Assistant Corporation Counsel - Special Federal Litigation

City of New York•New York City, NY

About The Position

The New York City Law Department Special Federal Litigation Division is seeking an attorney to serve as an Assistant Corporation Counsel in one of the following positions: General ACC The Assistant Corporation Counsel would defend the City and its officials in civil rights cases brought in federal court in which police, district attorney or correction officer misconduct is alleged by those who believe their constitutional rights were violated in the course of an arrest and subsequent prosecution, or on account of events in City jails. As part of their duties, the Assistant Corporation Counsel can expect to defend the City and members of law enforcement in cases brought by litigants who have had convictions reversed, those challenging the constitutionality of police actions during the 2020 Spring/Summer demonstrations and Covid-19 curfew enforcement, as well as class actions on various constitutional claims. The hired attorney for these positions will handle a caseload from inception through resolution whether by motion practice, settlement, or trial. Attorneys conduct initial investigations to determine if representation is appropriate, answer the complaint, appear at court conferences, engage in extensive discovery (paper and electronic), take and defend depositions, draft dispositive motions, conduct settlement negotiations, and, when appropriate, take cases to trial in federal court. Federal Monitorship ACC The Assistant Corporation Counsel would be a part of a team that provides legal counsel to NYPD in connection with the continued development, implementation, and compliance with City’s relationship with a federal Monitor appointed by the Court to oversee policing reforms by NYPD. The successful candidate will, with other members of the team, work on: motion practice; assist in drafting and revising NYPD policies related to the monitorship; review and prepare documents, audio files, and video footage for disclosure to and/or inspection by class counsel; attend high level internal NYPD meetings as well as meetings with the Monitor and class counsel; and attend in-person training at various NYPD facilities. Attendance at training, as well as inquiries from the monitor and other interested parties, and court deadlines may take place outside of regular working hours. This position is a unique opportunity to work on police reform and monitorship issues. After the completion of orientation, attorneys hired by the Law Department will have the opportunity to elect to work from home under one of the following two programs. The first option allows attorneys to work remotely on a limited and irregular basis. The second option is a Citywide pilot program, which allows participants to select two set days to work from home each week. The two days will need to be approved by the attorney’s division and take into consideration the needs of the division, as the pilot program requires more than 50% staff coverage each day. In addition, if an attorney needs to appear in court, a client meeting or other in-person work related event on a set work from home day, they will need to attend to those in-person responsibilities and will not be able to work from home that day. Participants in the pilot program must set one work from home location where they will work remotely. This pilot program is currently being tested Citywide to determine its efficacy for City agencies and is not yet a permanent program.

Requirements

Applicants must have a minimum of two years of litigation experience following graduation from an ABA accredited law school, preferably in federal practice, municipal liability, constitutional, or personal injury law.
Applicants must be admitted to practice law in the State of New York and be admitted or eligible for immediate admission to the SDNY and EDNY.
Applicants must have demonstrated strong legal writing and oral advocacy skills.

Responsibilities

handle a caseload from inception through resolution whether by motion practice, settlement, or trial
conduct initial investigations to determine if representation is appropriate
answer the complaint
appear at court conferences
engage in extensive discovery (paper and electronic)
take and defend depositions
draft dispositive motions
conduct settlement negotiations
take cases to trial in federal court
motion practice
assist in drafting and revising NYPD policies related to the monitorship
review and prepare documents, audio files, and video footage for disclosure to and/or inspection by class counsel
attend high level internal NYPD meetings as well as meetings with the Monitor and class counsel
attend in-person training at various NYPD facilities