Principal Legal Officer (EL 2) - $156,197 - $170,165 per annum plus superannuation
- Legal Division
- Canberra, ACT
If you are looking for meaningful legal work and the opportunity to work on interesting and engaging matters in a supportive environment, this role is for you.
- Interesting, wide-ranging and purposeful legal work.
- An opportunity to manage a team.
- Responsibility for complex legal matters that contribute to outcomes that benefit the Australian public.
**Who we are**
- Advice on regulatory systems, operations and cost recovery to assist staff on the front lines with Australia's quarantine, trade, food safety and exports across diverse supply chains, at airports and in the community.
- Practical legal advice to assist investigation and enforcement of biosecurity and export laws to ensure Australia's trade and health are safeguarded, including by civil penalty litigation.
- Directly developing and progressing legislation, working closely with policymakers to put effective laws in place.
- Managing the department's litigation caseload and dispute resolution, including working with external law firms and counsel to provide strategic advice, to support the department's policy and operational activities.
- Employment law advice, including on investigations, work health and safety and external review proceedings.
- Advice about the department's extensive range of commercial matters, including advising on procurements and grants, ICT contracting, the Commonwealth resource management framework, intellectual property and property matters.
- Managing the department's legal issues arising from data management and information collection and management, including privacy advice and freedom of information requests.
The Legal Division works together to support and develop lawyers to meet their career aspirations. You will be working with committed, engaged colleagues in a supportive and flexible environment, and will progress interesting and meaningful work that is unique to the department and the Commonwealth.
**The Job**
We have ongoing and non-ongoing opportunities for Principal Legal Officers. If you enjoy an energetic, purposeful and collaborative legal environment, then this is the role for you. DAFF is seeking Principal Legal Officers to manage various teams. The Principal Legal Officer is a leadership role which helps to drive the vision and direction of the Practice as set out by the General Counsel. You will be responsible for motivating, mentoring and supervising your section to deliver on initiatives and goals whilst striving to create an inclusive, responsive and effective environment.
**Please note**that the merit pool established through this selection process, which is valid for a period of eighteen months from the date the vacancy was advertised in the Public Service Gazette, may also be used to fill future ongoing vacancies in the branch where the duties are of a similar nature.
**What are we looking for**
**knowledge and experience**
Significant previous experience of legal practice, with a minimum of five years post-admission experience.
**Mandatory qualifications**
To be eligible for these positions you are required to hold a degree in law and be eligible to hold an ACT legal practising certificate.
📌 Principal Legal Officer
🏢 Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
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