* Provide high level legal advice to support the Auditor General and the ANAO
* $128,684 to 145,014 plus 15.4% superannuation
* Forrest, Canberra
The opportunity
The Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) is seeking an experienced and confident legal professional to join Legal Services as an EL1 Legal Director. This role provides high level, authoritative legal advice to support the Auditor General and the ANAO in fulfilling their statutory responsibilities under the Auditor General Act 1997 (Cth).
Working in a small, hands on in house legal team, the role requires a pragmatic lawyer who is comfortable operating with autonomy, engaging directly with the Deputy Auditor General and Auditor General, and delivering clear, common sense legal solutions, as well as working part of a team. Legal Services undertakes most of the legal work internally, and this role plays a critical part in enabling the ANAO to deliver high quality audit outcomes.
As a Director, Legal, you will:
• Supporting the Senior Director legal services in
o Building strong, trusted relationships across the organisation to support effective service delivery.
o Supporting the Auditor General and the ANAO to interpret and apply the Auditor General Act 1997 (Cth).
o Providing high level, pragmatic legal advice to the Senior Executive Service and ANAO functional groups.
o Advising on government and administrative law (public law) matters, including complex statutory interpretation issues.
o Working closely with audit teams to resolve legal issues that arise during the conduct of audits.
o Advise on contract and commercial matters
o Advising on a broad range of legal issues and risks
o Assisting with legislative and law reform activities impacting the ANAO and the Auditor General Act 1997 (Cth).
o Developing legal guidance, templates and training to support staff in managing legal risk.
o Contributing to legal practice management, including OLSC reporting and maintaining legal intranet content.
o Mentoring and supervising the Legal Officer and any rotating graduate lawyers, including settling their draft advice.
Please note:
• This recruitment process is being used to fill both ongoing and non-ongoing positions. Non-ongoing positions will be offered on a specified term basis for an initial period of up to 12 months with the possibility of being extended.
• A merit pool will be created from this activity that may be used to fill similar vacancies for a period of 18 months from the date of advertising.
• All positions are based in Canberra, with flexible working arrangements where the employee works partly in the office and partly from home, as agreed with the manager.
Who we are looking for
We are seeking a collaborative and client focused legal professional with strong interpersonal skills and the confidence to provide high quality advice to senior leaders, including the executive team and the Auditor General. The role requires sound legal research and statutory interpretation skills, and the ability to work through complex legal issues. The successful candidate will adopt a pragmatic, common sense approach and deliver practical, solution focused legal advice. They will be comfortable working independently and as part of a small team, contributing positively and demonstrating initiative when required.
To be successful in this role, you will demonstrate:
Technical Expertise: Strong capability in government and administrative law, supported by sound legal research, statutory interpretation and analytical skills. Delivers clear, practical advice on complex legal issues.
Stakeholder Engagement and Communication: Builds trusted relationships across the organisation and demonstrates a strong client service focus. Communicates confidently and effectively with senior executives, providing actionable legal advice to support informed decision making.
Judgement and Problem Solving: Applies sound judgement and a practical, solution focused approach to legal problem solving. Assesses legal risk in context and balances legal, operational and strategic considerations.
Leadership and Accountability: Demonstrates professional and resilient leadership, contributing positively to a collaborative team and supporting the development of others. Operates independently with a high level of accountability, managing competing priorities and upholding the ANAO’s values.
Mandatory Qualifications
To be eligible to apply, you must:
• Hold a law degree from an Australian university, or equivalent qualifications that make you eligible for admission as a legal practitioner in Australia.
• Have completed the Graduate Diploma of Legal Practice (GDLP) or equivalent.
• Be admitted, or eligible for admission, as a legal practitioner in Australia and be able to obtain and maintain a practising certificate with the ACT Law Society.
The following experience will be highly regarded:
• A minimum of five years’ post admission legal experience (or equivalent) gained in government and/or private legal practice.
• Demonstrated experience in government and administrative law (public law), including statutory interpretation.
• Experience in commercial law and/or employment law.
Eligibility
Citizenship – To be eligible for employment with the ANAO, applicants must be an Australian citizen.
Security Clearance – The Australian community requires the highest level of integrity from ANAO employees. The preferred applicant will be required to obtain and maintain a security clearance at the Baseline Level. For more information about the AGSVA security clearance process, please refer to the AGSVA website.
Assessment process / Reasonable adjustment
As part of the assessment process, you may be asked to participate in one or more of the following assessment activities:
• Interview (in-person or virtual)
If you believe you may require reasonable adjustments to participate in the assessment process, please ensure this is indicated on your application. A member of our recruitment team will contact you to discuss the adjustments prior to the assessment process.
How to apply
Applications must be submitted using the
Applicants are required to submit a current CV/resume and a statement of claims (500 words maximum) outlining why you are interested in this position and why you believe that you have the skills, capabilities, knowledge and experience to be considered for this role. Please provide examples which demonstrate your ability to perform the duties of the position.
We highly recommend that you refer to the when preparing your statement of claims.
We look forward to receiving your application and exploring how your skills and experience can contribute to our agency.
Contact
Name: Marilia Mendes
Phone Number: (02) 6203 7***
Email Address: **************@anao.gov.au
Closing date
Applications close 11:30pm AEST on Sunday 3 May 2025.
Core Capabilities Framework Opens in new window
ANAO Core Capability Framework Summary Opens in new window
EL1 Director, Legal Position Description Opens in new window