Medico-Legal Legal Counsel

• Approximately 1 Year, fixed-term contract, full-time role, backfilling a secondment
• Be a part of the Legal Services team providing operational and strategic legal advice to Health New Zealand
• Must have a current Practising Certificate issued by the New Zealand Law Society
•  10 plus years’ post admission experience, essential

Te whiwhinga mahi | The Opportunity

As part of a team of over 10,000 you will be contacted by health professionals and managers by email and phone hourly for advice on privacy, medico-legal, commercial or other issues that have arisen in their roles and their engagement with patients, the public and suppliers. As a key member of the Legal Services team you will be expected, as a standard service, to quickly clarify the issues and then provide prompt assistance to enable your colleague to address the matter.

In addition, you will be working on routine responsibilities, for example, assisting with patient complaints or requests particularly in respect to privacy, drafting more complex Official Information Act requests, contributing to the management of inquiries and investigations by the Coroner, Health and Disability Commissioner, Ombudsman and Privacy Commissioner, advising on applications under the Protection of Personal and Property Rights Act 1988 and Criminal Disclosure Act 2008, working with Police on a range of matters, providing advice on public health legislation and eligibility for publicly funded healthcare.

For all aspects of this role and experience/knowledge required please see the position description here. (Recruitment will insert a link once the PD is received)

Nga Pūkenga Motuhake | Important Skills

You will be an experienced lawyer with a working understanding of public law as it applies to public entities and good commercial and contract law expertise and experience. 

During your career you will have established your ability to create robust working relationships with clients (your colleagues) and have strong written and verbal communication skills, including in the management of disputes.

Ko wai mātou | Our Organisation

We are Te Whatu Ora Te Toka Tumai Auckland. We provide health and disability services to more than half a million people living in central Auckland, regional services for Northland and greater Auckland, and specialist national services for the whole of New Zealand. Our main sites are Auckland City Hospital, Greenlane Clinical Centre and Starship Children’s Hospital, located in central Auckland.

We are part of Te Whatu Ora – Health New Zealand, the overarching organisation for New Zealand’s national health service. Te Whatu Ora leads the day-to-day running of the health system, with functions delivered at local, district, regional and national levels.

We are committed to upholding Te Tiriti o Waitangi and providing culturally safe care. We value role modelling manaakitanga as demonstrated by Ngāti Whātua in the gifting of their whenua on which our hospitals stand. We aspire to having a workforce reflective of the communities we serve and achieving equitable outcomes for all.

He aha ngā painga o tēnei mahi mōu | Why you will enjoy working here

We recognise there is more to life than mahi | work, and we encourage and provide access to all our staff several services and benefits to support themselves whilst they are employed within Te Toka Tumai | Auckland DHB.

For more information on what we offer, click here.

Me pēhea te tuku tono | How to apply

Please submit your application online, outlining your experience and motivation to apply to this role. Your cover letter will be a key part of our assessment process, so please highlight how your experience relates to the role and to the competencies listed in the position description.

If you have any queries about accessibility, or technical issues with the online process, please contact Belinda Peddie - Recruitment Consultant at belinda.peddie@tewhatuora.govt.nz and quote ADHB22126 to discuss how we can best support your application.