An equal opportunity employer to all regardless of race, color, creed, national origin, ancestry, sex, marital status, disability, religious or political affiliation, age or sexual orientation.

It is an objective of the state of California to achieve a drug-free state work place. Any applicant for state employment will be expected to behave in accordance with this objective because the use of illegal drugs is inconsistent with the law of the state, the rules governing civil service and the special trust placed in public servants.

Candidates who meet the minimum qualifications as stated below may apply for this examination at any time.  Once you have taken the examination, you may not reapply for six (6) months.  All applicants must meet the education and/or experience requirements as stated on this examination announcement.

Final File Date: Continuous

Where to Apply:

If you have a disability and need special testing arrangements mark the appropriate option on the application and/or contact the testing department.

An open merged eligible list will be established by the State Personnel Board for use by other state departments. The names of successful competitors will be merged onto the eligible list in order of final scores regardless of test date. Eligibility expires 12 months after it is established. Competitors must then retake the Qualifications Assessment to reestablish eligibility.

Once you have taken the Qualifications Assessment, you may not retake it for 6 months.

Please Note:  The Attorney III Specialist [Staff Counsel III (Specialist)] list may be used by departments to fill vacancies in any of the following classifications:

Deputy Attorney III, CalTrans

Deputy Legislative Counsel III

Deputy State Public Defender, Range C

Industrial Relations Counsel III (Specialist)

Labor Relations Counsel III

Public Utilities Counsel III, Public Utilities Counsel

Real Estate Counsel III (Specialist)

Senior Board Counsel, Agricultural Labor Relations Board

Senior Commission Counsel (Specialist), Fair Political Practices Commission

Senior Corporations Counsel (Specialist)

Senior Fair Employment and Housing Counsel (Specialist)

Senior Public Employment Relations Counsel

Tax Counsel III (Specialist)

NOTE:  All applicants must meet the education and/or experience requirements as stated on this examination announcement.

EITHER I

Two years of experience in the California state service performing legal duties* at a level of responsibility equivalent to Staff Counsel, Range D.  (Applicants who have completed 18 months of the required experience will be admitted to the examination, but must complete two years of such experience before they will be eligible for appointment.)
                              

OR II

Broad and extensive experience (more than six years) in the practice of law* 
                                                              
                                                              AND
Experience applicable to one of the above patterns may be combined on a proportional basis with experience applicable to the other to meet the total experience requirement.  Experience in California state service applied toward "Pattern II" must include the same number of years of qualifying experience as required in "Pattern I" performing the duties at a level of responsibility equivalent to that described in "Pattern I".

An Attorney III Specialist [Staff Counsel III (Specialist)] for the State of California independently performs a wide variety of legal work. Attorneys at this level perform the more sensitive and complex legal work of the department in which employed, consistently with favorable results. An Attorney III Specialist [Staff Counsel III (Specialist)] works with broad discretion and independence with a minimum of supervision, and is expected to be expert in the most complex area of the law within a departmental legal program. They perform the more difficult and complex litigation, negotiations, legislative liaisons, hearings, legal researches, and opinion drafting; respond to difficult legal correspondence; develop strategy and tactics in the more complex disputes or litigation; and may act in a lead capacity over lower-level attorney staff. An Attorney III Specialist [Staff Counsel III (Specialist)] does not supervise lower-level attorney staff.

QUALIFICATIONS ASSESSMENT – Weighted 100.00%

The examination will consist of a Qualifications Assessment and is the sole component of the Attorney III Specialist [Staff Counsel III (Specialist)]examination. To obtain a position on the eligible list, a minimum score of 70% must be received. An applicant will receive his/her score upon completion of the Qualifications Assessment.

 Click here to view the Qualifications Assessment questions.  

QUALIFICATIONS ASSESSMENT SCOPE:

 Knowledge of:

1. Available research sources, both printed and electronic, to complete legal research, including what types of material they contain, where they are located, and their breadth, depth, and relative strengths and weaknesses (e.g., primary legal texts, secondary legal texts, and electronic databases).
2. How to conduct legal analysis (e.g., issue-spotting, rule analysis, and applying law to facts) to ensure relevant issues and information are identified and correlated with applicable law, and to aid in predicting the legal outcome.
3. Proper citation formats to identify relevant authority.
4. Professional ethical rules as they relate to the practice of law and particularly the role of public attorneys.
5. Proper spelling, grammar, punctuation, and sentence structure to ensure that written materials prepared and reviewed are complete, and free of errors.

Ability to: 

1. Communicate effectively in writing in a courteous, professional manner with a variety of individuals taking into consideration their needs and using tone, vocabulary, format, and grammar appropriate to the circumstance.
2. Express facts, ideas, and legal arguments in succinct, organized, and accurate reports, correspondence or other job related documents (e.g., legal opinions and arguments, statutory proposals, proposed regulations, requests for discovery, responses to discovery requests, position papers, and correspondence).
3. Independently prepare clear and effective persuasive legal documents (e.g., briefs, motions, and pleadings).
4. Independently prepare clear and effective technical and analytical legal documents (e.g., contracts, settlements, stipulations, memoranda, determination letters, and regulations).
5. Independently produce effective written communication of legal principles, facts, and position(s) for various audiences and forums.
6. Edit written documents for accuracy and effectiveness.
7. Review and/or finalize work products produced by clients, para-professionals, and/or other attorneys.
8. Properly identify legal and procedural issues in assigned matters.
9. Generate and implement solutions to successfully address the issues in assigned matters.
10. Apply the principles and practices of properly conducted legal research, such as ensuring law is current (e.g., "Shepardizing") and checking for recent amendments to statutes.
11. Determine the appropriate amount of time to complete research/investigation.
12. Address necessary details in order to perform work in an accurate, complete, and thorough manner.
13. Assimilate and prioritize large amounts of information and connect that information to one's existing knowledge-base in order to formulate theories and conclusions.
14. Analyze and respond to legal arguments.
15. Analyze information to detect potential logical, legal, and/or factual flaws in arguments or assumptions.
16. Use computers to create documents, conduct research, and communicate appropriately with others.
17. Plan the development of a project, case, or matter.
18. Interview individuals (e.g., potential witnesses, experts) to ascertain relevant factual information.
19. Evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of an individual during an interview or deposition in order to evaluate their potential contribution to the case or matter (e.g., as a witness, consultant, or source of information).
20. Identify and prioritize critical issues to effectively allocate resources to resolve the question or matter.
21. Locate relevant or useful information from a large volume of documents.
22. Summarize relevant facts in order to capture the key points and implications.
23. Exercise sound judgment in decision making.
24. Identify and apply relevant substantive areas of law that apply to public entities (e.g., due process, privacy, and record disclosure laws).
25. Read and comprehend a variety of difficult materials such as local, state, and federal law; critical analyses; dissertations; position papers; technical treatises, etc.
26. Read and comprehend legal documents (e.g., contracts, statutes, regulations, legal rulings, and case law).
27. Negotiate legal issues (e.g., settlements, admissibility of evidence) on behalf of the client and/or agency.
28. Orally communicate information effectively, convincingly, and accurately.
29. Present cases before State and Federal Courts, and administrative agencies or forums.
30. Orally communicate legal principles, facts, and position(s) to various audiences and forums.
31. Treat others with respect, courtesy, and tact.
32. Work independently with minimal contact or reinforcement from supervisors and colleagues while producing high quality work products and meeting deadlines.
33. Interact with and relate effectively to individuals at all levels of an organization.
34. Work collaboratively with others in a team environment.
35. Apply professional ethical rules as they relate to the practice of law and particularly the role of public attorneys.
36. Successfully assist with or complete multiple projects within appropriate time frames while maintaining a high level of work performance.
37. Handle changes in deadlines, assignments, and clients changing their minds.
38. Be flexible and handle unexpected developments such as administrative obstacles and external events that impact current work assignments.
39. Quickly integrate new issues and information with existing knowledge to formulate conclusions.
40. Maintain confidentiality and exercise discretion in the dissemination of information.

Skill to: 

1. Professionally communicate one’s views and opinions on work issues even when they may be different from those expressed by others.
2. Communicate with individuals who are reluctant, afraid, anxious and/or uncooperative, and whose input and/or participation may be needed to complete a work assignment.
3. Listen to others to facilitate an open exchange of ideas and provide for effective communication.

• Employer/employee paid health and dental insurance
• Employer paid vision insurance
• Paid Vacation/Sick/Annual Leave Benefits
• 12 paid holidays
• Employer paid disability insurance
• Defined Benefit Retirement Program (upon vesting)
• Employee paid deferred compensation program (401K and 457)
• Flexible work schedules and work hours
• Pre-tax reimbursement for medical care, child care and parking programs
• Employee Assistance Program
• Career development/professional advancement
• Bar dues paid

Veterans' Preference credits will NOT be granted in the examination as it does not meet the requirements to qualify for Veterans' Preference credit.

Career Credits will not be added to the final score of this examination.

If you have any questions concerning this examination bulletin, please contact:

State Personnel Board

801 Capitol Mall

Sacramento, CA 95814

(866) 844-8671, TTY (916) 654-6336

California Relay Service: 1-800-735-2929 (TTY), 1-800-735-2922 (Voice)

TTY is a Telecommunications Device for the Deaf and is reachable only from phones equipped with a TTY Device.

Applications are available at www.jobs.ca.gov, State Personnel Board offices, local offices of the Employment Development Department and the testing department on this job bulletin.

If you meet the requirements stated on this bulletin, you may take this examination, which is competitive. Possession of the entrance requirement does not assure a place on the eligible list.  Your performance in the examination will be compared with the performance of the others who take this test, and all candidates who pass will be ranked according to their scores.

The State Personnel Board reserves the right to revise the examination plan to better meet the needs of the service, if the circumstances under which this examination was planned change. Such revision will be in accordance with civil service laws and rules and all competitors will be notified.

Candidates needing special testing arrangements due to a disability must mark the appropriate option on the application and/or contact the testing department.

General Qualifications: Candidates must possess essential personal qualifications including integrity, initiative, dependability, good judgment, and ability to work cooperatively with others; and a state of health consistent with the ability to perform the assigned duties of the class. A medical examination may be required. In open examinations, investigation may be made of employment records and personal history and fingerprinting may be required.

Eligible Lists:  Eligible lists established by competitive examination, regardless of date, must be used in the following order: 1) sub-divisional promotional, 2) departmental promotional, 3) multi-departmental promotional, 4) service-wide promotional, 5) departmental open, 6) open. When there are two lists of the same kind, the older must be used first. Eligible lists will expire in one to four years unless otherwise stated on the bulletin.

TTY is Telecommunications Device for the Deaf and is reachable only from phones equipped with a TTY Device.