Assistant City Attorney

Purpose of the Position

The Assistant City Attorney position primarily acts as the lead municipal prosecutor for the City of Wausau. Additionally, this role performs professional municipal legal services including code enforcement, ordinance drafting, negotiation and review of contracts, drafting transactional documents for real estate matters, and provides advice to departments, elected officials and their committees.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Interprets and researches laws, statutes, rules, regulations, codes, and ordinances affecting City business. Provides legal advice and opinions on the effect of same on City business to City staff and elected officials.
• Reviews and recommends changes to municipal code for compliance with State and Federal laws, rules, and regulations. Drafts ordinances and resolutions implementing City policies and programs. Researches enforceability of ordinance and resolutions and the effect of state and federal law on the same.
• Attends City committee meetings and advises members, including elected officials, regarding legal matters as needed. Compiles data for committees as needed.
• Represents the City in litigation matters, including but not limited to state courts (including court of appeals, if necessary), municipal court prosecution, administrative proceedings and before state and federal agencies. Litigation also includes legal issues including but not limited to ordinance prosecution, small claims (eviction and collection), defense of ordinance enforceability and related constitutional items.
• Reviews and evaluates cases and appeals; prepares legal briefs and other court pleadings, and represents the City’s interests at bench and jury trials. Negotiates settlements.
• Directs timing and method of collections with appropriate staff.
• Negotiates and drafts legal documents including but not limited to conveyances, leases, resolutions, contracts, and long-term agreements.
• Negotiates real estate sales and purchases. Reviews and drafts documents and conducts real estate transaction closings.
• Receives and responds to citizens’ and media complaints and inquiries.
• Performs City Attorney tasks in his/her absence.

Supervisory Responsibilities
This position directly supervises employees, assigns work tasks and duties, conducts performance evaluations, approves time off, and handles disciplinary actions in accordance with organizational policies.

Minimum Requirements

Education and Experience Requirements

• Graduation from an accredited law school
• Admission to the Bar of the State of Wisconsin and current good standing status
• Two (2) or more years of legal practice experience as an attorney; preferably in a governmental capacity

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Ability to perform basic functions with all MS Office Suite products and department software.
• Ability to analyze data and information using established criteria, in order to determine consequences and to identify and select alternatives.
• Ability to compare, count, differentiates, measure and/or sort, as well as assemble, copy, record and transcribe data and information.
• Ability to classify, compute, tabulate, and categorize data.
• Ability to provide formal instruction in a classroom or other structured setting.
• Ability to utilize a variety of advisory and design data and information such as legal documents, citations, police reports, leases, payment vouchers, real estate documents, property tax statements, bankruptcy notices, financial statements, resolutions, ordinances, statutes, bond schedules, maps, law books, case law, real estate appraisals and educational curricula.
• Ability to communicate orally and in writing with attorneys, Judges, law enforcement personnel, elected City Officials, defendants, debtors, City employees, inspectors, news media representatives and the general public.
• Ability to calculate percentages, fractions, decimals, volumes, and ratios. Ability to interpret basic descriptive statistical reports.
• Ability to use functional reasoning in performing influence functions such as supervising, managing, leading, teaching, directing, and controlling.
• Ability to exercise the judgment, decisiveness and creativity required in situations involving the evaluation of information against sensory and/or judgmental criteria.
• Ability to operate office equipment and machinery requiring simple but continuous adjustments, such as computer keyboard, telephone, calculator, fax machine and photocopier.
• Ability to coordinate eyes, hands, feet, and limbs in performing semi-skilled movements such as data entry.
• Ability to exert light physical effort in sedentary to light work, typically involving bending, twisting, turning, and light lifting.
• Ability to recognize and identify degrees of similarities or differences between characteristics of sounds associated with job-related objects, materials, and tasks.

Physical and Working Environment
Normal office working conditions within minimal exposure to disagreeable elements. Normal mental and visual attention is required. Limited exposure to workplace hazards.

Additional Information

RECRUITMENT PROCESS INFORMATION:
Applications will be reviewed as received. This recruitment will close when a candidate has been selected.

ADDITIONAL POSITION INFORMATION:

• Starting annual salary $83,304.00 or higher DOQ. This position is classified as Exempt under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
• Business hours for City Attorney's Office are 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.
• Information about the City of Wausau's benefits can be viewed at the following link: https://www.wausauwi.gov/your-government/human-resources/employee-benefits

SPECIAL ACCOMMODATIONS:
The City of Wausau will make arrangements to furnish appropriate auxiliary aids and services where necessary and reasonable to afford an individual with a disability the opportunity to participate in the recruitment process. Please notify the Human Resources Department or phone (715) 261-6630 to request special accommodations prior to the application deadline.

NOTICE TO APPLICANTS:
Wisconsin Statutes, Sections 19.36 (7), 64.09 (5), and 64.11 (7) require public employers to treat the following items as a public record: Each applicant’s application, records, recommendations and qualifications except as provided in Section 19.36 (7), Wis. Stats. that allows the identity of an applicant to remain confidential if the applicant requests in writing that the City not provide access to this information.

If you choose not to have this information become a public record, you must make such a request in writing to the Human Resources Department. If you become a finalist for the position, your identity may be disclosed as required by law.

ADDITIONAL NOTICES:
https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ofccp/posters
https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/posters/fmla
https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/posters/employee-polygraph-protection-act

The City of Wausau is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

The City of Wausau offers competitive salaries and a range of excellent benefits for Full-Time General (Non-Represented) Employees:

• State of Wisconsin Retirement Plan
• Health, Dental, and Vision Insurance
• Flexible Spending for Health and Dependent Care
• Annual Biometric Health Screenings - free to employees under the health plan
• Optional Life Insurance
• Optional Long Term Disability Insurance
• Optional Critical Illness Insurance
• Optional Accident Insurance
• 457 Deferred Compensation Plans
• Employee Assistance Program - Available to all employees and family members at no cost to the employee
• 10 Paid Holidays Off include: New Year's Day, Spring Friday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Day after Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve Day, Christmas Day, and New Year's Eve Day.
• Paid Leaves
  • Vacation accrual starts at 4.6154 bi-weekly for a total of 15 days annually! Vacation accrual increases at 5, 10, and 15 years of service. New employees may borrow up to half of their annual vacation accrual amount during the first six months of employment.
  • 3 Personal Holidays upon hire and every January
  • Perfect Attendance
  • Sick Leave accrual bi-weekly at 3.6923 hours with a maximum accrual of 1,064 hours that never expires.