Counsel

Energy Northwest

Richland, WA

JOB DETAILS
SALARY
$162,274–$243,412 Per Year
SKILLS
Attorney, Budget Management, Budgeting, Contract Management, Emergency Response, Environmental Issues, Legal, Legal Support Skills, Licensing, Litigation, Negotiation Skills, Paralegal, Performance Metrics, Purchasing/Procurement, Regulations, Regulatory Compliance, Strategic Planning, Team Player, Time Management, Transaction Processing/Management
LOCATION
Richland, WA
POSTED
28 days ago
GENERAL SUMMARY


The Senior Counsel reports directly to the Legal Services Supervisor. This position provides legal advice, counsel and services to all organizations within Energy Northwest regarding a wide range of activities without significant oversight. In addition to providing legal services to the company, primary responsibilities include ensuring procedural and legal compliance in a number of regulatory areas such as environmental, nuclear, ethics, industrial safety, procurement, Washingtons State Public Records Act (PRA), employment and managing major contractual transactions and litigation without significant day-to-day supervision.


PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTABILITIES


NOTE: Percentages allotted to job functions vary depending on workload and current assignments.


+ Provide legal support and advice with respect to nuclear licensing and nuclear regulatory compliance issues, including but not limited to Nuclear Regulatory Commission investigations and enforcement matters.

+ Negotiate, draft and review a wide variety of diverse contracts, leases, waivers, and other agreements on behalf of Energy Northwest with limited oversight or supervision.

+ Provide legal support in a number of regulatory areas such as environmental, ethics, industrial safety, and employment, including but not limited to attending meetings and interfacing with all levels of staff at Energy Northwest.

+ Establish and maintain programmatic and procedural guidance for implementation of the PRA including oversight of the Paralegal in analyzing and evaluating PRA requests, determining responsive records, establishing search criteria. Oversee the Paralegal’s work to ensure timely communication with requesters to establish commitments. Oversee the Paralegal’s work with office(s) of records to obtain responsive records within commitment timeframes. Provide legal review and support of PRA responses.

+ Protect Energy Northwest’s financial and legal interests by initiating and/or defending Energy Northwest in contract claims, contract requests for equitable adjustments, lawsuits, administrative hearings, administrative investigations, and/or directing the conduct of such litigation by outside counsel.

+ Provide legal advice to Energy Northwest staff and governing boards on both policy and operation level matters on an ongoing basis.

+ Prepare budgets for significant transactional matters and litigation and assure that, to the extent practicable, those matters are conducted within budget.

+ Team participant in strategic development of energy transactions.

+ Must participate on the Emergency Response team (ERO) when designated.

+ Must support the biennial refueling outage.


REQUIRED EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE


Senior Counsel


+ Requires a Juris Doctorate (JD) degree from an accredited law school and seven years of aggregate experience practicing as an attorney. A record of continual learning and training and the ability to obtain license through the Washington State Bar Association (WSBA) by Motion within one year.

+ Must meet and maintain nuclear requirements for Unescorted Plant Access.

+ At least two or more years previous legal experience at a law firm, municipality, or public utility district doing legal work related to one or more of the following areas: employment, contracts, litigation, environmental, and energy transactions.


Staff Counsel II


+ Requires a Juris Doctorate (JD) degree from an accredited law school and five years of aggregate experience practicing as an attorney. A record of continual learning and training and the ability to obtain license through the Washington State Bar Association (WSBA) by Motion within one year.

+ Must meet and maintain nuclear requirements for Unescorted Plant Access.

+ At least two or more years previous legal experience at a law firm, municipality, or public utility district doing legal work related to one or more of the following areas: employment, contracts, litigation, environmental, and energy transactions.





Staff Counsel I


+ Requires a Juris Doctorate (JD) degree from an accredited law school and two years of aggregate experience practicing as an attorney. A record of continual learning and training and the ability to obtain license through the Washington State Bar Association (WSBA) by Motion within one year.

+ Must meet and maintain nuclear requirements for Unescorted Plant Access.

+ At least two or more years of previous legal experience at a law firm, municipality, or the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, doing legal work related to one or more of the following areas: employment, nuclear, contracts, litigation, environmental, energy transactions.


PAY RANGE


Senior Counsel Salary: $162,274 - $243,412


Midpoint: $202,843





Staff Counsel II Salary: $141,070 - $211,604


Midpoint: $176,337


Staff Counsel I Salary: $122,681 - $184,021


Midpoint: $153,351​


Typically, selected candidates are hired between the minimum and midpoint of the range, based on applicable experience and qualifications, market rate, internal equity, and budgetary allowances.


Offers will be negotiated based on each candidate's qualifications.


INCENTIVE COMPENSATION


This role is eligible to participate in our annual incentive plan. Incentives are earned based on employee performance against defined metrics and company goals.


BENEFITS


Energy Northwest (EN) provides a phenomenal benefits package. Washington State also has no state income tax, and the Tri-Cities provides a cost-of-living lower than the national average.


EN offers substantial retirement benefits through three retirement programs including the Washington State Public Employees' Retirement System pension plan (PERS), a 401(k) savings plan with an employer match component, and a 457(b) savings plan. EN also offers multiple options for medical, dental, vision, disability and life insurance coverage. Other voluntary benefits may include flexible spending accounts (FSAs), tuition reimbursement, student loan repayment, childcare subsides, health reimbursement arrangement (HRA VEBA), health savings account (HSA), supplemental life insurances, credit monitoring/identity theft insurance, and more! Qualifying employees will typically start a personal time accrual rate of 160 hours per year and EN provides nine paid holidays throughout the Calander year; personal time accruals grow significantly at various service intervals.


We are an Equal Opportunity Employer and do not discriminate due to race, color, age, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, ethnicity, religion, national origin, veteran status or on the basis of disability.


EEO is the law, click here to learn more (http://www.energy-northwest.com/whoweare/joinourteam/Documents/EEO%20is%20the%20Law%20poster.pdf) .

About the Company

E

Energy Northwest

Energy Northwest produces reliable, affordable, environmentally responsible electric power and delivers it to Northwest public power utilities at the cost of production. Formed as a joint operating agency in 1957, the organization was created to serve the needs of public power by producing reliable, low-cost electricity while promoting public power activities in the region. Today the joint operating agency membership includes nearly every public power utility district in the state and several municipalities. The agency owns and operates four electricity generating facilities: White Bluffs Solar Station, Packwood Lake Hydroelectric Project, Nine Canyon Wind Project and Columbia Generating Station (nuclear energy facility). Energy Northwest also provides operations and maintenance services for generating facilities owned by other utilities, and develops new power generation facilities to meet growing demand. Oversight of Energy Northwest operations is provided by an 11-member executive board and a board of directors comprising one representative from each member utility. The agency’s vision is to be the region's leader in energy generation and public power solutions through sustained excellence in performance. To achieve its vision, Energy Northwest works to understand and meet the energy needs of its members – the Washington state public power utilities who serve nearly 1.5 million ratepayers. Meeting the goal means measuring current performance while looking for solutions to meet the region’s future energy needs. The vision calls for a strong power portfolio, including a variety of electricity generating operations and professional and technical services. The agency’s mission is to provide our public power members and regional ratepayers with safe, reliable and cost-effective power. Energy Northwest member utilities and employees are the agency’s primary stakeholders. They serve the ratepayers of the Pacific Northwest through our members and the Bonneville Power Administration. To best serve the ratepayers, we strive to provide reliable power and other energy services to the region at the least cost, while protecting the environment and ensuring the safety of our employees and the public.

COMPANY SIZE
500 to 999 employees
INDUSTRY
Other/Not Classified
FOUNDED
1957