PRINCIPAL ASSISTANT CITY ATTORNEY

Recruitment #2106-0618-001

Introduction

The Tucson City Attorney's Office is seeking an attorney to represent the City and to provide legal support to the City Manager, the City's Executive Leadership Team and the various City departments.

General Description

The City Attorney is looking for an attorney to practice in the Civil Division of the Office. The currently anticipated practice areas for this position include economic development; municipal finance and taxes; elections; real estate; and general transactional work and legal advice and support to the various City departments. However, because the Civil Division supports all of the City departments, the attorney who is hired into this position may have the opportunity to engage in other practice areas within the Civil Division based on the skills and experience of the attorney and the needs of the Office. Those practice areas could range from administrative law to zoning, and could include employment, open meetings and public records, and more. Given the range of practice areas within the Civil Division, the City Attorney will consider applicants whose prior experience may not include experience in the currently anticipated practice areas of need.

Essential Functions

  • Identifying and analyzing legal issues associated with projects and programs of City-wide importance. This work will include meeting with City executive staff and their support staff to discuss issues and analyze legal requirements.
  • Providing legal guidance and support, and litigating actions as might arise, involving diverse general and specialized areas of law that arise in the representation of a municipal corporation. In the short term, those areas may include land use and zoning; building, development and construction; real estate; and environmental law. Over time, the attorney in this position may be assigned to other practice areas as well.
  • Conferring with City officials, including the City’s elected officials, and City staff to identify, discuss, and analyze legal issues, and to provide guidance to limit City exposure to liability and/or to ensure compliance with legal requirements.
  • Assisting policy development by establishing and maintaining relationships with City officials and staff in the various City departments; and analyzing the legal risks and benefits of policy alternatives and communicating that information to department leadership.
  • Representing the City and its officials in court proceedings and/or in administrative proceedings; preparing pleadings and other court filings; and working with outside legal counsel retained to represent the City’s interests.
  • Keeping the City Attorney and Chief Deputy City Attorney aware of any significant legal issues or concerns that arise in your representation of the different City departments.
  • Working with the support staff and the other attorneys in the Division in a collaborative manner to help produce the best possible work product while promoting a healthy and professional work environment.

Minimum Qualifications

Juris Doctorate degree 
Over five years of experience in civil or criminal law, with preference given to civil law experience
Arizona State Bar license  
Valid and unrestricted Arizona Driver's License with at least two years of driving history

Special Job Requirements

Member of the Arizona State Bar Association

Preferred Qualifications

In addition to the minimum qualifications noted above, the ideal candidate will also be experienced in supervising support staff and/or attorneys

Selection Plan

Please note: An uploaded letter of intent along with your resume is required for this application - They must be uploaded as one document. Failure to upload these documents will be considered an incomplete application. The uploaded resume will need to support the information selected/provided in the submitted application. Applicants who meet the minimum qualifications will be evaluated on the education and work experience in their employment profile and their responses to their supplemental questions. The most qualified applicants will then be invited to participate in a panel interview and will be required to provide a legal writing sample composed within the last 3 years, no larger than 10 pages. 

  • Panel Interviews will be held the week of July 12, 2021

Upon completion of all examination processes, the highest scoring applicants will be placed on the Civil Service Employment List.

An applicant's ranking on the Civil Service list will be based on their final score which will be calculated as:

  • 20% for your training and experience
  • 80% for your panel interview

This recruitment will establish a civil service list that will be utilized to fill vacancies occurring within the next 6 months.

Veterans, Native American, or Disability preference points will be added to the final score for those that are placed on the Civil Service Employment List.  If you qualify for preference points as outlined in the Employment Profile, you must present your documentation at the time of your interview.  The DD 214 must be a copy that indicates characterization of service.

If you are in need of Americans with Disabilities Act-related accommodation during the testing process, please email Pilar.Jauregui@tucsonaz.gov at least 48 hours prior to the evaluation.  

Conclusion

Communications throughout this process will be sent via email exclusively so please ensure your browser accepts emails from jobs@tucsonaz.gov and check your email account regularly; this may include your junk box/spam filter. Failure to respond or follow instructions will result in disqualification.

Pre-employment Medical Testing Requirements

None

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To ensure accurate payroll information for tax purposes, the successful candidate will need to provide their original Social Security Card or original letter from the Social Security Administration with their social security number prior to beginning work with the City of Tucson.

The City of Tucson hires lawful workers only - US citizens or nationals and non-citizens with valid work authorization - without discrimination. Federal immigration laws require all employers to verify both the identity and employment eligibility of all persons hired to work in the United States. In its efforts to meet the law's requirements, the City of Tucson participates in the E-Verify program established by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Social Security Administration (SSA) to aid employers in verifying the eligibility of workers.

Retired City of Tucson employees receiving benefits from the Tucson Supplemental Retirement System who are considering reemployment with the City should be aware that pursuant to Section 22-37(g) of the Tucson City Code, retirement benefits shall be suspended during the period of reemployment with the City of Tucson unless you have been separated at least twelve consecutive months before returning to work AND you return to a non-permanent employment classification. Creditable service does not accrue during any reemployment period.