Assistant Legal Practice Manager

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 skills to practical outcomes in an environment focused on your learning and development.

The Legal Division's large and diverse practice covers a wide range of areas of law, including:

· Advising on regulatory systems and operations 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.

· Providing 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.

· Providing employment law advice, including on investigations, work health and safety and external review proceedings.

· Advising on 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.

· Developing and delivering legal training to staff in policy and operational decision-making roles.

The Legal Division works together to support and develop staff 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.

We have both ongoing and non-ongoing opportunities at the EL1 level for Assistant Legal Practice Managers who enjoy an energetic, purposeful and collaborative environment.

The Practice Management Unit (PMU) reports to the Chief Counsel's Office. The PMU provides support for the Chief Counsel, General Counsels and Legal Division. The PMU develops and administers the division's systems to support a diverse, full service legal practice supporting the department. These systems include business and workforce planning including recruitment, managing legal procurement, billing, invoicing and reporting for external legal expenditure.

The Job

The key duties of job role include, but are not limited to:

· Provide strategic support and advice on organisational issues (including business plans, workforce planning, recruitment and budgeting) and relationships with key stakeholders

· Manage shared mailboxes as the entry points into Legal Division and the Practice Management Unit

· Manage divisional coordination requests and streams of work (including Senate Estimates, QTBs, QoNs and other ad hoc requests coming into the division)

· Plan and coordinate the delivery of key business projects as required (including professional development and training, intranet pages, risk plans, business continuity plans and divisional business plans)

· Provide governance support to the Division's Executive and oversee the administration of monthly Executive meetings including minute taking, preparing reports and quarterly DAFF Portfolio Heads of Legal meetings

· Work closely with the Practice Manager to assist with:

• Manage a team to meet goals and ensure a healthy and positive team dynamic
• Assist with preparing divisional or team planning days
• Coordinate input into departmental corporate reporting and other obligations
• Administer the division's legal matter management system and the division's legal advice register
• Develop and update templates and guides for our legal practice
• Manage procurement of external legal services and reporting obligations to the Office of Legal Services Coordination.

· The Assistant Legal Practice Manager reports to the Legal Practice Manager to provide strategic, operational, governance and administrative support for the Executive and branches of the Legal Division.

· The role requires a motivated and collaborative individual with highly developed interpersonal, communication, organisational and administrative skills, and demonstrate a proven ability to proactively take ownership of issues and work with others to deliver outcomes.

· It also requires high levels of professionalism, discretion, tact, and diplomacy in dealing with sensitive and/or confidential matters.

· The Assistant Legal Practice Manager contributes and helps lead a positive team dynamic.

·  The successful candidate will need to understand the challenges and opportunities of a busy government legal practice, and possess the ability to build positive relationships, both internally and externally, and work both independently and as part of a team.

What we are looking for

Knowledge and experience

To be successful for this role you will have:

· Experience providing high quality administrative, business and financial support, including utilising and adopting systems to enhance business practices

· A strong understanding of the Department, including corporate requirements, or the ability to acquire this

· Experience in leading, developing and mentoring staff and building cohesive and collaborative teams

· Experience in maintaining a high-level of professionalism, discretion, tact, and diplomacy in dealing with sensitive and/or confidential matters

· Experience building and maintaining effective relationships with both internal and external stakeholders

· Experience communicating clearly and in an accurate, timely and professional way.