Assistant General Counsel

City of New York•New York, NY

About The Position

The Office of the General Counsel (OGC) provides agency-wide legal advice and support to New York City’s Office of Labor Relations (OLR). Its work includes advising on collective bargaining and labor relations; representing the City in administrative proceedings before the Office of Collective Bargaining; serving as neutrals in Step III grievance proceedings; administering contracts for OLR programs; supporting compliance with regulations governing employee benefits programs; and coordinating with the Law Department on litigation and discovery. OGC also handles FOIL, privacy, and other day-to-day in-house legal matters. OGC seeks an Assistant General Counsel to support the agency’s broad portfolio. Reporting to the Managing Counsel and working with OGC leadership as part of a team of approximately 15 legal and procurement professionals, the Assistant General Counsel will represent the City in arbitration proceedings, assist with data privacy and compliance projects, and handle assigned day-to-day legal matters, including FOIL, memoranda of understanding, legislative review, and research. The successful candidate will be interested in labor relations, compliance, employee benefits, and healthcare. They should be highly organized, detail-oriented, flexible, solutions-oriented, eager to learn, and able to work collaboratively and independently without close supervision. Patience, sound judgment, creativity, and a good sense of humor are also valued in support of a collegial team environment.

Requirements

Graduation from an American Bar Association-approved law school.
Interest in the agency’s portfolio, including labor relations, compliance, employee benefits, and healthcare.
Highly organized and detail-oriented, with flexibility and the ability to work well with varied personalities and entities.
Solutions-oriented, eager to learn, and able to solve problems.
Ability to work collaboratively and independently without close supervision and to meet deadlines.
Patience, flexibility, sound judgment, creativity, and a good sense of humor.

Responsibilities

Represent the City in administrative proceedings, including arbitrations under collective bargaining agreements and improper practice claims before the Office of Collective Bargaining (OCB).
Research and draft legal documents, including briefs, agreements such as MOUs, contracts, and side letters, and memoranda.
Review agency communications before release.
Develop a command of collective bargaining law and become familiar with unions involved in agency labor negotiations.
Prepare briefing documents for varied audiences, including decisionmakers and non-attorneys.
Handle FOIL assignments under the supervision of the Agency Privacy Officer (APO).
Help develop contract templates and guidance for agency programs.
Liaise with the Law Department as needed, including on discovery requests.
Assist in developing processes and systems to manage the legal team’s workstreams, cases, and communications efficiently.
Perform other duties as needed.