evaluating their impact on airport operations. The position also prosecutes airport related ordinance violations, and represents the interest of the Dane County Regional Airport before federal / state courts and administrative agencies.

CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT : This position establishes paternity, obtains orders for payment of child support and / or health insurance, and monitors and enforces those orders.

GENERAL LEGAL SERVICES : This position provides legal advice to the county's various entities, including county officials, departments, commissions and the county board and its committees; drafts resolutions, ordinances and motions; represents the county before state administrative agencies such as in workers compensation, unemployment compensation and labor relations cases; prosecutes ordinance violations; drafts leases and contracts; prepares documents relating to real estate transactions; represents the county's interest in litigation before state and federal courts.

PERMANENCY PLANNING : This position represents the public interest in civil commitment, guardianship, termination of parental rights and CHIPS cases; drafts petitions; conducts pretrial discovery; and conducts bench and jury trials.

Education, Experience and Special Requirements

Education, Training and Experience :

Graduation from an accredited law school and admission to the State Bar of Wisconsin is required as of the date of appointment / hire.

Special Requirements :

Must have a valid driver's license, or access to reliable personal transportation, or equivalent. Must be available for occasional night or weekend work as required, for example in preparation for and assistance with a contested matter such as a jury trial.

Background Check Statement : Some positions may require a criminal background check which can include fingerprinting due to the nature of the job's responsibilities. Wisconsin's Fair Employment Law, s. 111.31 - 111.395, Wis. Stats., prohibits discrimination because of an arrest or conviction record. However, Dane County may disqualify an applicant if the position's responsibilities are substantially related to the applicant's criminal history (e.g., the nature of the crime and its relationship to the position, whether hiring, transferring or promoting an applicant would pose an unreasonable risk to the business, its employees, customers and vendors, etc.). Management reserves the right to make employment contingent upon successful completion of the background check.

Physical and Environmental Work Requirements :

Ability to use hand and wrist motion. Ability to see and hear within normal ranges with or without adaptive devices. Ability to skillfully multi-task, work quickly and accurately, with a variety of personalities, performing fast paced legal work in an administrative setting where workload can be excessive, time-sensitive, and deadlines are dictated by Federal and Wisconsin Law and the Judiciary. Staff should expect to work in an office setting. Remote work is a possibility at the discretion of the supervisor.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

Basic knowledge of civil law and a desire for extensive trial practice. Must have the ability to provide effective legal advice to county elected and appointed officials in a variety of settings, including during meetings of legislative bodies.

Become a part of the Dane County Team!

We offer a wide range of benefits including fully paid dental and HMO health insurance premiums for full time employees / pro rated for part time employees. The County will also provide contributions towards POS health insurance premiums and short / long term disability. Additional benefits available include long term care, vision coverage, flex spending account and deferred compensation programs paid in full by the employee and a wellness program. For further details on insurance benefits visit

Bilingual Pay : Employees who work in bilingual designated positions receive an additional $2.00 per hour.

Undesirable Hours Premium Pay : Employees may receive undesirable hours pay of $2.00 for anytime worked between 6 : 00 p.m. and 6 : 00 a.m and for anytime on Saturday and / or Sunday. (not applicable with all employee groups).

Paid Parental Leave : Dane County also provides 12 weeks of paid parental leave for birth or adoption of a child.

Caregiver Leave : Dane County offers 80 hours of paid leave to care for an ill family member.

Telecommuting : Telecommuting allows employees to work remotely for all or part of their workweek. Dane County considers telecommuting to be a viable, flexible option when both the employee and the job are suited to such an arrangement. Dane County will permit telecommuting when it benefits the productivity of the employee and their department and if determined by employee's department that telecommuting is not detrimental to either the County or the employee.

Student Loan Forgiveness : If you are employed by a government or not-for-profit organization, you may be able to receive loan forgiveness under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Program.

WI Retirement System : Employees hired after 7-1-11 must be expected to work a minimum of 1200 hours annually to be enrolled in the Wisconsin Retirement System when hired.

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Dane County participates in E-Verify. For more information see the Notice of E-Verify Participation and Right to Work posters here" and then the 'here' links to this page :

Have you graduated from an accredited law school or will by date of hire?

Do you have admission to the State Bar of Wisconsin or will by date of hire?

Did you upload a resume?

THIS QUESTION IS GRADED. One of this position's primary focus areas will be assisting the Department of Dane County Human Services' Division of Housing and Access and Affordability with its Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) / Home Investment Partnerships Program (HOME) and the Dane County Affordable Housing Fund. Experience with complex real estate transactions such as purchase and sale agreements, commercial real estate leases, and land use restriction agreements as well as familiarity with various affordable housing programs will be critical to successfully assisting the Division. Please describe any relevant transactional and housing legal experience that you may possess.

THIS QUESTION IS GRADED. An Assistant Corporation Counsel is often asked to quickly become an "expert" in various areas of law relevant to the interests of the County. This requires an ability to be intellectually nimble, quick learning and thorough in researching and writing on a diverse array of topics, from "airport to zoo." Describe any relevant experience, including internships or clerkships which demonstrate an ability to handle such work demands.

THIS QUESTION IS GRADED. A county supervisor has proposed an ordinance prohibiting the possession of an assault weapon such as an AR-15 in Dane County. You have been requested to research and write a legal opinion on whether the county has authority to adopt such an ordinance. Please limit your answer to 250 words or less.

Required Question

Salary : $41 - $84