Legal Officer

Job Description

Who we are

The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry’s legal work is unique. You will have the opportunity to provide legal advice and services while working closely with policymakers and operational staff on matters that directly affect all Australians across areas as diverse as biosecurity, agricultural production, trade, food, wine, fisheries and forestry. A job with Legal Division is a chance to meaningfully apply your legal skills to practical outcomes in an environment and with colleagues that are focused on supporting you, your learning and development as a lawyer. The Legal Division’s large and diverse practice means that lawyers will be able to gain experience in their specific interests across a wide range of areas of law, including:

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 Legal Officers. If you enjoy an energetic, purposeful and collaborative legal environment, then this is the role for you.

You will report to a Senior Legal Officer. You will need to prepare written advice and provide support to operational officers, including on complex matters, so your ability to communicate effectively both verbally and in writing is essential. You should be able to be flexible in how you deliver advice and engage with clients. You are in a position of trust within the department and will work under guidance from your supervisor and manager to achieve your objectives.

We are committed to developing and building quality lawyers with recognised and respected experience and qualifications.

Please note that this recruitment process will be used to fill both ongoing and non-ongoing positions across the legal branches. The merit pool may also be used to fill future ongoing and non-ongoing vacancies in the Division where the duties are of a similar nature.

Knowledge and experience

Ideally you will have at least 1 to 3 years of relevant post-admission experience. While this is desirable, if you have not had this level of experience but believe you would be competitive, we invite you to apply.

Skills and capabilities

The ability to distil and research key legal issues and provide strategic and practical legal advice is essential. Excellent communication skills are critical, including the ability to understand diverse viewpoints and to persuade and influence. We highly value people who enjoy working in a collegiate environment and are happy to operate across teams. The ability to develop and maintain effective working relationships with team members and internal clients will be critical.

You should be able to demonstrate sound judgement and an ability to deal with sensitive matters that will often impact the agricultural industry and/or the broader Australian community. Effective time management is also required as timeframes are tight, especially when dealing with issues direct from the Minister’s Office or before scrutiny bodies, so matters must be actioned in a timely and effective manner.

Mandatory Qualifications

To be eligible for these positions you are required to hold a degree in law, completing, or have completed, your practical legal training requirements and be eligible to hold an ACT legal practising certificate.