Managing Counsel - Appeals and Post-conviction Dept.

The Office of the Ohio Public Defender is seeking a dedicated leader to serve as the Managing Counsel (Managing Assistant Public Defender) of the Appeals and Post-conviction (APC) Department. APC includes a team of 16 staff who collectively provide representation in a wide range of proceedings occurring after a client has been convicted of one or more non-capital crimes.

The Managing Counsel will be responsible for the mission, vision, planning, strategic direction and management of the department. The team you lead works on a variety of appeal and post-conviction issues, including constitutional rights violations, systemic litigation related to bias in the criminal legal system, the criminalization of poverty, and criminal defense immigration consequences. APC represents clients in state and federal courts on emerging criminal legal issues and regularly accepts appointments for client representation from courts across the state in appeal and post-conviction matters. Many of our clients are incarcerated throughout Ohio in the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction. You will supervise three Supervising Assistant Public Defenders and a Program Administrator, who together support a team of nine attorneys, two paralegals, and an administrative professional.

The Managing Counsel will possess and exercise excellent skills in leadership, communication, time management and organization, and have the demonstrated ability to think creatively, collaborate, and build teams. Managing Counsel will ensure that the agency’s mission, vision, and values are communicated to staff, integrated into their goals, and reflected in their work on behalf of clients. Managing Counsel will also work across agency divisions, with attorneys and core staff, on policy and litigation initiatives and outreach and will be a member of the Appellate Services and Managing Leadership teams. Managing Counsel must be able to handle complex cases, the ability to coordinate focused attention on identifying and addressing systemic issues, and the ability to partner collaboratively with indigent defense practitioners within OPD and across Ohio.

The essential duties performed by the position include but are not limited to:

Supervision & Leadership:

• Supervise performance and develop staff. Plan and lead staff meetings and hold frequent one-on-one coaching meetings with supervisors. Review/approve work for content and accuracy, respond to questions and concerns and resolves problems, disseminate, and interpret policies and procedures, assist in case assignments, and make suggestions regarding representation and strategy. Complete timely annual performance evaluations, work with employees to set performance goals, prioritize and approve work schedules, identify and approve training opportunities, review and approve work hours and leave time for payroll purposes, and carry out other administrative tasks. Serves as a hiring manager to fill vacant positions and oversees training and onboarding of new department staff.
• Develop and manage training and education for a variety of audiences, including internal training program for staff and external training for outside counsel and indigent defense practitioners.
• In coordination with OPD’s leadership team, develop, implement, and communicate office-wide decisions, share expertise on pending legislation, and communicate agency and appeals/post-conviction policies for the representation of indigent clients throughout the state. Prepare caseload reports, annual reports, and budgetary reports/requests.
• Oversee Department budget and financial resources in support of the Department and agency’s strategic initiatives and mission. Assist in budget preparation (e.g., prepare and provide information and statistical analysis on requests).
• Assists the Policy and Outreach Division with legislative activities. Appear in public and private settings to discuss legal matters.
• Renders legal advice to county public defenders and members of the private bar on all matters of criminal law and the provision of representation to indigent criminal defendants.

Client Representation & Strategic representation

• Represent indigent criminal defendants in state and federal courts and prepare and argue cases in the courts of appeals and Supreme Court of Ohio: handle limited caseload, formulate innovative legal strategy that effectively and successfully represents indigent criminal clients, and act as lead counsel on complex cases and/or with lesser-experienced co-counsel.
• Correspond and meet with clients, including clients who are incarcerated throughout the state of Ohio. Travel throughout the state of Ohio to meet with clients, stakeholders, and appear in trial and appellate courts, including the Supreme Court of Ohio and federal courts.
• Reviews and evaluates all case and project work within the Department.

Please submit a cover letter and a writing sample with your application. Applications without a cover letter and writing sample will not be reviewed.

The Managing Assistant Public Defender position is assigned to the State of Ohio’s E1 Pay Schedule, Pay Range 15, presented below in table format. Starting pay will be at Step 1 unless required by contract/legislation; Candidates with exceptional qualifications may be considered for higher starting pay. Our steps give a standard path for earnings growth: you move to the next step after six months and annually thereafter. We typically have fiscal year Cost of Living Adjustments as well.

The Office of the Ohio Public Defender complies with federal and state disability laws and makes reasonable accommodations for applicants and employees with disabilities. If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, please contact us at 614-466-5394 or HCM@opd.ohio.gov.

At the State of Ohio, we take care of the team that cares for Ohioans. We provide a variety of quality, competitive benefits to eligible full-time and part-time employees*. For a list of all the State of Ohio Benefits, visit our Total Rewards website! Our benefits package includes:

• Medical Coverage
• Free Dental, Vision and Basic Life Insurance premiums after completion of eligibility period
• Paid time off, including vacation, personal, sick leave and 11 paid holidays per year
• Childbirth, Adoption, and Foster Care leave
• Education and Development Opportunities (Employee Development Funds, Public Service Loan Forgiveness, and more)
• Public Retirement Systems (such as OPERS, STRS, SERS, and HPRS) & Optional Deferred Compensation (Ohio Deferred Compensation)

• Benefits eligibility is dependent on a number of factors. The Agency Contact listed above will be able to provide specific benefits information for this position.

Minimum Qualifications for this position are: Admission to Ohio Bar pursuant to Section 4705.01; 18 mos. exp. as licensed attorney practicing criminal law; 6 mos. exp. or 6 mos. trg in supervisory principles & techniques. Note: Prior to representing a client in federal court or U.S. Supreme court, attorney shall obtain admission to practice law in that court; prior to appointment as appellate counsel for an indigent defendant in a capital case pursuant to Appt.Coun.R. 5.02 & 5.03, an attorney shall obtain certification from the Commission on Appointment of Counsel in Capital Cases. Note: Eligibility to practice under a Certificate to Practice Law Pending Admission in Ohio, under Rule I, Section 19 of the Supreme Court Rules for the Government of the Bar of Ohio, or eligibility to practice under a Temporary Certification for Practice in Legal services, Public Defender, and Law School Programs under Rule IX of the Supreme Court Rules for the Government of the Bar of Ohio, may be accepted in lieu of admission to the Ohio Bar pursuant to R.C. Section 4705.02.

Job Skills: Attorney/Legal, Client Advocacy, Building Consensus, Building Trust, Coaching, Critical Thinking, Leading Others

Intentional omission of relevant information, falsification, or misrepresentation of information on the application will disqualify the applicant. In addition, such intentional acts are grounds for immediate termination of an employee.

The final candidate tentatively selected for this position will be required to undergo a criminal background check. Criminal convictions do not necessarily preclude an applicant from consideration for a position. An individual assessment of an applicant's prior criminal convictions will be made before excluding an applicant from consideration.

All final applicants tentatively selected for this position will be required to submit to urinalysis to test for illegal drug use prior to appointment. An applicant with a positive test shall not be offered employment.

This position serves at the pleasure and discretion of the State Public Defender. This position serves in a fiduciary relationship to the State Public Defender and will have an unclassified status per Ohio Revised Code 124.11 (A) (9).

Ohio is a Disability Inclusion State and strives to be a model employer of individuals with disabilities. The State of Ohio is committed to providing access and inclusion and reasonable accommodation in its services, activities, programs and employment opportunities in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and other applicable laws.

The State of Ohio is a drug-free workplace which prohibits the use of marijuana (recreational marijuana/non-medical cannabis). Please note, this position may be subject to additional restrictions pursuant to the State of Ohio Drug-Free Workplace Policy (HR-39), and as outlined in the posting.