Job Posting

Under the direction of the Senior Legal Counsel, the Assistant Legal Counsel assists in the Office of Legal Counsel’s mission to provide legal services, advice and counsel, and opinions to support the administration of TRS programs, planning, and decision making.

Education Requirements: 

All candidates must be a graduate of and hold a JD from an accredited law school and be a licensed attorney in good standing in the State of Illinois.

Experience: 

Previous experience in one or more of the following areas is preferred: public/governmental retirement plans; tax-qualified retirement plans; institutional investor representation; investment and agency contracting and procurement; open government.

Summary of Duties and Responsibilities:

This in-house attorney position assists the Senior Legal Counsel by providing research, drafting, legal analysis, and advice. The incumbent performs detailed legal research concerning statutory interpretation and compliance; drafts legal memoranda, briefs, and administrative rules; reviews System contracts and procurement documents, publications, and policies; and interacts with staff and external parties regarding legal matters affecting the System. The position serves as backup and support to the FOIA Officer.

Knowledge/Skills/Abilities:

The Assistant Legal Counsel must possess strong legal research and writing capabilities, careful attention to detail and timelines, and computer and organizational skills to handle routine administrative and clerical duties to aid smooth workflow in a small department. The incumbent must maintain strict confidentiality, handling all matters with discretion, decorum, and the highest ethical standards befitting the legal profession and the fiduciary duty owed to the System.

Selection Criteria:

Analytical Skills:

The ability to define the elements and constraints in a situation; find the linear relationships that exist; create and test assumptions; and, determine one or more correct solutions or approaches to a problem.

Communication Skills:

The ability to construct, orally or in writing, arguments and propositions that explain clearly and persuasively the intent of the message being conveyed.

Interpersonal Skills:

The ability to communicate decisions and directions to a variety of individuals in a manner that neither confuses nor irritates the recipient.  The ability to coordinate the efforts of a disparate group toward the accomplishment of organization goals and objectives.

Job Knowledge and Experience:

Has completed specified amount of time previously performing essential duties of the job and/or has completed specified degrees, coursework, or training programs to perform the job.  Possesses a body of information or level of understanding necessary to complete assigned responsibilities.

Management Skills:

The ability to define goals, envision alternative futures, focus available resources on organizational outcomes and direct the energy of staff toward the accomplishment of objectives.

Problem Solving Skills:

Ability to accurately define a problem; envision or create viable alternatives; weight and/or rank order the alternatives; and, apply an appropriate problem solving methodology.

Technical Skills:

Thorough knowledge, understanding, interpretation and application of the federal and state laws governing TRS as well as a knowledge of TRS administrative policies and procedures.

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Job Description

Purpose:

Under the direction of the Senior Legal Counsel, the Assistant Legal Counsel assists in the Office of Legal Counsel’s mission to provide legal services, advice and counsel, and opinions to support the administration of TRS programs, planning, and decision making.

Nature and Scope:

The incumbent must be a graduate of an accredited law school, at all times be actively licensed and duly admitted to the practice of law by the Supreme Court of Illinois, and duly registered and in good standing with the Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission (ARDC). In order to maintain an awareness of emerging issues, the incumbent may maintain membership in the National Association of Public Pension Attorneys (NAPPA), local, state, and national bar associations, and relevant professional organizations.

This in-house attorney position assists the Senior Legal Counsel by providing research, drafting, legal analysis, and advice. The incumbent performs detailed legal research concerning statutory interpretation and compliance; drafts legal memoranda, briefs, and administrative rules; reviews System contracts and procurement documents, publications, and policies; and interacts with staff and external parties regarding legal matters affecting the System. The position serves as backup and support to the FOIA Officer. The incumbent must possess strong legal research and writing capabilities, careful attention to detail and timelines, and computer and organizational skills to handle routine administrative and clerical duties to aid smooth workflow in a small department. The incumbent must maintain strict confidentiality, handling all matters with discretion, decorum, and the highest ethical standards befitting the legal profession and the fiduciary duty owed to the System.

This position handles ongoing legal work and special projects delegated by the Senior Legal Counsel, working independently while maintaining regular communication with the Senior Legal Counsel to proactively address emerging legal issues and real, potential, and imminent situations or problems. This position should be comfortable providing advice that may not always be well-received, considering all parties in interest but always acting in the best interests of the System. The responsibilities of this position are agency-wide in scope.

The greatest challenge of this position is to effectively manage multiple competing priorities and interact with a wide variety of internal and external contacts, while always maintaining clear focus and undivided loyalty to the System as the client.

Principal Accountabilities:

1. Serve as assistant and backup to the Senior Legal Counsel in providing legal services on all assigned issues and projects.
2. Perform legal research and analysis and provide advice relating to agency operations and compliance with federal and state law, including the Illinois Pension Code, Internal Revenue Code, State Officials and Employees Ethics Act, FOIA, and Open Meetings Act.
3. Confer with staff, attorneys, and external parties on matters of statutory interpretation and agency compliance, benefits, QILDRO and divorce, investments, and employer and member services.
4. Review and analyze complaints, court orders, powers of attorney, guardianship, withholding orders, subpoenas, and other legal documents received by the System.
5. Review and draft contracts and amendments, RFPs and procurement documents, working with the agency Purchasing Officer as necessary.
6. Serve as backup FOIA Officer and assist in managing public record requests and responses.
7. Assist in drafting, implementation, and interpretation of legislation, administrative rules, policies, and procedures.
8. Develop, review, and update TRS publications and other agency documents.
9. Assist the Senior Legal Counsel in advising the Board of Trustees on matters of statutory compliance, representing the staff position in administrative review matters, and preparing written materials for the TRS Board of Trustees.
10. Assist with legal department operational administrative matters, budgeting, and purchasing.
11. Assist in monitoring the provision of external legal services.
12. Performs other duties as assigned or required.