Attorney - General Counsel 1

State of Louisiana • Baton Rouge, LA

2d

About The Position

This is an executive-level General Counsel position within the Office of General Counsel (OGC), Division of Administration (DOA), that serves as the primary legal support counsel for the Office of Group Benefits (OGB) within the DOA. This highly complex position is responsible for the coordination and provision of all legal services on behalf of OGB and is responsible for the overall management and direction of the activities of the OGC legal staff assigned to OGB. Incumbent is further responsible for the training and development of all attorneys and support staff under their supervision. The Division of Administration is the state government’s management arm and the hub of its financial operations. Division offices perform a wide variety of activities including the following: Overseeing the state’s capital construction program Working to provide state and federal grants for community development Development of the state budget Providing technology services Giving agencies guidance in the state purchasing and contracting process as they seek goods and services Administering a program that provides federal funds to help Louisiana residents recover from a series of devastating hurricanes

Requirements

• Possession of a current Louisiana license to practice law
• six years of experience as a practicing attorney

Nice To Haves

• Advanced knowledge of Louisiana Law, particularly laws pertaining to health care, including the Louisiana Administrative Code, Louisiana Procurement Code, and departmental regulations, as well as state and federal laws, rules, and regulations.
• Knowledge of the Louisiana Public Records Law
• Familiarity with laws and attorney general opinions related to public records, specifically concerning exemptions and privileges including deliberative process, attorney-client privilege, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and comparable state privacy laws, and other exemptions and privileges under the Constitution.
• Familiarity with the handling of public record requests.
• Specialized training, education, and knowledge of the laws governing the OGB program of benefits.
• Training, education, and knowledge of litigation practices and trial advocacy.
• Knowledge of changes to federal laws, rules, and regulations impacting program functions, including but not limited to, changes to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), etc.
• Knowledge of health care related products and their applicability to OGB’s programs and initiatives.
• Familiarity with benchmarking existing policies against industry best practices and addressing the evolving health care industry.
• Knowledge of agency requests on new or existing exposures and programs.
• Knowledge of current lines of health insurance coverage and potential areas for improvement.
• Knowledge of complex exposures and risks related to the Plan.
• Working knowledge of DOA agency-specific legal issues in OGB.
• Knowledge of legislative proposals identified by the Executive Counsel or OGC addressing all functions of OGB.
• Knowledge of existing legislation for compliance with operational procedures and identification of necessary procedural or legislative changes.
• Knowledge of circumstances where legislation could promote more effective administration of the duties of OGB.
• Knowledge of tracking and monitoring proposed legislation affecting the mission of OGC or OGB.
• Ability to prepare legislative impact statements and fiscal notes.
• Ability to represent OGB before legislative committees providing testimony on legislative initiatives.
• Ability to prepare, edit, and/or review reports required by and submitted to the legislature.
• Ability to prepare and/or review documents including contracts, memoranda of understanding, letters of agreement, professional service contracts, inter-agency transfer agreements, requests for proposals, invitation to bid, and other procurement documents.
• Ability to identify the need for new or additional written procedures and recommend such.
• Ability to review and monitor OGB contractors for compliance with contractual provisions.
• Ability to identify enforceable contractual provisions for inclusion in monitoring plans.
• Ability to provide initial in-house legal review of various procurement documents.
• Ability to review policies and procedures of the office to identify areas and opportunities for operational efficiencies.
• Ability to proactively review published documents and manuals on behalf of OGB.
• Ability to provide feedback, and initiate discussions for improvement and accuracy of agency resources and guidelines.
• Ability to review client instructions with consideration to both operational need and contractual provisions.
• Ability to communicate with various other state agencies concerning issues regarding group benefits.
• Ability to review and/or prepare documents on behalf of OGC, ensuring they meet quality standards and effectively support the interests of the DOA.

Responsibilities

• Serves as chief legal counsel for OGB on behalf of OGC and DOA and provides legal advice to OGB under the direction and supervision of the Executive Counsel.
• May represent OGB or the Commissioner of Administration in any court proceedings or mediations under the direction and supervision of the Executive Counsel.
• The incumbent is required to maintain an advanced knowledge of Louisiana Law, particularly laws pertaining to health care, including the Louisiana Administrative Code, Louisiana Procurement Code, and departmental regulations, as well as state and federal laws, rules, and regulations.
• The incumbent provides proactive review of the rules identified in the Louisiana Administrative Code that impact OGB.
• Coordinates review with appropriate agency personnel to ensure that rules effectively represent the necessary business practices of the office.
• Identifies areas of non-compliance and drafts and/or assists in the drafting of necessary additions, revisions, or deletions.
• The position is expected to be knowledgeable of the Louisiana Public Records Law and to assist with responses to requests pursuant to this law within the custody or control of OGB.
• The position must be cognizant of all laws and attorney general opinions related to public records, specifically concerning exemptions and privileges including deliberative process, attorney-client privilege, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and comparable state privacy laws, and other exemptions and privileges under the Constitution.
• The position is expected to be familiar with the handling of public record requests, including but not limited to, scrutinizing documents to be submitted by OGB in response to a request; coordinating responses to public records requests with the Executive Counsel and any attorneys in OGC responsible for handling public records requests; assisting with identifying potential redactions within the documents for privileged and confidential information; and communicating such recommendations to the Executive Counsel and OGC.
• The position works closely with OGB’s Executive Staff, rendering legal opinions and guidance for the administration of the Plan, taking into account applicable federal and state laws and regulations.
• This position identifies potential legal and operational risks, develops mitigation strategies, and manages the OGB’s response to litigation, administrative hearings, and regulatory audits.
• The position requires specialized training, education, and knowledge of the laws governing the OGB program of benefits, and training, education, and knowledge of litigation practices and trial advocacy to provide a comprehensive perspective for evaluating issues and developing processes to address and reduce OGB’s risk of litigation.
• Initiates review of changes to federal laws, rules, and regulations impacting program functions, including but not limited to, changes to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), etc.
• Provides training to OGB personnel regarding legislative changes.
• Reviews health care related products and provides counsel as to applicability to OGB’s programs and initiatives.
• Assists OGB personnel with benchmarking existing policies against industry best practices and addressing the evolving health care industry.
• Consults with Executive Counsel and CEO on legal risks of identified exposures.
• Participates in the review of training materials to ensure it covers all necessary obligations and reinforces the objectives of the Plan.
• Assists CEO and OGB personnel regarding agency requests on new or existing exposures and programs.
• Reviews current lines of health insurance coverage and assists in identifying potential areas for improvement.
• Provides counsel on complex exposures and advises on risks related to the Plan.
• Reviews OGB documents and policies for compliance with state law.
• Participates in policy review and negotiation of policy terms and conditions as necessary.
• This position supervises and supports attorneys whose primary function is to oversee DOA agency-specific legal issues in OGB.
• As such, this position must have a working knowledge of these areas in order to adequately supervise and to be prepared to handle complex transactions when necessary.
• This attorney will exercise supervision over all subordinate staff and perform duties, such as conducting yearly performance reviews; carrying out all LEO payroll functions, including reviewing and approving leave requests to ensure adequate office coverage and to manage employee leave balances; instructing subordinates regarding the performance of job duties, career progression, and personnel concerns; recruiting, disciplining, and praising employees; ensuring employee compliance with CPTP standards; etc.
• Drafts and/or assists in the drafting of legislative proposals identified by the Executive Counsel or OGC addressing all functions of OGB for consideration by the Commissioner of Administration.
• Reviews existing legislation for compliance with the operational procedures of those agencies and identifies necessary procedural or legislative changes.
• Identifies circumstances where legislation could promote more effective administration of the duties of OGB.
• Under the direction and supervision of the Executive Counsel, coordinates the tracking and monitoring of proposed legislation affecting the mission of OGC or OGB, and collaborates with OGC subject matter experts.
• Coordinates with staff to prepare legislative impact statements and fiscal notes, including finalizing drafts prior to submission to the Executive Counsel and OGC.
• The Commissioner of Administration or Executive Counsel may call upon incumbent to represent OGB before legislative committees providing testimony on legislative initiatives that impact the operations of OGB.
• Prepares or coordinates the preparation of, edits, and/or reviews reports required by and submitted to the legislature.
• Provides review of all such finalized reports, identifying pertinent information to the Executive Counsel and CEO prior to submission.
• Prepares and/or reviews documents including contracts, memoranda of understanding, letters of agreement, professional service contracts, inter-agency transfer agreements, requests for proposals, invitation to bid, and other procurement documents under the direction and supervision of the Executive Counsel.
• Identifies the need for new or additional written procedures and recommends such to the Executive Counsel and CEO.
• Assists in the review and performance monitoring of OGB contractors to ensure compliance with contractual provisions.
• Assists in identifying enforceable contractual provisions for inclusion in the monitoring plans.
• Provides initial in-house legal review of various procurement documents to ensure compliance.
• Reviews policies and procedures of the office to identify areas and opportunities for operational efficiencies.
• Proactively reviews published documents and manuals on behalf of OGB.
• Provides feedback, and initiates discussions for improvement and accuracy of agency resources and guidelines.
• Reviews client instructions with consideration to both operational need and contractual provisions, identifying areas to strengthen compliance from contracted partners.
• Assists OGB by communicating with the various other state agencies concerning issues regarding group benefits.
• Renders legal advice and opinions to them Executive Counsel regarding all rules and regulations of OGB, including all manuals, reports, and other programmatic documents.
• Reviews and/or prepares documents on behalf of OGC, ensuring they meet quality standards and effectively support the interests of the DOA.
• This attorney may be called upon to perform various duties for the Office of General Counsel on an as needed basis at the direction of the Executive Counsel

Benefits

• State government's management arm and the hub of its financial operations
• Overseeing the state’s capital construction program
• Working to provide state and federal grants for community development
• Development of the state budget
• Providing technology services
• Giving agencies guidance in the state purchasing and contracting process as they seek goods and services
• Administering a program that provides federal funds to help Louisiana residents recover from a series of devastating hurricanes
• Louisiana is a "State as a Model Employer" for People with Disabilities.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Executive