Assistant City Attorney

The City of Champaign seeks experienced candidates for the position of Assistant City Attorney in the Legal Department.  In this position, you will join an in-house legal team that works closely with all City Departments in a wide variety of areas.  The City has a Council-Manager form of government.

Responsibilities of Position

Responsibilities include, but are not limited to: advising government officials regarding areas of local government law including: Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and Open Meetings Act (OMA); managing, evaluating, and litigating cases, including ordinance enforcement, small claims, workers’ compensation, and civil rights defense; evaluating and preparing written legal opinions; preparing and reviewing legal documents, including those related to contracts, legislation, real estate, and other areas of municipal regulation; contract development, review, and negotiation, including labor negotiations; real estate transactional work; and supervising or managing employees.

The annual starting salary range is $99,584 – $113,318, DOQ, plus an excellent fringe benefits package.  Applications, including cover letter (required) and resume (optional), must be submitted online to champaignil.gov/jobs no later than Sunday, September 24, 2023. 

The City’s mission is to provide responsive, caring, cost-effective service in partnership with our community. The following values guide our work: Personal Integrity, Responsibility, Respect, Teamwork, and Results. The City of Champaign is committed to promoting a work environment and a community that values and supports diversity and inclusion. The City of Champaign is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Women, minorities, and individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

Required Qualifications

• Licensed to practice law in the State of Illinois.
• Superior interpersonal, oral, and written communication skills.
• Legal research expertise.
• Experience in civil or criminal practice areas.

Preferred Qualifications

• Substantial experience in government law at the state, federal, or local level.
• Legal experience in a broad range of civil areas.
• Transactional skills in negotiating and drafting of contracts.
• Broad range of skills in real estate, development, and eminent domain.
• Experience in ordinance prosecution and/or other high volume litigation areas (e.g., collections, criminal).
• Experience with building safety/code compliance prosecution or defense.
• Litigation experience including civil or administrative litigation (including workers’ compensation and civil appeals).
• In-house legal experience.

Drug screening and criminal background check will be required.