Deputy City Attorney

Position Summary
Appointment Type

Permanent Exempt: Permanent exempt (PEX) position; individuals who are appointed to Exempt Positions are appointed at the pleasure of their appointing officer and are considered to be “at-will”.

Application Opening: February 12, 2024

Application Deadline: Continuous, earliest close 5:00 p.m. February 26, 2024

Compensation Range: $145,366- $254,696

Recruitment ID: RTF0144626-01155484

The San Francisco City Attorney’s Office is looking for a qualified and motivated attorney to join its Dependency and Mental Health Team to staff the Community Assistance, Recovery and Empowerment Court (“CARE Court”) and other mental health courts (i.e., Landerman, Petris, Short (“LPS”) conservatorships, Murphy conservatorships and Assisted Outpatient Treatment (“AOT”) matters. CARE Court is a new state mandated program that is designed to provide people with mental health and substance use disorders the support and care they need. The work is high volume, fast paced and evolving. It is a confidential, court-based practice.

About the Office: The San Francisco City Attorney’s Office (Office) is an innovative, nationally-recognized municipal law office working to protect and advance the rights and interests of the City and County of San Francisco and its residents. With over 300 talented, dedicated, and diverse employees, the Office provides exceptional legal services to the City’s Mayor, Board of Supervisors, officials, and departments. Our work empowers the City’s public servants with effective, responsive, and creative legal solutions and representation so they can deliver critical public services and our affirmative advocacy enhances the lives and wellbeing of San Francisco’s residents and visitors.

The Office recognizes that diversity in the backgrounds, identities, ideas, and lived experiences of our employees enriches our workplace and enhances our work. We aspire to recruit, employ, retain, and promote talented individuals representing the full spectrum of our community, and welcome all candidates, including candidates of any race, religion, national origin, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, and age, and candidates with disabilities. We have a clear vision: to be the place where a diverse mix of people want to come and stay, grow professionally, and find purpose and engagement, and where all employees feel welcomed and respected for their full authentic selves, and valued for their work and contributions to the Office and the City. To learn more about the Office’s efforts to provide an inclusive workplace where employees feel they belong and can meaningfully contribute, please click here.

The Office offers a hybrid remote work schedule for eligible employees, with three days onsite and up to two days remote.

To learn more about the City Attorney’s Office please visit: https://www.sfcityattorney.org/

About the Dependency & Mental Health Team

The DMH Team is a collaborative and dynamic group of fourteen 14 attorneys, two paralegals, one legal assistant and two legal secretaries. Our team was involved in the creation and implementation of the processes for CARE Court in San Francisco. Our team represents San Francisco Behavioral Health in all phases of the CARE Court process. Representation in these cases begins with client consultations prior to the filing of the petitions, and continues with the filing of the petitions and appearing at the numerous statutorily required court hearings for each case.

The selected attorney will also handle LPS, Murphy and AOT cases in a fast-paced environment and juggle a complex caseload. In addition to working with behavioral health specialists, the attorney will also work with a variety of professionals, including, but not limited to, doctors, psychologists and psychiatrists, law enforcement, service providers and opposing counsel. There are often contested bench and jury trials in these cases.

Deputy City Attorney Position and Responsibilities

Petitions in CARE Court may be filed by a wide range of individuals – but each petition is eventually be taken over by SF Behavioral Health, so the Deputy City Attorney will be involved in every CARE Court case. The attorney will work with the client to ensure that the CARE Plan comports with statutory requirements and will work with opposing counsel to determine the course of each case. There are multiple court hearings for each case. There may be as many as five hearings on a case prior to a court ordering a CARE Plan. Participants are allowed to contest virtually every stage of the proceedings, which can lead to several contested hearings per case.

In LPS and Murphy cases, the Deputy City Attorney will handle writs (hearings that occur after a probable cause hearing in a hospital and prior to the filing of a petition for conservatorship) and all phases of the case from the initial petition to termination or dismissal of the case. Potential conservatees are entitled to contested hearings at every stage of the proceedings, including the conservatorship itself, placement and renewal decisions.

How to qualify
Minimum Qualifications

Licensed to practice law in California.

Desired Qualifications

5+ years of practice in LPS/courtroom work
Familiarity with Probate Codes as it relates to mental health conservatorship proceedings.
Ability to assume responsibility quickly and work independently and efficiently.
Ability to manage a high volume, fast paced caseload and adjust to occasional workload increases.
Excellent oral and written communication and advocacy skills.
Ability to exercise good judgment, multi-task, and meet deadlines.
Strong interpersonal skills and a positive attitude.
Commitment to valuing diversity and contributing to an inclusive working and learning environment.
Desire and ability to work successfully as part of a team.
Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite and willingness to learn/use City’s electronic database systems.

Salary and Benefits

The Deputy City Attorney position has a 16-step salary scale ranging from $145,366- $254,696. The successful applicant is appointed to a salary step based on years of experience as a lawyer. The City offers robust health, retirement, and other benefits. For more information please visit: https://sfdhr.org/benefits-overview. Attorneys are represented by the Municipal Attorneys Association. Information about compensation and benefits is available by entering Classification Code 8177 at https://careers.sf.gov/classifications/.

Verification:

Applicants may be required to submit verification of qualifying education and experience at any point during the recruitment and selection process. If education verification is required, information on how to verify education requirements, including verifying foreign education credits or degree equivalency, can be found at https://sfdhr.org/how-verify-education-requirements”

Note: Falsifying one’s education, training, or work experience or attempted deception on the application may result in disqualification for this and future job opportunities with the City and County of San Francisco.

All work experience, education, training and other information substantiating how you meet the minimum qualifications must be included on your application by the filing deadline. Information submitted after the filing deadline will not be considered in determining whether you meet the minimum qualifications.

Resumes will not be accepted in lieu of a completed City and County of San Francisco application.

Applications completed improperly may be cause for ineligibility, disqualification or may lead to lower scores.

Selection Procedures: The selection process will include evaluation of applications in relation to minimum requirements. Applicants meeting the minimum qualifications are not guaranteed advancement to the interview. Depending on the number of applicants, the Department may establish and implement additional screening mechanisms to comparatively evaluate the qualifications of candidates. If this becomes necessary, only those applicants whose qualifications most closely meet the needs of the Department will be invited to participate in the next stage of the selection process. The stated desirable qualifications may be considered at the end of the selection process when candidates are referred for hiring. To apply for this position, please submit your resume and cover letter. Applicants who advance in the selection process must submit three references and two writing samples.

What else should I know?
Additional Information Regarding Employment with the City and County of San Francisco:

Information About the Hiring Process
Conviction History
Employee Benefits Overview
Equal Employment Opportunity
Disaster Service Worker
ADA Accommodation
Veterans Preference
Right to Work
Copies of Application Documents
Diversity Statement

How to Apply

Applications for City and County of San Francisco jobs are only accepted through an online process. Visit https://careers.sf.gov/ and begin the application process.

Select the “Apply Now” button and follow instructions on the screen
Applicants must submit a resume and cover letter
Applicants may be contacted by email about this recruitment and, therefore, it is their responsibility to ensure that their registered email address is accurate and kept up-to-date. Also, applicants must ensure that email from CCSF is not blocked on their computer by a spam filter. To prevent blocking, applicants should set up their email to accept CCSF mail from the following addresses (@sfgov.org, @sfdpw.org, @sfport.com, @flysfo.com, @sfwater.org, @sfdph.org, @asianart.org, @sfmta.com, @sfpl.org, @dcyf.org, @first5sf.org, @famsf.org, @ccsf.edu, @smartalerts.info, and @smartrecruiters.com).

Applicants will receive a confirmation email that their online application has been received in response to every announcement for which they file. Applicants should retain this confirmation email for their records. Failure to receive this email means that the online application was not submitted or received.

Human Resources Analyst Information: If you have any questions regarding this recruitment or application process, please send your inquires to Nikki Chew, Sr. HR Analyst at Nikki.chew@sfcityatty.org.

The City and County of San Francisco encourages women, minorities and persons with disabilities to apply. Applicants will be considered regardless of their sex, race, age, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition (associated with cancer, a history of cancer, or genetic characteristics), HIV/AIDS status, genetic information, marital status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, military and veteran status, or other protected category under the law.