The San Mateo County Attorney's Office is seeking candidates for the 2026 Michael P. Murphy Public Law Fellowship.
In 2014, the County of San Mateo established a Fellowship position in honor of former San Mateo County Counsel Michael P. Murphy. Mr. Murphy served in the County Counsel’s office from 1982 to 2011, the last four years as County Counsel. Vacancies in Bay Area county counsel offices typically attract many qualified applicants and new attorneys are generally not considered for these positions. This Fellowship provides an opportunity for new attorneys to receive training and experience in advising and litigating on behalf of government agencies as they begin their legal careers.
Attorneys in the San Mateo County Attorney’s Office (previously known as the County Counsel’s Office) are generalists. We provide legal advice to County departments, school districts, and special districts; litigate civil cases in State and Federal courts and before administrative agencies; and manage calendar assignments in Dependency, Probate, Lanterman Petris Short Act, and other specialized areas of law. Fellows are given the opportunity to experience a wide range of public sector work, in litigation, public policy, and advice roles. The goal is to provide each Fellow a year in the life of a Deputy County Attorney.
The one-year Fellowship position is focused on providing opportunities to recent law school graduates and judicial clerks. This Fellowship will begin in the Fall of 2026. Law School graduates who will be sitting for the 2026 July Bar Exam are encouraged to apply.
The annual salary range for the position is $131,673 to $187,860.
To apply, please submit in one combined PDF: a resume, cover letter, writing sample, unofficial transcript, and a list of references to cc_applications@smcgov.org by 11:59 p.m. on September 1, 2025.
Applications will be accepted by email only (cc_applications@smcgov.org).
The Department:
The responsibilities of the City Attorney's Office broadly consist of representing and advising the City Council, City officials, and employees of all City departments in all matters of law pertaining to their offices and departments. This includes appearing on behalf of the City in legal actions or proceedings, providing the City Council with information and advice on wide range of legal matters including litigation and new legislation, and staffing City Council and City Board and Commission meetings as necessary. The City Attorney's Office provides legal advice and support on matters initiated by the City Council, City Manager's Office, and all City departments. Typical work includes research and opinion on various issues; review and negotiation of contracts, leases, or permits; drafting employee policies; review and drafting of resolutions, ordinances, and agenda reports; and preparation of responses to Public Records Act requests.
The Position:
The City is recruiting to fill one (1) Assistant City Attorney position. Ideally, the position will be assigned to act as the primary advisor to the City’s Human Resources Department, with additional general municipal areas of work for other departments including but not limited to finance, governance, conflicts of interest, open meetings, and public records.
The position is expected to perform a wide variety of legal services ranging from litigation (or litigation management) of administrative matters (such as internal disciplinary appeals, PERB UPC charges, and CalPERS determinations) to collective bargaining and MOU review/drafting; legal research and drafting opinions; negotiating contracts; drafting disciplinary documents; drafting resolutions and ordinances; providing on-call legal support to all divisions of the Human Resources Department (records, benefits, testing, classification, labor, workers compensation, recruitment, safety, risk management, etc.); and, staffing commission meetings such as the Civil Service Commission and Salary Setting Commission. This position is also expected to perform other duties as assigned.
The ideal candidate will have superior legal analytical ability and excellent research, writing and oral communication skills and the ability to deal effectively with City employees, opposing counsel, elected and appointed officials, and members of the public.
The ideal candidate will also have experience defending allegations of misconduct in personnel matters, significant experience advising on human resource issues, including Fair Labor Standards Act, Meyers-Milias-Brown Act, labor negotiations, California Public Employees’ Retirement Law, state and federal benefits/leave laws, state and federal employment-related tax laws, and experience providing training in laws, regulations, policies and best practices in personnel management and workplace misconduct
This is a professional position in the Unclassified Service, is an “at-will” position, and the incumbent serves at the discretion of the City Manager. This position is responsible for performing a broad range of duties, which deal with more complex issues. An incumbent in this classification must exercise independent judgment and discretion; manage, control, and direct employees; and formulate administrative policies for the effective use of assigned personnel. The position requires a demonstrated ability to work well with management, professional and administrative support employees in the Office; with clients, professionals, managers, City’s executive management team and all City Departments and elected and appointed officials from the City and various boards, commissions, and committees. An incumbent in this classification must demonstrate strong ethical, professional, and service-oriented leadership and interpersonal skills, set a good example; and correctly apply and abide by the tenets of the City’s Code of Ethics and Values.
This recruitment may be used to fill multiple positions in this, or other divisions or departments. If you are interested in employment in this classification, you should apply to ensure you are considered for additional opportunities that may utilize the applicants from this recruitment.
Additional Information:
Applications must be filled out completely (e.g. do not write “see resume, NA, or personnel file.”). To receive consideration for the screening process, candidates must submit a 1) Cover Letter 2) Resume, and 3) Writing Sample of maximum 5 pages (appropriate examples would be a staff report, public legal memo, redacted memo). Incomplete applications will not be considered.
Application packets may be submitted online through the “Apply Now” feature on the job announcement at www.santaclaraca.gov. This job posting is open until filled: Applications will be reviewed on a monthly basis. If you are interested in applying you are encouraged to apply as soon as possible, before the posting is closed, which may happen at any time.
THIS RECRUITMENT MAY BE USED TO FILL MULTIPLE POSITIONS IN THIS, OR OTHER DIVISIONS OR DEPARTMENTS BESIDES THE POSITIONS LISTED BELOW. IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN EMPLOYMENT IN THIS CLASSIFICATION, YOU SHOULD APPLY TO ENSURE YOU ARE CONSIDERED FOR ADDITIONAL OPPORTUNITIES THAT MAY UTILIZE THE APPLICANTS FROM THIS RECRUITMENT. MEETING THE MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS DOES NOT GUARANTEE ADMITTANCE INTO THE EXAMINATION PROCESS. ONLY THE MOST QUALIFIED CANDIDATES WHO DEMONSTRATE THE BEST COMBINATION OF QUALIFICATIONS IN RELATION TO THE REQUIREMENTS AND DUTIES OF THE POSITION WILL BE INVITED TO TEST OR INTERVIEW.
The annual salary range for this position is $213,185.04 - $275,895.96. This position will be filled at or near the minimum of the salary range.
Minimum Qualifications
EXPERIENCE
• J.D. or L.L.B. from an accredited law school;
• Six (6) years recent experience in the general practice of law. Four (4) years of the qualifying experience must include dealing with municipal, county or state governmental agencies in the State of California;
• One year of supervisory experience is desirable; and
• Trial experience is highly desirable.
CERTIFICATION
• Active member in good standing of the State Bar of California is required;
• Admission to the Federal District Court and Federal Appeals Court Bar is desirable.
LICENSE:
Possession of an appropriate California driver's license is required.
OTHER REQUIREMENTS
Must be able to perform all of the essential functions of the job.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST
Incumbents in this position are required to file a Conflict of Interest statement upon assuming office, annually and upon leaving office, in accordance with City Manager Directive 100.
