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The City of Santa Monica

The City of Santa Monica is a beachfront community of 8.3 square miles that has earned an international reputation as a progressive and forward-thinking municipality. Santa Monica is known for its high quality of life, innovative policies and programs, uniquely participatory local democracy, and commitment to social and economic diversity, fair housing, the arts, and sustainability. The City government, comprising seven Council members and over 2,500 staff, is regularly recognized as shaping best practices in local government in California and beyond.

The Santa Monica City Attorney’s Office

The Santa Monica City Attorney's Office is committed to providing first-class legal representation to advance the public good. The Office’s precedent-setting work has included asserting the rights of local governments to regulate technology platforms; obtaining a consent decree allowing the City to close the Santa Monica Airport; drafting novel local land use, housing, and sustainability laws; and recovering more than $350 million from major oil companies following contamination of the City’s drinking water supply. The office has been recognized as the outstanding public law office of the year by the American Bar Association and our lawyers have been honored with the California Lawyer of the Year Award.

 

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Deputy City Attorney, Municipal Law

The Santa Monica City Attorney's office seeks an attorney with at least five years’ experience  to serve as a Deputy City Attorney in the Advisory Unit. 

 

The Advisory Unit advises City Council, the City’s Boards and Commissions, and all City Departments on a wide range of municipal law issues, including, but not limited to, the Ralph M. Brown Act, California Environmental Quality Act, Political Reform Act, Public Records Act, housing, land use, real estate, public safety, labor and employment, public contracting, municipal finance, election law, conflicts of interest, First Amendment issues, and economic development.  The Unit is also responsible for drafting resolutions, ordinances, and ballot measures, reviewing and drafting contracts, and drafting legal pleadings and responses.  

 

Ideal candidates will demonstrate proficiency in advising city departments or public agencies, drafting ordinances and resolutions, staffing boards and commissions, and have a thorough understanding of regulations surrounding public safety issues, election and conflict law, public bidding and contracting, and demonstrate effective oral and written communication skills. 

 

Duties may include but are not limited to:

• Providing legal advice and interpretation of laws, statutes, regulations, and ordinances to elected officials, city departments, boards, and commissions.
• Drafting, reviewing, and approving complex contracts, ordinances, resolutions, policies, and other legal documents involving high-value or high-risk municipal interests.
• Representing the City in civil litigation, administrative hearings, and negotiations.
• Attending meetings of boards, commissions, and committees as may be required; rendering legal advice as requested.
• Ensuring strict legal compliance with all applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations across all municipal operations, including emerging regulatory areas.

The successful applicant will have a combination of required and preferred qualifications.

 

Required qualifications:

·        Minimum of five years’ relevant experience, which should include general municipal law practice and litigation experience, including writs;

·        Prior experience advising city departments or public agencies.

·        Proficiency in drafting resolutions, ordinances, and contracts

·        Ability to build and maintain relationships across all city departments; and

·        Current and active license to practice law in the State of California

 

Preferred qualifications:

·        Experience staffing boards and commissions;

·        Expertise in election law, conflicts law, administrative law, constitutional law, land use law, and/or other areas of municipal law;

·        Demonstrated ability to prepare reports, letters, plans, agreements, and memoranda

·        Ability to respond quickly to changing situations and requests

·        Ability to assess and prioritize multiple tasks, projects, and demands

·        Effectively prioritize and manage deadlines

·        Trial and appellate experience in state and federal court; and

·        Familiarity with government tort claims, tort law, and employment law.

 

Unit placement and work assignments of Deputy City Attorneys are subject to change based on the operational needs and workload of the City Attorney’s Office overall.  The hours of the position are 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, and 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on alternate Fridays.  This is a 9/80 work schedule. Hybrid remote work schedule is currently available.  Evening and weekend duties may be required to attend City Council meetings, Boards/Commission meetings, and other public meetings or events. A background check will be required prior to beginning employment.  Salary range is: Deputy City Attorney II - $140,808 to $173,808, Deputy City Attorney III $218,124 to $269,292, and is dependent on qualifications and experience.  This position is part of the Public Attorneys Union.

 

The City also offers  excellent benefits. Equal Opportunity Employer. See the CAO EEO Policy on the City Attorney’s Office website.  Interested applicants should submit a cover letter, resume, and the names of three references.  These materials should be submitted in a single pdf document by email to: CAO.Opportunities@santamonica.gov with the subject line: “Application – Deputy City Attorney – Advisory Unit”; closing date Friday, January 23, 2026,  by 12:00pm.  

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Senior Legal Analyst, Public Records - Administrative Unit

The Santa Monica City Attorney's Office seeks a dedicated, detailed-oriented person with five or more years of relevant work experience to join its Administrative Unit as a Senior Legal Analyst to collaborate with a small team that administers the California Public Records Act (PRA) function for the City.

 

Duties may include, but are not limited to:

·        Gathering, reviewing, redacting, and producing public records in response to complex requests under the California Public Records Act from members of the public and media;

·        Providing guidance to City staff and assisting in searching for, identifying, and gathering potentially responsive records;

·        Under the guidance of a Deputy City Attorney and Assistant City Attorney, interpreting and applying laws, rules, regulations, and policies; keep abreast of changes in relevant public records regulations and laws; and

·        Performing various customer service and public relations tasks, including communicating with members of the public regarding public records requests and the public records process, create email search syntax to search the City’s email archive, collaborate with the City’s Record Management Coordinator on requests that require legal review or more complex responses, and maintain PRA tracking logs and calendar to adhere to PRA statutory deadlines.

·        Additionally, and occasionally, providing training to CAO staff on document review and use of GovQA, train other City department staff on the public records process, present on public records at the monthly new hire presentation, create and update internal and external PRA processes, and assisting the Santa Monica Police Department (SMPD) records with email archive searches and responses to complex requests

 

Knowledge of:

·        Research techniques.

·        Report writing.

·        Principles of program planning, monitoring, implementation, and evaluation.

·        Effective leading and coordinating techniques.

·        Effective customer service techniques.

 

Ability to:

·        Independently manage voluminous records requests in a timely and highly organized manner

·        Track and meet statutory deadlines for production of documents

·        Perform duties with sound ethics and good judgment.

·        Communicate effectively, both orally and in writing. 

·        Keep abreast of current developments in public records and government transparency laws.

·        Maintain accurate records, including a searchable database of responses to public records requests.

·        Prepare and present effective presentations.

·        Establish and maintain effective and cooperative working relationships with City employees, various businesses and agencies, and the general public.

·        Provide effective customer service.

·        Analyze and solve administrative problems.

·        Research and interpret public records laws under supervision of a Deputy City Attorney.

 

Skill in:

·        Organizing, reviewing, and reporting on large volumes of data and information. Using a personal computer and applicable software applications.

·        Working effectively with persons from diverse social, cultural, and economic backgrounds.

 

Preferred Qualifications:

Bachelor's degree and five years recent, paid experience that includes working in a law office (Legal Assistant, Paralegal) or five years public municipality performing complex analysis, legal research, and administrative duties.  Paralegal certificate desirable. This position is part of the Public Attorney’s Legal Support Staff Union.

 

The hours of the position are 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on alternate Fridays.  This is a 9/80 work schedule. Hybrid remote work schedule is currently available.  A background check will be required prior to beginning employment. Salary is dependent on qualifications/experience. The salary range are Steps 1-5, $107,616-$132,852 annually. The City also offers  excellent benefits. Equal Opportunity Employer. See the CAO EEO Policy on the City Attorney’s Office website.  Interested applicants should submit a cover letter, resume, and the names and contact information of three references.  These materials should be submitted in a single pdf document by email to: CAO.Opportunities@santamonica.gov with the subject line: “Application – Senior Legal Analyst-PRA Position – Administrative Unit”; closing date Friday, January 23, 2026,  by 12:00 noon.

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Senior Legal Analyst - Limited Term, Criminal Unit

The Santa Monica City Attorney's Office seeks a dedicated, detailed-oriented Senior Legal Analyst for a full-time two-year limited term position to collaborate with the Criminal Prosecution unit on its newly established SaMo Bridge program, addressing recidivism among homeless adults with justice system involvement.

 

Duties may include, but are not limited to: Overseeing all administrative functions related to requirements of the program’s external grant funder: California Board of State and Community Corrections Prop 47 grant program; coordinating across all contracted vendors providing services related to the program including social services, performance evaluation and fiscal audit, program site operation logistics and project management; coordinating training with key stakeholders including the Santa Monica Police Department; facilitating regular Local Advisory Committee meetings – membership consists of internal and external stakeholders advising ongoing project implementation; facilitating regular community meetings to receive feedback from the public; maintaining client service records and accessing needed legal databases to monitor for recidivism among clients served; overseeing and completing all necessary quarterly progress reports to funder; overseeing all invoicing and reimbursements processes; attending funder-required trainings and webinars; preparing staff reports and presentations; making presentations to the public, appointed and elected officials; monitoring for additional external funding opportunities (state, federal, philanthropic) and preparing grant proposals as needed to continue the program. Other related duties may be required as assigned.

 

Requirements: The ideal candidate should be familiar with all Microsoft software including Excel, Power Point, SharePoint, One Drive, and Tyler Munis. Candidate should establish and maintain working relationships with City personnel, other government agencies, police departments, and the public.

 

Candidate should be a highly motivated self-starter with strong project management skills and experience administering government grant programs. Working knowledge in the areas of homeless services, criminal justice, law enforcement, and related fields is desired. 

 

Graduation from an accredited university with a bachelor’s degree in a related field or equivalent of three years’ experience in legal services, law enforcement, homeless service, social work or public health; 3-5 years’ experience in these fields preferred.  This position is part of the Public Attorney’s Legal Support Staff Union.

 

The hours of the position are 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on alternate Fridays.  This is a 9/80 work schedule. Hybrid remote work schedule is currently available.  Evening and weekend duties may be required to facilitate community meetings and events. A background check will be required prior to beginning employment. Salary is dependent on grant funding and qualifications/experience. The annual salary is currently $107,616, step 1. The City also offers  excellent benefits. Equal Opportunity Employer. See the CAO EEO Policy on the City Attorney’s Office website.  Interested applicants should submit a cover letter, resume, and the names of three references.  These materials should be submitted in a single pdf document by email to: CAO.Opportunities@santamonica.gov with the subject line: “Application – Senior Legal Analyst Grant Position – Criminal Prosecution Unit”; closing date Friday, January 23, 2026,  by 12:00 noon. 

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Equal Opportunity Employer

The City of Santa Monica is an equal opportunity employer. The City Council’s Policy Statement reads in part, “In the recruitment, selection, assignment, promotion, discipline and training of personnel, we will consider only job-related skills, abilities, knowledge and performance. We will develop positive measures to eliminate discrimination based on race, color, gender, national origin, religion, age, disability, or sexual harassment in the workplace.”

Inclusion & Diversity

The City of Santa Monica is a progressive, inclusive, and culturally-rich community. As leaders in public service, we strive to be an employer of choice by attracting and retaining a highly-talented workforce where people of diverse races, religions, cultures and lifestyles thrive. Our goal is to create a welcoming and inclusive environment where our staff are empowered to perform at their highest level and where their differences make a positive impact.

The City is an equal opportunity employer and strives to build balanced teams from all walks of life without regard to race, color, ethnicity, religion, national origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, ancestry, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or any other status protected under federal, state and/or local law. We aim to create a workplace that celebrates and embraces the diversity of our employees. Join us!

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Salary Schedule

• The City of Santa Monica salary schedule is located here. 

Benefits

• The City of Santa Monica employee benefits are described here.