Principal Legal Officer

Principal Legal Officer (EL 2) - $150,189 - $163,620 per annum plus superannuation
- Legal & Governance Division
- Canberra, ACT
- _Interesting and varied legal work _
- _An opportunity to lead a team in a fast-paced, exciting legal environment _
- _We focus on ensuring our staff are supported and developed_

**Who we are**
The Legal Division is responsible for the provision of all legal services and advice required by the department to deliver its functions and develop portfolio legislation. This includes the provision of strategic legal advice to the Secretary, the Executive and the business areas of the department.

The Legal Division is a large and diverse practice comprising three legal branches and is managed by the Chief Counsel. The division’s responsibilities include coordination of all external legal services and the provision of internal legal advice including:

- employment law;
- information law including privacy advice and managing freedom of information requests;
- litigation and claims resolution;
- contracts and grants management;
- commercial and corporate law;
- statutory interpretation and administrative law;
- regulatory law;
- compliance and criminal law;
- civil penalty litigation;
- development of legislation;
- debt recovery; and
- investigations and enforcement.

The legal branches operate in a fast paced, exciting environment dealing with numerous complex pieces of legislation. We focus on ensuring our staff are supported and developed so that they are in the best position to take on the challenges of the work.

The Biosecurity Legal team provides legal advice and support on regulatory issues and decisions, working closely with clients to assist them to manage Australia’s biosecurity system. This includes issues arising from the international trade in goods, the arrival of passengers, aircraft and vessels and onshore responses to pests and diseases

**The Job**
DAFF is seeking a Principal Legal Officer to manage the Biosecurity Legal team in the Advising, Regulatory and Compliance Branch. 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.

**Skills and capabilities**
To be successful for this role you will have:

- proven skills in providing high quality legal advice in areas relevant to the work of the Division, such as litigation, including in sensitive and high risk environments
- a demonstrated capacity to lead, develop and mentor lawyers and manage a diverse case load and build a cohesive and collaborative team
- a proven ability to build and maintain effective relationships with both internal and external stakeholders
- a demonstrated ability to communicate clearly and in an accurate, timely and professional way.

**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.

**Eligibility and other requirements**

**Citizenship** - To be eligible for employment with the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry you must be an Australian citizen.

**Security Clearance** - This position requires a Baseline Vetting security clearance. You will be required to obtain and maintain a clearance at this level.

**Pre-employment Check** - Your suitability for employment will be assessed through a pre-employment screening process. This process includes a requirement to undergo and satisfy a National Police Check, referee checks, character clearance and where required a pre-employment medical assessment, specified mandatory qualification(s) validation and a probation period of 6 months.