SPEC: DEPUTY ATTORNEY, CALTRANS CALIFORNIA STATE PERSONNEL BOARD SPECIFICATION DEPUTY ATTORNEY, CALTRANS Series Specification (Established October 22, 1970) SCOPE The classes in this series are used in the Department of Transportation to perform a wide variety of legal work concerned with the preparation and trial of cases arising in connection with the work of the Department; preparing and presenting briefs in the appellate courts; drafting and analyzing proposed legislation and representing the Department before legislative committees; performing legal research; preparation and approval of contract specifications, construction contracts and conveyances; preparing legal opinions and conferring with officers of the Department; conferring with property owners and their attorneys, and negotiating settlements on legal problems; drafting and analyzing rules and regulations. The series includes classes which are primarily nonsupervisory in nature. The series is available for use only in the Department of Transportation. Entry into this class series requires membership in The California State Bar. The class Graduate Legal Assistant, which requires eligibility to take The California State Bar examination, is also used to recruit those interested in pursuing legal careers in the State service. Schem Class Code Code Class OO47 5779 Deputy Attorney, Caltrans OO40 5789 Deputy Attorney III, Caltrans OO35 5788 Deputy Attorney IV, Caltrans DEFINITION OF SERIES ALL LEVELS: All levels in this series generally perform similar duties. Differences between classes are essentially differences in the level of service and expertise incumbents can be expected to provide and in the difficulty of assignments which they receive. DEPUTY ATTORNEY, CALTRANS This is a recruitment and developmental class for persons qualified to practice law in the State of California. Incumbents assigned to Range A perform the least difficult professional legal work in the Department of Transportation. Based upon the appropriate alternate range criteria, incumbents advance to Range B, C, and D and are assigned progressively more difficult professional legal work as their competence increases. Incumbents assigned to Range D are assigned the more complex and sensitive legal work in this class. DEPUTY ATTORNEY III, CALTRANS Incumbents in this class are well-experienced attorneys who have developed the expertise necessary to capably perform the most complex and sensitive legal work of the Department of Transportation on an independent basis. A Deputy Attorney III, Caltrans, is usually assigned only the most important legal work such as: (a) condemnation and inverse condemnation, tort liability, construction contract, or other cases which involve a substantial sum; or (b) litigation having unusually important new points of law; or (c) legal research, counseling, or negotiation work on unusually complex problems that have far-reaching implications on the statewide program of the Department. They may work in a lead capacity over the work of other attorneys. DEPUTY ATTORNEY IV, CALTRANS Incumbents in this class are very experienced attorneys who are experts in a broad or specialized area of law and have demonstrated their ability to independently perform assignments consisting of the most complex and sensitive legal work in the Department of Transportation and consistently produce the most favorable results on these projects. A Deputy Attorney IV, Caltrans, is assigned only the most important legal work such as: (a) complex condemnation and inverse condemnation, tort liability, construction contract, or other cases which involve a very substantial sum; or (b) litigation having exceptionally important new points of law; or (c) legal research, counseling, or negotiation work on problems which are exceptionally complex that have far-reaching implications on the statewide program of the Department. They may work in a lead capacity over the work of other attorneys. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS Experience applicable to one of the following patterns may be combined on a proportional basis with experience applicable to the other to meet the total experience requirements. 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". In addition, all candidates must have active membership in The California State Bar. DEPUTY ATTORNEY, CALTRANS Membership in The California State Bar. (Applicants must have active membership in The California State Bar before they will be eligible for appointment. Applicants who are not members of The California State Bar but who are eligible to take The California State Bar examination will be admitted to the examination but will not be considered eligible for appointment until they are admitted to The California State Bar.) DEPUTY ATTORNEY III, CALTRANS Either I Two years of experience in the California state service performing legal duties* at a level of responsibility equivalent to that of Deputy Attorney, Caltrans, 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 five years) in the practice of civil law*, at least three years of which shall have included functioning in a lead capacity involved in complex litigation including extensive appellate practice before State and Federal appellate courts. DEPUTY ATTORNEY IV, CALTRANS Four years of experience in the California state service performing legal duties* at a level of responsibility equivalent to that of Deputy Attorney III, Caltrans. (Applicants who have completed three years and six months of the required experience will be admitted to the examination but must complete four years of such experience before they will be eligible for appointment.) KNOWLEDGE AND ABILITIES ALL LEVELS: Knowledge of: Legal principles and practices with particular reference to the law of eminent domain, public tort liability, contracts, and laws governing public officers and agencies; State Contract Act and the statutes and constitutional provisions governing the organization and conduct of the work of the Department of Transportation; law relating to public highways; Federal Highways Act and other Federal aid statutes relating to highways; California law relating to acquisition, financing, administration, and construction of toll bridges; law governing the relations of the Department of Transportation with public utilities and public agencies; trial and appellate court procedure and of the rules of evidence; methods used in appraising real property and of the problems involved in negotiating for rights of way; safety, health, affirmative action and labor relations and the processes available to meet these program objectives. Ability to: Prepare and conduct actions and proceedings before courts and administrative bodies; analyze and appraise legal problems and apply legal principles and precedents to particular sets of facts; plan and direct a program of complex legal work and direct the work of assistants; write clear and concise reports and opinions and dictate difficult legal correspondence; present oral statements of fact, law, and argument clearly and logically; maintain the confidence and respect of members of the legal profession and other persons; effectively contribute to the Department's safety, health, affirmative action and labor relations objectives. A greater degree of these Knowledge and Abilities is required at each higher level. * Experience in the "practice of law" or "performing legal duties" is defined as only that legal experience acquired after admission to The State Bar. CLASS HISTORY Date Date Title Class Established Revised Changed Deputy Attorney, Caltrans 12/17/85 -- -- Deputy Attorney III, Caltrans 8/2/52 12/17/85 12/17/85 Deputy Attorney IV, Caltrans 10/22/70 12/17/85 12/17/85