Jobs

SUPERVISION RECEIVED:
Works under supervision of the County Counsel who assigns work, checks performance and provides professional consultation. Work is reviewed for conformance with state statutes, case law, legal ethics, other professional practices, standards, department policies, procedures, and overall results obtained.

SUPERVISION EXERCISED:
Supervision of other employees is not generally a responsibility of the position.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES INCLUDE ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS OF POSITIONS ASSIGNED TO THIS CLASSIFICATION. DEPENDING ON ASSIGNMENT, THE EMPLOYEE MAY PERFORM A COMBINATION OF SOME OR ALL OF THE FOLLOWING DUTIES:
• Prosecutes and defends legal actions, suits, and other proceedings on behalf of the County as directed.
• Prepares and presents cases at trials or hearings, performing research and analysis on legal and factual issues.
• Interviews and deposes witnesses.
• Prepares and files legal pleadings, motions, case reports, and summaries.
• Evaluates, recommends, and negotiates out of court settlements, in consultation with County Counsel staff.
• Assists County Counsel staff with legal work in any functional area for all County departments in one or more legal specialties and serves as back-up to others.
• Provides legal counsel to Board of Commissioners, County officers, assigned County departments, and various other boards and commissions, advising on legal rights and responsibilities and other legal issues. • Attends public meetings and work sessions.
• Investigates facts and conducts legal research.
• Manages schedules, prepares documents, memorandums, and report summaries.
• Gathers information from County departments, County personnel, other jurisdictions, and outside agencies.
• Advises County departments on appropriate action for general legal problems and issues.
• Interprets Federal, State, and local legislation, statutes, rules, and regulations.
• Reviews and makes recommendations to senior legal staff on proposed policy or procedural changes.
• Assists with public relations and media issues as assigned.
• Prepares and analyzes proposed state and federal legislation affecting County operations for review by senior legal staff.
• Advises and reports to senior legal staff on any relevant impact to County departments or operations.
• Research, studies, and interprets the application of laws, court decisions, and other legal authorities and precedents.
• Prepares legal opinions, memoranda, and briefs.
• Interacts, confers, and negotiates with local government officials, city and county counsels, outside counsel, assistant attorneys general or private attorneys regarding County legal matters, as assigned.
• Represents the County in collective bargaining and related legal matters.
• Assist with public sector labor law matters, including personnel investigations, imposition of discipline, grievance resolutions; represent the County in mediations, arbitrations and unfair labor practice complaints.
• Researches, reviews, prepares, negotiates, and assists with real property transactional documents, including offers, purchase and sale agreements, leases, options, deeds, contracts, easements, escrow agreements, disposition and development agreements, and urban renewal-related activities.
• Researches, reviews, negotiates, assists with, and ensures compliance with all applicable federal, state, and other governmental regulations, including environmental requirements, land use permits, federal regulatory permits, operational compliance, and clean-up of environmentally sensitive sites.
• Plans, organizes, and leads staff projects and assignments as directed.
• Develops general legal strategies for sensitive case and issues, as assigned.
• Assists in the development of policies, procedures, and work plans, making recommendations on work priorities.
• Assists in preparation of memoranda and pleadings for courts and administrative agencies such as the Oregon Land Use Board of Appeals, Oregon Land Conservation and Development Commission, the Civil Rights Division of the Bureau of Labor and Industries, Oregon Tax Court or state employment division and represents the County in administrative proceedings before varied administrative bodies as directed by County Counsel.
• Provides legal assistance for ordinance enforcement.
• Receives, evaluates and responds to referrals from County departments with regard to the form of documents prepared in connection with matters of county concern.
• Assists in review or revision of County ordinances as required by law and referred by the County Counsel.
Serves as hearings Officer in matters referred by County Counsel including but not limited to jail disciplinary violations.
• Supervises investigations, preparation of complaints and makes court appearances in connection with enforcement as necessary.
• Prepares and presents oral argument in any appeals the county is a party to before the Oregon Court of Appeals and Oregon Supreme Court.
• Prepares legal opinions for questions referred by the County Counsel, Elected Officials, or Department Heads.
• Advises the County on legal matters relating to public contracts, public purchases, acquisitions, public financings, and public sale transfers by the County; drafts contracts, deeds and related documents.
• Advises the Commissioners or committees on general legal matters, in consultation with County Counsel.
• Drafts board orders, ordinances and amendments to ordinances.
• Enforces or assists in enforcement of any law pursuant to direction of County Counsel.
• Performs other duties, as assigned.

The Benefits

Yamhill County offers generous employee benefits:

• 15 paid holidays per year.
• 19.5 days of Flexible Earned Time (FET) accrual in the first year (based on an 8-hr day).
• PERS (Public Employee Retirement System) - 100% employer funded contributions.
• Full health benefit offerings with employee premiums starting as low as $58.82/month for 2024 to2025 plan year. *

*Subject to the AFCSME Collective Bargaining Agreement (7/1/2023 – 6/30/2026). 

Our Community

Yamhill County has approximately 109,000 residents and is a very desirable place to live in the heart of the Willamette Valley wine country.  Yamhill County is home to Linfield University and Chemeketa Community College in McMinnville and George Fox University and Portland Community College in Newberg.   Yamhill County is centrally located in the Willamette Valley, within proximity to the Oregon Coast, the Portland and Salem metropolitan areas, and the Oregon Cascade Mountains.  Wide varieties of indoor and outdoor recreation opportunities are available.  We have the benefits, appeal and superior quality of life found in a small-town community, while enjoying active social and cultural lifestyles found in larger metropolitan areas.

Required Information

Under the provisions of the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, any person hired or rehired is required to provide evidence of identity and eligibility for employment. Yamhill County does not offer VISA sponsorships. The County verifies the valid work authorization of each employee using Form I-9 and the E-Verify Program.

Yamhill County is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer and values diversity.  

All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply. Applicants are considered for employment based on their qualifications without regard to race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, marital or veteran status, medical condition or disability, or any other factor prohibited by law or regulation. Veterans are encouraged to apply. Do not include information or photos that would identify those personal traits. Documents included with this identifying information will be removed from the application packet.

Some positions require a criminal history check and a review of driving record. All County positions require regular, prompt, and consistent attendance.

Accommodation Under the Americans With Disabilities Act

Reasonable accommodation is available to anyone whose specific disability prevents them from completing this application or participating in the selection process for this recruitment. To obtain confidential assistance, please contact Human Resources at 503-474-4901 or via email at Human_Resources@yamhillcounty.gov.

Veterans’ Preference

Under Oregon law ORS 408.225-408.238, veterans who meet the minimum qualifications for a position may be eligible for hiring preference. If you think you may qualify, a Veteran’s Hiring Preference Form must be completed and submitted with application. For the form and information for this process please click here. (Download PDF reader)

If you need assistance with completing an application for employment or with obtaining a Veteran’s Hiring Preference Form, please contact Human Resources at 503-474-4901 or via email at Human_Resources@yamhillcounty.gov.

KNOWLEDGE OF:
• Principles and practices of local government law.
• Principles and techniques of legal writing.
• Judicial procedure and rules of evidence.
• Civil trial and appellate procedures in state and federal courts and administrative tribunals.
• Legal terminology.
• Federal, state, and local statutes, regulations, rules, and ordinances applicable to County activities and functions, including public liability, public meetings, torts, contracts, property taxation, real property and land use, public records and public financing.
• Principles and techniques of public sector labor law, labor relations and collective bargaining.
• Organization of County government.
• Principles of liability, risk management and regulatory compliance.
• Practices, principles and procedures of public administration.
• County government organization and structure.

SKILL IN:
• Establishing and maintaining effective working relationships with elected and appointed officials, government agencies, court system personnel, private and public attorneys, County employees, and member of the public.
• Effective communication, both orally and in writing.
• Preparing clear and concise legal documents and reports.
• Negotiating and exchanging ideas, information, and opinions with others to formulate policies and programs and/or arrive jointly at decisions, conclusions or solutions.

ABILITY TO:
• Organize and summarize a large volume of material and arrive at a logical conclusion and set forth a concise, complete, and accurate finding of fact.
• Research and document information on related subject matter.
• Prepare clear and concise reports.
• Maintain confidentiality.
• Establish and maintain effective working relationships with elected and appointed officials, department/division leaders, other county employees, representatives of other governmental agencies, employee representatives, and the public.
• Interact effectively with the Board of Commissioners and County Counsel.
• Operate in the Microsoft Windows environment.
• Attend work as scheduled and/or required.

MINIMUM EXPERIENCE AND TRAINING:
Graduation from an accredited school of law. The ideal candidate would have 5-8 years of local government legal experience with direct experience in (i) civil litigation and court practice, (ii) Oregon land use law, (iii) public procurement and contracting law, and (iv) public sector labor negotiations, grievances, mediation and arbitration experience. Must have demonstrated increasing ability to assume responsibility for assigned duties within the County Counsel's office during the absence of the County Counsel or Assistant County Counsel.

SPECIAL QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED:
Must be a member of the Oregon State Bar at the time of appointment and must maintain that membership in good standing. Must be a member of the United States District Court for the District of Oregon and the United States Court of Appeals, 9th Circuit, or eligible to become a member and remain in good standing.

OTHER REQUIREMENTS:
Ability to secure and maintain a driver’s license valid in the state of Oregon, or an acceptable alternative means of transportation. May be required to drive a County vehicle. Employees authorized to operate a private vehicle on County business are required to carry a valid driver’s license and liability insurance minimums as outlined in ORS 806.070.

Employment will be subject to successful completion of a background check.

The employee typically works in an office environment and uses a computer, telephone and other office equipment, as needed, to perform duties. The noise level in the work environment is typical of that of an office. Employee may encounter frequent interruptions throughout the workday.

The employee is regularly required to sit, talk, or hear; frequently required to use repetitive hand motion, handle or feel, and to stand, walk, reach, bend or lift up to 20 pounds regularly and 30 pounds occasionally.

Contact with the public in varied environments may risk exposure to irrational/hostile behavior, contagious diseases, or contact with domestic animals.

The physical demands are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

This job description in no way states or implies that these are the only duties to be performed by an employee occupying this position. Employees may be required to perform other related duties as assigned, to ensure workload coverage. Employees are required to follow any other job-related instructions and to perform any other job-related duties requested by their supervisor. This job description does NOT constitute an employment agreement between the employer and employee and is subject to change by the employer as the organizational needs and requirements of the job change.

The job specification requirements stated are representative of minimum levels of knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform this job successfully. Any satisfactory equivalent combination of experience and training which ensures the ability to perform the work may substitute for the above so that the employee will possess the abilities or aptitudes to perform each duty proficiently.

Vacation/Sick Leave - Flexible Earned Time (FET) is a combination of vacation and sick leave. To start, employees earn 13 hours per month and future accruals increase based on years of service. After a year of service and depending on FET balance, employees may sell-back up to 40 hours of FET per year.