Public Defender
: Job Details :

DEPUTY PUBLIC DEFENDER ATTORNEY I, II, III As a result of the Board approval on all OCAA-represented classifications will be receiving a negotiated salary increase (NSI) of 4.00% effective June 27, 2025. SALARY INFORMATION Attorney I............... $7,748.00 up to $9,366.93/Mo Attorney II.............. $9,061.87 up to $10,100.13/Mo Attorney III............. $10,370.53 up to $14,362.40/Mo Salary may be negotiable within the range listed above, based on position requirements and successful candidate's qualifications, subject to appropriate authorization. BILINGUAL PAY An additional $0.20 per hour is paid for this position to bilingual employees ( fluently speak, read, and write) in Spanish or Vietnamese (in addition to English). Employees must pass the bilingual exam and be certified to be eligible for supplemental pay. Open to the Public This recruitment is being held to establish an open eligible list to fill current and future Deputy Public Defender Attorney I, II, and III positions. The Public Defender will fill vacancies from the eligible list established from this recruitment. Online applications will be accepted beginning on Fri day, July 19, 2024. This recruitment will remain open on a continuous basis until 11:59 p.m. (PST) on the day the needs of the department are met. Qualified applicants are encouraged to apply immediately for priority consideration. TO BE CONSIDERED DURING THE FIRST ROUND OF CONSIDERATION, PLEASE SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION BY: Sun d ay, July 28, 2024, at 11:59 p.m. (PST). Offices of the Public Defender The Orange County Public Defender's Office is a law firm of highly dedicated and skilled attorneys, investigators, paralegals, and support staff who work to protect the Constitutional rights for all citizens while representing individual clients with zealous advocacy, respect for their dignity, and compassion. The principal role of the Offices of the Public Defender is to provide each client with high quality representation, thereby protecting their constitutional rights and liberties. In advancing the cause of these clients, the dedicated lawyers and support staff are on the front lines protecting the precious rights and privileges of all Orange County residents. In addition to clients in criminal cases, counsel is appointed to represent children in Juvenile Court Delinquency cases, parents in Dependency cases, and a variety of persons in Mental Health cases. Please click HERE for more information. The Opportunity As a Deputy Public Defender you will enforce and protect the Constitutional rights, privileges and freedoms of individuals by providing the highest quality legal advocacy for all clients in the Courts of Orange County, which in turn helps protect those important rights for all County residents. The assignment may be at any of our various locations or units and will include criminal, mental health, and dependency cases. This is an in-person assignment, and the duties cannot be performed remotely/virtually. Are You An attorney who would like to learn to be a skilled trial lawyer? A caring, empathetic humanitarian who would like a job that provides you with great personal fulfillment? Able to effectively communicate with a judge, district attorney and a jury? A team player who has a zeal for the freedoms guaranteed by our Constitution? An individual who can deliver the mission of the Offices of the Public Defender in an ethical and responsible manner? The Ideal Candidate The ideal candidate will be an attorney who is passionate about the law and has a desire to become a skilled trial litigant. The candidate will possess strong ethical standards, good organizational skills, and an unwavering commitment to provide the best legal representation for their clients. In addition to the minimum qualifications for Deputy Public Defender Attorney I, II, III, the ideal candidate will have attorney experience in the practice of criminal law with experience in litigation and trial work. Veterans Employment Preference Policy, Effective 09/15/2020 The County is committed to providing a mechanism to give preferential consideration in the employment process to veterans and their eligible spouses and will provide eligible participants the opportunity to receive interviews in the selection process for employment and paid internship openings. Please click here to review the policy. Minimum Qualifications ATTORNEY I Knowledge of Legal principles and their application Rules of evidence and the conduct of court proceedings Legal research methods Criminal/Civil Legal Processes Ability to Analyze legal problems and apply legal principles and practices in court Prepare legal documents such as pleadings, briefs and depositions Present statements of fact, law and argument clearly and logically in written and oral form Perform legal research Work cooperatively with others Conduct criminal and/or civil court trials, jury trials, depositions and hearings Experience None required License Required MUST be an active member of the State Bar of California and eligible to practice law in the State of California. OR Candidates who will sit for the July 2024 California Bar Examination or recently sat for the July 2024 California Bar Examination and are awaiting results are eligible to apply. An active California State Bar membership and eligibility to practice law in the State of California must be attained by date of appointment and maintained throughout employment. AND Possession of a California Class C Driver License or the ability to use an alternative method of transportation to carry out the essential functions of the job. Click HERE to read the complete job classification for Attorney I. ATTORNEY II Knowledge of The duties, powers, limitations and responsibilities of the Public Defender's Office Federal and California statutes The organization, powers and limitations of county government functions and of the California Constitution Legal principles and their applications Rules of evidence and conduct of court proceedings Penal Code of California and/or California civil and legislative law Legal research methods Ability to Prepare, present and conduct cases of law in court Prepare legal documents such as pleadings, briefs and depositions Analyze legal problems and apply legal principles and practices Present statement of fact, law and argument clearly and logically in written and oral form Effectively perform legal research Work cooperatively with others Conduct criminal and/or civil court trials, jury trials and hearings Experience Twelve (12) months of experience as an attorney in the practice of criminal law. Post-Bar experience in a civil or general practice law office may be substituted for the criminal experience on a two-month for one-month basis. License Required MUST be an active member of the State Bar of California and eligible to practice law in the State of California. OR Members in good standing of California State Bar and have been assigned a license number, but have inactive membership status are also welcome to apply. An active California State Bar membership and eligibility to practice law in the State of California must be attained by date of appointment and maintained throughout employment. AND Possession of a California Class C Driver License or the ability to use an alternative method of transportation to carry out the essential functions of the job. Click HERE to read the complete job classification for Attorney II. ATTORNEY III Knowledge of The duties, powers, limitations and responsibilities of the Public Defender's Office The organization, powers and limitations of county government functions and of the California Constitution Federal and California statutes Legal principles and their application Rules of evidence and conduct of court proceedings Penal Code of California and/or California civil and legislative law Legal research methods Criminal/Civil Legal Processes Ability to Prepare, present and conduct cases of law in court Prepare legal documents such as pleadings, briefs and depositions Analyze legal problems and apply legal principals and practices Present statements, of fact, law and argument clearly and logically in written and oral format Effectively perform legal research Work cooperatively with others Work independently on all but the most complex assignments Conduct criminal and/or civil court trials, jury trials and hearings Experience Two (2) years of experience as an attorney in the practice of criminal law. Post-Bar experience in a civil or general practice law office may be substituted for the criminal experience on a two-month for one-month basis. License Required MUST be an active member of the State Bar of California and eligible to practice law in the State of California. OR Members in good standing of California State Bar and have been assigned a license number, but have inactive membership status are also welcome to apply. An active California State Bar membership and eligibility to practice law in the State of California must be attained by date of appointment and maintained throughout employment. AND Possession of a California Class C Driver License or the ability to use an alternative method of transportation to carry out the essential functions of the job. Click HERE to read the complete job classification for Attorney III. Please note: Years of experience are calculated based upon the work rate of 40 hours per week. In addition, the program does not allow you to revise your application and/or add attachments after submitting. Special Requirements Appointees must pass a background investigation to the satisfaction of the County of Orange Public Defender's Office. (for all levels) BACKGROUND VERIFICATION/ SANCTION SCREENING All employment offers are contingent upon successful completion of a background check consisting of employment history, professional references, conviction history, criminal check and education verification (i.e., certificate, degree, license, and official transcript). State Bar membership must be attained and candidates will be required to provide proof of successful admission to the State Bar of California prior to appointment/conditional job offer. Candidates will be required to pass the background check to the satisfaction of the hiring Agency/Department, including a fingerprint check though Live Scan. Applicants will also be required to answer a conviction questionnaire as part of the background process. A clean driving record may be required while employed in this classification (see minimum qualifications and classification description for required license). Note: Foreign degrees require an evaluation of U.S. equivalency by an agency that is a member of the National Association of Credential Services (N.A.C.E.S.). Physical and Mental Requirements and Environmental Conditions The County of Orange is committed to providing a means for applicants who may have a disability to identify areas in which they may request a reasonable accommodation. The following is a description of the physical and mental abilities which are customarily required to perform the essential job functions of this position. Applicants are encouraged to contact the recruiter listed below for any questions or to request an accommodation during the testing/selection process. Ph ysical Characteristics : Vision sufficient to read standard text and read a computer monitor; speak and hear well enough to communicate clearly and understandably in person, over the telephone, and in small groups; independent body mobility sufficient to stand, sit, walk, stoop and bend to access a standard office and courtroom environment; manual dexterity to use hands, arms, and shoulders repetitively to operate a keyboard and to write; body strength sufficient to lift and carry files; possess the ability to independently reason logically to reach conclusions and make recommendations; possess the ability to remain calm and appropriately focused in rapidly changing situations involving interpersonal conflict and with complex issues; possess the ability to interact with the public in emotional and occasionally hostile situations. Ability to drive the distance between work locations. Environmental Conditions : Emotional stamina to maintain working relationships while under the pressure of deadlines. Will be required to interact with varying levels of organizational hierarchy and varying educational levels; will be required to interact with persons of diverse backgrounds and educational levels including in-custody defendants, victims, witnesses, persons having interest in criminal cases and varying levels of other governmental organizations; work in an office environment; interact with the public in emotional and occasionally hostile situations; work with changing deadlines and competing priorities. RECRUITMENT PROCESS/SELECTION PROCEDURES Application Screening (Refer/Non-Refer) Public Defender Human Resources screens all application materials to identify candidates with qualities that meet minimum and/or desirable qualifications. Application materials and supplemental responses will be screened to identify qualifications that are highly desirable and most needed to successfully perform the duties of this position based on the skills required to meet the needs of the County. Only those applicants that meet the qualifications as listed in the job bulletin will be referred to the next step and notified of all further procedures applicable to their status in the competition. Structured Oral Interview | Structured Oral Examination (Weighted 100%) Candidates will be interviewed and rated by a panel of job knowledge experts. Each candidate's rating will be based on responses to a series of structured questions designed to elicit the candidate's qualifications for the job. The evaluation is solely based on the candidate's responses to the structured questions; therefore, candidates should be thorough, detailed, and complete when responding to the structured questions. Please note that the panel will also be evaluating oral communication skills. This is a competitive process. Only the most successful candidates will be placed on the eligible list. ELIGIBLE LIST After the competitive procedures listed above have been completed, an eligible list of qualified candidates will be established. Candidates will be notified of their standing. Candidates placed on the eligible list may be referred to a selection interview to be considered for present and future vacancies. Please note: To ensure case confidentiality, please do not provide specific identifying case names and/or case numbers within the application, all supplemental responses and in all attachments to the application. Based on the Agency/Department's needs, modification to the selection procedure listed above may occur. If changes in the selection procedure should occur, all candidates will receive notification. QUESTIONS For specific information pertaining to this recruitment, please contact Christine Reese at (657) ###-####. INTERESTED? Apply online as only online applications will be accepted. Your application should highlight all of the areas in which you have developed expertise, matching your professional experience with the specific qualifications listed above. In the job experience section of the application, it is imperative that you include the company name and address, position held, employment dates, full-time or part-time, duties and reason for leaving. All this information must be included for each job listed. Applicants are required to answer supplemental questions in addition to completing the online application. Note: We suggest you prepare the supplemental answers offline so you do not lose your Internet connection. Once you have completed the answers offline, copy and paste your answers in the appropriate boxes. Please note : To ensure you submit your application before the 11:59 p.m. (PST) deadline, the submit button MUST be clicked before the deadline and please ensure your computer time/clock is set to the correct time. EMPLOYEE BENEFITS FOR PROSPECTIVE EMPLOYEES The County of Orange provides a comprehensive, balanced, and competitive benefits package as part of the employee total compensation. The County offers a competitive benefits package which includes a choice of several health plans, annual leave (includes paid vacation) and paid holidays. Additionally, the County provides a retirement plan. Participation in a deferred compensation plan is available. For detailed information on benefits click here. RETIREMENT RECIPROCITY Current employed members of accepted reciprocal systems who have not retired from those systems, may be eligible for reciprocity. For detailed information on OCERS retirement click here. ORANGE COUNTY AMENITIES: 24 Parks and Trails : OC Parks & Trails 17 Beaches/Harbors: OC Beaches 7 Historical Sites: OC Historic Sites EMAIL NOTIFICATION: Email is the primary form of notification during the recruitment process. Please ensure your correct email address is included in our application and use only one email account. NOTE: User accounts are established for one person only and should not be shared with another person. Multiple applications with multiple users may jeopardize your status in the recruitment process for any positions for which you apply. Candidates will be notified regarding their status as the recruitment proceeds via email through the GovernmentJobs.com site. Please check your email folders, including spam/junk folders, and/or accept emails ending with governmentjobs.com and ocgov.com. If your email address should change, please update your profile at www.governmentjobs.com. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS: Click here for additional Frequently Asked Questions. For additional information regarding employment with the County of Orange, please visit OC Human Resource Services. Orange County, as an equal employment opportunity employer, encourages applicants from diverse backgrounds to apply.