EL1 - Senior Lawyer, Real Property, Commercial

at  Australian Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development

THE OPPORTUNITY WE HAVE AVAILABLE

The Legal Services Commercial Law team, which is part of the Legal, FOI & Privacy Division, is seeking experienced (EL1 level, 5+ years PQE), dynamic and talented real property lawyers to join our growing legal team. With strong technical legal abilities and commercial acumen, our ideal candidate will have excellent written/oral communication and interpersonal skills and a proactive/enquiring mindset to enable and deliver on the real property focused aspects of the Division’s legal services.
Reporting to the Principal Lawyer – Real Property (EL2), these newly created roles will collaborate with other lawyers to deliver outcomes as part of a high performing legal team managing a diverse portfolio of matters that are crucial to the wellbeing of every Australian and the prosperity of the nation. This is an opportunity to advance your career and/or gain experience working in the Australian Public Service, working with high profile stakeholders.
The Commercial Law team provides a broad range of legal services to the Department (including to support the delivery of major projects such as Western Sydney Airport, Moorebank Intermodal Freight Terminal and WestConnex).

Particular areas of focus for the team, include:

• major infrastructure projects, including air, road and rail;
• regional development initiatives;
• support for the administration of offshore non-self-governing Australian territories;
• communications services;
• broader corporate and procurement services for the Department; and
• surface transport matters, including aviation, maritime and road transport.

The current organisational structure for the Department which sets out the divisions and branches can be found here.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

Employment with the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts is subject to conditions prescribed within the Public Service Act 1999 including:

• Citizenship: To be eligible for employment with the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts applicants must be an Australian citizen at the time of submitting an application.
• Health Assessment: The preferred applicant may be required to undergo a medical examination conducted by the department’s preferred medical provider.
• Security Clearance: The successful candidate must be able to obtain and/or maintain a security clearance at Baseline Level. You must be willing to disclose all relevant and required information. You must have lived in Australia, or have a checkable background, for at least the preceding five years for Baseline Vetting clearances. More information on the security clearance vetting process is available on the Australian Government Security Vetting Agency (AGSVA) website.
• Qualifications: Tertiary degree in law from an Australian tertiary institution, or a comparable overseas qualification which is appropriate to the duties of the position.
• Admission as a legal practitioner, however described, of the High Court or of the Supreme Court of an Australian State or Territory or have completed and satisfied all requirements to be eligible for admission.

HOW TO APPLY

Applications for this opportunity close at 11:59pm (AEST) on Sunday, 8 September 2024.
In applying for this position, you are not required to address individual selection criteria. Rather, you should provide a statement of no more than two (2) pages outlining your background, capabilities and experiences, and how these align with the advertised role. You should also provide a CV, no more than five (5) pages. The capabilities and behaviours required to be successful for this role are identified in the ‘Who are we looking for’ section.
Your application will be assessed against the requirements of the job. Once the entire applicant pool has been assessed, the panel will create a shortlist of applicants. If your application is shortlisted, you may be asked to undertake further assessment, this may include work sample testing, interviews, and reference checks.
Your application should be received through the Department’s online recruitment system. Applications via Indeed will not be accepted.
If you experience any issues with the system please contact the recruitment team on 02 6274 6161 or via email at recruitment@infrastructure.gov.au to discuss an alternative way to submit your application.
Please advise the contact officer if you require reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process. The Department is committed to the accessibility of our systems. If you identify as someone with disability and you require accessibility assistance or more information, please email DiversityandInclusion@infrastructure.gov.au

Working closely with the Principal Lawyer – Real Property and the General Counsel you will be responsible for:

• proactively identifying legal risks and providing timely and effective legal advice/solutions to the Department and a range of internal and external stakeholders;
• carriage of, and providing strategic and technically sound legal advice on real property related aspects of commercial law matters to enable the Department to assess legal risks and make sound decisions on contractual and commercial matters;
• drafting, reviewing and negotiating a range of real property related contracts, correspondence and project agreements (including agreements for lease, leases, licences, easements, covenants, contracts for sale);
• developing and maintaining (through periodic/ongoing review) the Department’s real property related precedents;
• partnering with internal stakeholders to inform, design and deliver effective and efficient legal solutions that meet the Department’s requirements;
• mentoring and guiding junior members of the Commercial Law team;
• overseeing the efficient and value for money delivery of external legal service providers who may be appointed to assist with matters from time to time; and
• contributing to organisational level continuous improvement and skills/capacity building initiatives, including by delivering internal training to the Department on commercial law related issues from time to time.