Corporation Counsel

Position Summary

The Corporation Counsel provides civil legal representation for the Corporation of Eau Claire County, its County Board, agents, boards, committees, commissions, and departments. This position serves as chief legal advisor to the County Board, County Administrator, and County Departments. The Corporation Counsel directs the operations of the Office of the Corporation Counsel and the Child Support Agency.

Qualifications

Advises County Board, standing committees, County Administrator, and department heads on a variety of legal matters relying on expertise of local, state, and federal laws and regulations applicable to County government; maintains knowledge of current status and changes in local, state, and federal law; effectively recommends changes in the best interest of the county.

Drafts or reviews ordinances, resolutions, reports, and fact sheets to ensure conformance to proper legal form; appears at County Board meetings and, on request, explains the contents of resolutions and ordinances.

Answers questions and recommends solutions based on knowledge of county structure and operations, inter-departmental and intra-departmental factors, political factors of county board and any outside influences.

Serves as parliamentarian for the County Board of Supervisors, which includes interpretation and explanation of County Board rules and Robert's Rules of Order.

Recommends state legislative changes.

Functions as liaison between the Judicial Branch of County government and the Legislative Branch of County government; acts as ethics code administrator.

Represents the County, its officials, and employees in all civil actions under the jurisdiction of the office including pretrial preparation, conduct of trial, and appeals.

Drafts, reviews, edits, interprets, and makes recommendations regarding contracts.

Serves as the primary negotiator and spokesperson for the Committee on Human Resources in Wisconsin Professional Police Association (WPAA) contract negotiations; identifies current problems, gathers statistical information, projects potential demands and recommends proposals to the Committee on Human Resources; receives and adheres to negotiating parameters established by the Committee on Human Resources and the County Administrator; analyzes proposals regarding fiscal impact and implications for future management effectiveness and makes recommendations; ensures accurate records of negotiations are created and maintained; serves as primary hearing officer for grievances; prepares grievance settlement documentation

Directs knowledge of the principles and practices of supervision to participate in decisions on hiring, retention, discipline, and other personnel matters; supervises and manages activities of staff that includes determining work procedures and schedules and developing methods for expediting workflow; approves employee requests for leave and overtime as required by operational necessity; evaluates employee performance; coaches and counsels staff to achieve improved performance and productivity; recommends corrective disciplinary action as needed; identifies individual training needs in order to achieve greater departmental performance and productivity.

Responsible for the oversight of the Child Support Agency; directly supervises child support manager.

Acts as County Administrator in the absence of the County Administrator as required by Section 2.06.150 of the County Code and performs all duties of such office, until such time as the County Administrator returns to his duties or the board appoints a successor.

Performs other related duties as required or assigned.

Training And Professional Experience Qualifications

Graduation from an accredited law school.

Five (5) years of professional legal practice experience.

Three (3) years of experience in municipal and public law applicable to county government including public sector labor law.

Three (3) years of experience in state and federal judicial procedures and rules of evidence.

Three (3) years of experience in a governmental organization, legislative procedures, and judicial procedures.

Three (3) years of supervisory experience in a professional legal setting.

Appointment will be conditional upon successful completion of a credit and criminal background check and a verification of license to practice law in the State of Wisconsin.

Admission to the Wisconsin State Bar.

Must possess and maintain licensure to practice law in the State of Wisconsin as a condition of employment.

Must have valid driver's license, an acceptable driving record, and access to private transportation for work-related duties.

Desired Training And Professional Experience Qualifications

Professional legal practice experience in municipal law and public sector labor law.

Working knowledge of Chapters 19, 46, 48, 49, 51, 55, 59, 66, 111, 767, 880, and 938 of the Wisconsin Statutes.

Experience or training in public relations, supervision, trial advocacy, and other relevant areas.

Knowledge of the following federal statutes as they apply to County programs: ADA, The Adoption and Safe Families Act (AFSA), the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), Bankruptcy, FMLA, FLSA, HIPAA, 42 USC 1983.

Eau Claire County is not only a great place to work, but has many exciting benefits!

Paid Time Off (PTO): Accrual is based on years of service with the County, starting at 6.4 hours accruing each pay period (20.8 days per year), with the maximum accrual rate of 35.75 days per year. All new hires at Eau Claire County receive 40 hours of front-loaded PTO upon hire, which they may begin using immediately. *Manager PTO accrual available upon request*

Holidays: Eleven paid holidays: New Year's Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, a Spring Holiday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, the Day after Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve Day, Christmas Day and New Year's Eve Day.

Retirement: The County provides a retirement account in Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS). Employees pay one-half of the actuarially required contributions.