Job title:Parliamentary CounselEmployer:Office of the Attorney GeneralLocation:DublinClosing Date:3pm, Thursday, 30th October 2025Salary:Starting at €168,138About the Employer:The Office of the Parliamentary Counsel to the Government (OPC) is a constituent part of the Office of the Attorney General (the Office). The Office's purpose is to provide the highest standard of professional legal services to the Government, its Departments and Offices, as economically and efficiently as possible and to support adherence to the rule of law.The Attorney General is responsible for the OPC by virtue of section 6 of the Ministers and Secretaries Act 1924 and the Ninth Part of the Schedule to that Act. The OPC is responsible for the drafting of Government Bills and amendments to them, Government amendments to Private Members' Bills, Government statutory instruments and certain other statutory instruments to be made by Ministers of the Government. The OPC is currently organised into groups each having responsibility for providing drafting services to a specific number of Government Departments. The OPC intends to re-organise by establishing an additional group in order to spread the drafting workload more efficiently so as to better serve client Departments. Each group is managed by a drafter not below the rank of Parliamentary Counsel (Assistant Secretary equivalent grade). This competition seeks to fill this new management role in the Office of the Attorney General.About the Role:The duties of Parliamentary Counsel include:• Drafting Government Bills (including Bills to amend the Constitution), amendments to Bills (including Private Members' Bills) and statutory instruments (including statutory instruments to give effect to the State's obligations as a Member State of the European Union);• Managing a group of drafters and supporting and assisting them in their work, as well as the training of junior drafters;• Reporting to the Attorney General, as appropriate, regarding the legislative drafting outputs of the group;• Reporting to the Chief Parliamentary Counsel on matters for which the Chief Parliamentary Counsel has responsibility;• Reporting to the Director General of the Office on matters for which the Director General has responsibility;• Liaising with fellow drafters in the OPC and Advisory Counsel on work related issues, as appropriate;• Ensuring the effectiveness of the legislative drafting services provided by the OPC to the Government, Ministers of the Government and certain other bodies, particularly in the context of the Government's Legislation Programme;• Through the Government Legislation Committee, keeping the Government informed on the progress of all Government Bills being drafted or proceeding through the Houses of the Oireachtas;• Implementing the various policies and business plans necessary to achieve the key objectives set out in the Statement of Strategy of the Office, including those relating to the Performance Management Development System (known as PMDS), and change management initiatives arising from commitments under the Civil Service Renewal Action Plans and other central initiatives;• Participating fully in the management of the Office as a member of the Management Committee of the Office and other groups and committees, including PC Management, as appropriate.About You:In addition to the key competencies for effective performance at Assistant Secretary and equivalent level outlined below, the ideal candidate will have the following:• extensive experience of drafting legislation (both primary and secondary);• excellent analytical abilities;• extensive knowledge of the law of the State and the law of the European Union and the European Convention on Human Rights;• the requisite knowledge and ability to discharge all the duties of the position;• the ability to express ideas clearly both orally and in writing;• sound judgement and a commitment and attention to detail that is required for legislative drafting and by most aspects of legal work;• the ability to use his or her initiative, work well under pressure and meet deadlines;• a detailed knowledge of parliamentary procedures with particular reference to the legislative process;• excellent managerial skills, including the ability to develop others and ensure optimal performance of a team;• strong organisational and change management skills;• a strong client focus, with an emphasis on delivering high quality outputs;• excellent leadership, communication and interpersonal skills, including the ability to network effectively and to influence others;• a thorough knowledge of how a Government law office operates;• the capacity to strategically manage and lead, particularly in the context of civil service renewal and public service reform initiatives.The closing date for receipt of completed applications is 3pm on Thursday, 30th October, 2025.We are committed to a policy of equal opportunity and encourage applications under all nine grounds of the Employment Equality Act.