ASSISTANT GENERAL COUNSEL, EMPLOYMENT LAW UNIT

About the role

The Employment Law Unit (ELU) provides comprehensive legal counsel and strategic guidance throughout the Department of Social Services/Human Resources Administration (DSS/HRA) and the Department of Homeless Services (OHS) in all matters related to labor and employment law. The Unit oversees the prosecution of disciplinary matters under the State Civil Service Law, litigates cases before the Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings (OATH), and manages the agency's defense against discrimination complaints before Federal, State, and City Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) enforcement agencies. The ELU also serves as primary legal counsel for Human Capital Management (HCM) and provides high-level counsel to senior leadership on emerging legal and investigative issues.

Under the supervision of the Associate General Counsel (M-III) for the Employment Law Unit, the Assistant General Counsel (M-II) serves as a senior executive manager with wide latitude for independent judgment and high-level decision-making. This role is responsible for the overall strategic direction and day-to-day executive operations of the ELU, directly supervising all attorney and support staff.

Responsibilities

• Direct and manage the day-to-day executive operations of the ELU, including providing executive supervision and oversight of Agency Attorneys and support staff, ensuring appropriate workload distribution, and offering expert legal guidance on trial advocacy.
• Serve as a critical executive-level decision-maker in the absence of the M-III Associate General Counsel, acting on their behalf to meet with senior leadership, authorize investigative actions, make initial decisions on employee suspensions for serious misconduct, and counsel senior managers on responses to subpoenas, temporary restraining orders (TROs), and requests for injunctive relief.
• Review and resolve highly complex EEO litigation and investigative issues, preparing confidential legal summaries and formal memoranda recommending disciplinary action, investigations, and other proposed management resolutions.
• Manage and oversee the prosecution of misconduct and incompetence cases filed before the Citywide Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings (OATH), directing and guiding attorney staff on the review and drafting of disciplinary charges to ensure successful prosecution.
• Coordinate agency employee discipline initiatives with the Office of Human Resources Solutions through early intervention and oversee the investigative review of disciplinary referrals with the Inspector General and other investigative entities.
• Manage the strategic defense of discrimination complaints filed before Federal, State, and City EEO enforcement agencies, overseeing all aspects of the agency's defense, including comprehensive witness and case preparation.
• Serve as the primary strategic point of contact for external agencies (e.g., Law Department, Department of Investigations, City Office of Labor Relations) regarding outside litigation and propose case settlements as appropriate.
• Litigate the most complex and high-profile discipline and EEO cases beyond the expertise of subordinate attorney staff, setting the standard for advocacy within the unit.
• Conduct mandatory and ongoing legal training for agency employees on EEO and disciplinary processes to ensure compliance with external training mandates.
• Ensure full regulatory and internal compliance, including preparing formal legal opinions on Conflict-of-Interest issues (e.g., legal waivers), submitting required monthly data collection reports to the Senior Deputy General Counsel and external partners (e.g., EEO Office, COIB), and maintaining case management tools and reports according to agency and legal standards.

Requirements

• Admission to the New York State Bar.
• Four years of recent full-time responsible, relevant, and satisfactory legal experience subsequent to admission to any bar, with eighteen months in the supervision of other attorneys, in an administrative, managerial, or executive capacity, or performing highly complex and significant legal work.
• Incumbents must remain Members of the New York State Bar in good standing for the duration of employment.

Preferred Skills

• Litigation experience, including the ability to investigate allegations of misconduct and discrimination claims.
• Demonstrated communication and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to handle multiple high-level matters simultaneously.

Additional Information

New York City residency is not required for this position.

As a prospective employee of the City of New York, you may be eligible for federal loan forgiveness programs and state repayment assistance programs. For more information, visit the U.S. Department of Education’s website.