Work is performed under the supervision of the Managing Attorney or his or her designee.
Guardian ad Litem Attorneys are assigned by the Office to represent children and work as part of a multi-disciplinary team, representing each child with a focus on timely achievement of permanency and normalcy for the child.
The work involves contact with people in stressful situations, and the incumbent must exercise discretion in dealing with confidential and extremely sensitive issues before the court.
The incumbent reviews case files to identify legal issues, conducts an independent investigation of the facts of the case, researches and develops legal strategies for the cases, files pleadings, and motions, and attends court proceedings including, but not limited to, hearings, depositions, and mediations, and meets with Guardian ad Litem staff, witnesses, collateral contacts pertinent to the case, and the children represented by the Office.
The Senior Attorney represents, advocates, and negotiates for the assigned children inside and outside the courtroom.
Senior Attorneys assist other Guardian ad Litem Attorneys in developing and implementing case strategies.
The incumbent also performs other duties assigned by management.
Requirements
Possession of legal skills and knowledge sufficient to represent the children appointed to the Office as evidenced by admission to The Florida Bar.
Ability to advocate effectively in court on behalf of the child.
Knowledge of juvenile law, including relevant rules of procedure and evidence, and guardian ad litem legal representation for children.
Ability to communicate effectively and deal tactfully with individuals involved in litigation and stressful situations.
Ability to work with individuals from culturally and economically diverse backgrounds.
Ability to utilize a personal computer, including software programs such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook.
Benefits
State of Florida Retirement package – Pension or investment plan (3% employee contribution required)
(9) Paid state holidays
(1) Paid personal holiday
(13) Paid sick leave days
(176) Annual leave hours
Life insurance $25,000 is provided by the state at no cost to you for all FTE positions.
Employee may purchase additional coverage
Additional supplemental insurances are available such as dental, vision, disability, etc.
Florida Bar annual dues are paid for by the Agency, contingent upon agency approval
Public Loan Forgiveness Program
No State of Florida income tax for residents of Florida
No mandatory night/weekend/holiday scheduled work
State Tuition Waiver Program
Introductory training on guardianship practice, dependency law and practice fundamentals as well as best practice guidance for attorneys communicating with and representing children.
Ongoing live in-person trainings and webinars on case law, evidence, legal writing, trial skills, and ethics which fulfills CLE requirements.
Annual advanced litigation skills training.
Online training academy with a catalog of introductory and advanced courses on topics to include dependency law, child abuse and neglect, substance abuse, psychotropic medications, independent living, developmental disabilities, trauma, human trafficking, educational advocacy, and more.
Legal & Compliance Intern supporting contract reviews and compliance policies at Bureau Veritas in Peru. Opportunity to work in a diverse and inclusive environment fostering positive impact.
Legal professional supporting M&A and corporate law matters for Trendyol's international businesses. Collaborating with teams for high - quality legal execution and compliance.
Represent mortgage lenders and investor clients in GA judicial residential foreclosure. Manage court appearances and communicate with clients on case resolutions.
Staff Attorney providing direct immigration legal services to low - income clients affected by HIV. Ensuring access to justice through trauma - informed, culturally competent legal support.
Litigation Associate Attorney providing legal counsel in coverage and bad faith cases for a diverse civil litigation law firm. Seeking dedicated individuals with strong work ethic and attention to detail.
Compliance Professional supporting due diligence and compliance risk assessments at Nokia. Managing critical compliance programs while adhering to ethical standards and corporate policies.
Summer legal intern supporting Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office with public interest legal work. Engaging in networking and training activities for law students during the 10 - week program.
Machine Learning Intern improving AI functionalities in a leading SaaS legal tech company. Working on model architecture, fine - tuning, and optimizing AI pipelines with high - quality datasets.
Machine Learning Intern joining Legal Tech company DiliTrust, working on agentic knowledge retrieval systems. Focusing on integrating heterogeneous data types into multi - layer knowledge graphs.
Director of Legal Technology at Harbor, establishing a team and office in the Philippines. Leading operations for legal technology and applications management services.