Attorney - Kjcc & Lcf (Hybrid)

Description:

Position Summary & Responsibilities:
Position Summary: As a member of the Central Office Legal Team, the incumbent provides legal advice, consultation, and representation to Central Office juvenile services staff, and provides guidance to staff in the juvenile correctional facility and LCF, as needed.
The position of Legal Counsel is intended to furnish a ready, convenient resource of legal knowledge and skills coupled with an intimate knowledge of daily operations of the assigned facility in order to render timely, well-informed and helpful advice to facility staff, with a view toward furthering the operation of the facility in a manner that respects legal rights of inmates, reduces liability exposure, and also preserves management prerogatives to the maximum extent possible.
Job Responsibilities may include but are not limited to the following:

• This legal counsel is primarily responsible for the following facilities: LCF and KJCC. On occasion may be given an assignment by the Chief Legal Counsel of an issue at a facility other than the one which the legal counsel is primarily responsible.
• Renders timely, reliable, and accurate legal opinions to the Department staff in language and terms that are understandable to the layman.
• Provides advice and explanation of how the legal requirements may be applied to administrative operations.
• Interprets and explains applications of statutes, regulations, and court decisions as the situation requires in order to keep staff informed on current trends and requirements of law, both procedural and substantive.
• Prepares, analyzes and interprets in a timely and accurate manner, legally sufficient documents, instruments, and correspondence as required.
• Analyzes and interprets general orders.
• Prepares and reviews legal documents, including contracts, licenses, deeds, and conviction records.
• Correspondence with courts and attorneys on legal issues involving facilities of the Department or incarcerated inmates.
• Assists, when requested, in the preparation of materials to proposed legislation affecting KDOC.
• Represents members of the System Management Team, staff, KDOC, and the State of Kansas in civil litigation, administrative proceedings, and legislative hearings, including claims hearing, in a competent manner sufficient to obtain a result that entails the least possible loss to the Department of intrusion into agency operations, including: filing pleadings in a timely manner; negotiating, preparing, and presenting cases; keeping all interested parties advised concerning case status; and, preparing bi-weekly litigation reports to the Chief Legal Counsel.
• Coordinates with the Chief Legal Counsel and other staff and officials throughout the Department to assure reasonable and necessary consistency and uniformity in the interpretation and application of legal principles and legal services within the correctional system.
• Instructs juvenile corrections staff on issues of procedural and substantive law relating to offender rights, Tort Claims Act, supervisory liability and the juvenile justice system.
• Prepares and utilizes lesson plans in giving oral lectures in order to fulfill a required portion of the statutorily mandated training program for juvenile correctional staff.
• Provides information and assistance to the public and other officials in the juvenile justice system regarding laws related to sentencing and juvenile corrections.
• Provides reasonable and accurate information and assistance to the public and other officials in the criminal justice system regarding laws related to sentencing and corrections.
• Facilitates a positive working relationship with the facilities, the public, and other elements of the criminal and juvenile justice systems.
• Performs other duties as directed by the Chief Legal Counsel.

Qualifications:
Minimum Qualifications:
Certificate of admission to the Bar of the Supreme Court of Kansas or temporary permit to practice law issued by the Supreme Court of Kansas.
Preferred Qualifications:

• Independent work experience in licensed law practice.
• Possession of considerable knowledge of criminal law of conviction, juvenile law, sentencing, correctional incarceration and release of prisoners, as well as the general administrative and regulatory function of state government.
• Possession of considerable knowledge of the methods and practices of pleading civil and criminal cases relating to corrections.
• Ability to apply effective techniques for presentation of cases in court, and the ability to analyze legal documents and instruments, to appraise and organize facts and legal principles and to present evidence or other materials in effective written and oral forms.
  

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