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City of New York · 1 month ago

Deputy Director of Litigation

Manhattan, NY

Full-time

Onsite

Lead/Staff, Director/Executive

$140K/yr - $150K/yr

4+ years exp

The City of New York's Comptroller’s Office is dedicated to promoting the financial health and integrity of the city's government. The Deputy Director of Litigation is responsible for managing the Litigation Unit, overseeing the evaluation and settlement of claims, and supervising staff while ensuring compliance with legal standards.

GovernmentLegalPublic Relations

Responsibilities

Use independent discretion and judgment to evaluate, negotiate, and settle pre-litigation claims and pending litigation on behalf of the City of New York and its agencies, with a focus on high exposure cases involving, but not limited to, all forms of personal injury, medical malpractice, police actions, civil rights, correction, and labor & employment

Prepare legal memoranda to justify legal strategy and financial valuation of pending claims and litigation

Supervise attorneys and claim professionals performing claim and litigation resolution functions, including reviewing and editing legal memoranda, evaluating and responding to requests for financial authority, and developing negotiation and litigation strategies

Research and prepare memoranda on legal developments, relevant government policies, and fiscal implications of claim filing and resolution trends for presentation to executive staff

Support the Director of Litigation with respect to managing staff assignments and day-to-day operations of the Litigation Unit, including all relevant HR functions such as interviewing, hiring, training, annual reviews, discipline, and other related tasks

Train, develop, and mentor team members on legal principles and developments relevant to claims and litigation covered by the Unit

Perform claim data research and analysis and prepare reports on claim trends to agency executives

Extensively liaise with senior counterparts at the Office of the Corporation Counsel to develop litigation and negotiation strategy on complex high-exposure litigation

Extensively interface with agency senior leadership, including the Assistant Comptroller and General Counsel's office, to develop claim and litigation resolution strategies, obtain appropriate settlement authority, and examine sensitive and confidential issues

Interface with the agency's technical teams to improve data retention, technological processes, and the claim database

Liaise with fiscal services and accounting to ensure data accuracy and appropriate payment

Cultivate relationships with external actors, including but not limited to, senior officials at external agencies, judges, mediators, plaintiff and defense counsel as needed to efficiently resolve claims and litigation

Prepare FOIL responses

Appear in all state and federal courts in New York City on high exposure cases, as necessary; and

Perform other related assignments as directed

Qualification

Litigation experienceSupervisory experienceLegal writing skillsAnalytical skillsData analyticsNegotiation skillsInterpersonal skillsPresentation skillsAttention to detailMentoring skills

Required

Admission to the New York State Bar

Four years of recent full-time responsible, relevant, satisfactory legal experience subsequent to admission to any bar

Eighteen months of which must have been 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 this employment

Preferred

Extensive litigation experience in the areas of personal injury torts, civil rights, labor and employment, insurance, and/or medical malpractice, preferably on behalf of municipal or institutional clients and of high exposure and sensitivity

Superlative discretion, independent judgment, ethics, and the ability to properly handle confidential and sensitive material

Clearly demonstrated supervisory experience and mentoring skills

Outstanding writing skills, including drafting legal briefs, memoranda, training materials, and reference guides, and experience editing junior staff members' legal written work product

Exceptional verbal and presentation skills, including presenting cases and other important information to all levels of agency management and high level external government actors

Attention to detail and the ability to simultaneously perform multiple tasks that require prioritization

Exceptional analytical and negotiation skills, including negotiating high stakes matters before Courts and mediators

Excellent interpersonal and organization skills, with demonstrated ability to interact professionally and effectively with all levels of management, government officials, attorneys, judges and other Court staff, and the public

Understanding of data analytics and experience creating simple and effective visual representations of complex data sets and analyses

Experience working on class action matters

Fundamental understanding of the relationship between the Comptroller's Office and City Agencies with respect to claims and lawsuits