Legal Department Manager

Job description

GENERAL SUMMARY Provide leadership and strategic direction to the Legal Services department, including setting priorities, allocating resources, and managing the Legal Services Supervisor and any attorneys or staff reporting directly to the Manager. Evaluate department performance, oversee professional development planning, and serve as primary liaison to the Assistant General Counsel/Compliance Director on department operations and staffing matters. PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTABILITIES Provide leadership and management direction to Legal Services. Manage and evaluate direct report staff performance through performance appraisals/reviews, promotions, salary changes, professional development and through active monitoring and coaching. Provide legal advice and counsel on complex, enterprise-level and high stakes matters across EN departments including regulatory proceedings and novel legal questions. Draft, review, and negotiate major contracts, leases, waivers, releases, financing documents, and other documents on behalf of Energy Northwest. In coordination with the Assistant General Counsel/Compliance Director, serve as Energy Northwest’s point of contact with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s Office of the General Counsel and Office of Investigations. Represent Employees Testifying in Legal Actions, Proceedings and Public Hearings (GBP-LEG-03) and NRC Investigations: Rights of Energy Northwest Employees (GBP-LEG-04). Maintain knowledge of, and ensure Energy Northwest compliance with, federal and state statutes, regulations and court decisions. Protect Energy Northwest's interests by initiating or defending Energy Northwest in significant lawsuits, administrative hearings and/or directing the conduct of said litigation by in-house or retained counsel. Provide training, as required, to Energy Northwest staff on current legal issues and in compliance with legal requirements. Review and act upon legal invoices less than or equal to $200,000; refer greater expenditures to the appropriate delegated authority under Delegation of Authority—Financial Matters Chief Executive Officer Re-Delegation for action. Prepare and manage the annual budget for Legal Services. Must participate on the Emergency Response team (ERO) when designated. Must support the biennial refueling outage. REQUIRED EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE A Juris Doctor degree from an accredited law school and a current license to practice law in the State of Washington or the ability to obtain license through WSBA Admission by Motion within 9 months. A minimum of 10 years of experience practicing law. Previous management/leadership experience. PAY RANGE Pay Range: $195,000 - $250,714 Typically, selected candidates are hired between the minimum and midpoint of the range, based on applicable experience and qualifications, market rate, internal equity, and budgetary allowances. Offers will be negotiated based on each candidate's qualifications. INCENTIVE COMPENSATION This position is eligible for an annual at-risk compensation (ARC) incentive plan target of 20% of the base salary. Incentives are earned based on agency performance against defined metrics and goals and follow eligibility rules within the ARC plan document. BENEFITS Energy Northwest (EN) provides a phenomenal benefits package. Washington State also has no state income tax, and the Tri-Cities provides a cost-of-living lower than the national average. EN offers substantial retirement benefits through three retirement programs including the Washington State Public Employees' Retirement System pension plan (PERS), a 401(k) savings plan with an employer match component, and a 457(b) savings plan. EN also offers multiple options for medical, dental, vision, disability and life insurance coverage. Other voluntary benefits may include flexible spending accounts (FSAs), tuition reimbursement, student loan repayment, childcare subsides, health reimbursement arrangement (HRA VEBA), health savings account (HSA), supplemental life insurances, credit monitoring/identity theft insurance, and more! Qualifying employees will typically start a personal time accrual rate of 160 hours per year and EN provides nine paid holidays throughout the Calander year; personal time accruals grow significantly at various service intervals. We are an Equal Opportunity Employer and do not discriminate due to race, color, age, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, ethnicity, religion, national origin, veteran status or on the basis of disability. Know Your Rights: Workplace discrimination is illegal