Senior Counsel

Requisition ID # 162203 

Job Category: Legal 

Job Level: Attorney

Business Unit: Gen Counsel, Ethics, Risk & Compliance

Work Type: Hybrid

Job Location: Oakland

Department Overview

The Law Department provides timely, efficient, and business-focused legal services to the company. The Law Gas & Electric Operations team provides both regulatory and transactional support to clients across a broad spectrum of matters, primarily related to energy operations, including electrification, decarbonization, electric and gas safety, enforcement, wildfire mitigation, electric and gas compliance, electric transmission, interconnection, emergency operations support, regulatory investigations, clean fuels, transition of the natural gas system, and legislative initiatives.

Position Summary

If you are interested in making an impact on our communities by supporting safety, infrastructure operations, clean fuels and decarbonization, then this position may be right for you. The Senior Counsel will be responsible for providing representation and advice and counsel to Pacific Gas and Electric Company’s electric operations, electrification, electric transmission, gas operations, and gas engineering teams, including assisting in regulatory proceedings at the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), and transactions involving electrification pilot programs, the transition of the gas industry, electric transmission development, electric and gas compliance, and emerging clean fuels.  The Senior Counsel will also be responsible for managing outside counsel to support the company’s lines of business and to provide strategic, comprehensive, and complete legal advice with respect to the company's legal agenda.

This position is hybrid, working from your remote office and your assigned work location based on business need. The assigned work location will be in Oakland, CA.

Reporting Relationship

The Counsel Attorney will report to the Managing Counsel for Law Gas & Electric Operations within the Law, Utility Strategy Operations organization.

Job Responsibilities

• Responsible for providing legal representation, advice, and support for the Company on matters of major complexity or significance. 
• Oversees or conducts legal research relevant to scope of responsibility.
• May manage and coordinate outside counsel handling specific proceedings or issues.
• May act as a subject matter expert in area of specialization.
• Represent PG&E in regulatory proceedings before the CPUC and FERC, including hearings, workshops, written submissions, and filings. Research and draft pleadings for submission to regulatory bodies in respective proceedings.
• Develop and implement regulatory strategy as part of team that includes regulatory affairs and client representatives from policy and operations organizations.
• Provide advice and counsel to management and project teams on legal and regulatory issues and strategy.
• Consult with other attorneys in the Law Department regarding key business and legal issues.
• Strategize on and provide advice on legislative initiatives that impact electric and gas operations.
• Research, review, interpret, and draft project documents for transactions involving the sale of natural gas infrastructure with project teams.
• Support internal investigations and responses to regulatory enforcement actions concerning electric and gas incidents.

Leadership Qualities

PG&E expects its leaders to conduct themselves with the highest ethics and integrity and to embody specific leadership qualities.

Strategic Mindset

• Seeing ahead to future possibilities and translating them into breakthrough strategies.
• Operating effectively, even when things are not certain, or the way forward is not clear.

A Leader in the Community and Industry

• Effectively building formal and informal relationship networks inside and outside the organization.
• Anticipating and balancing the needs of multiple stakeholders.

Demonstrates Safety Leadership

• A safety champion in words and deeds with respect to both employee and public safety.
• Maintaining an environment of open dialog and free of retaliation.

Influences and Inspires

• Using various- communications that convey a clear understanding of the needs of different audiences.
• Maneuvering comfortably through complex policy, process, and people-related dynamics.

Optimizes Team Performance

• Building strong-identity teams that apply their diverse skills and perspectives to achieve common goals.
• Creating a climate where people are developed and motivated to do their best to help the organization.

Values Diversity and Creates Inclusion

• Recognizing the value that different perspectives and cultures bring to an organization.

Fiscally Responsible

• Interpreting and applying understanding of key financial indicators to make better business decisions.
• Planning and prioritizing work to meet commitments aligned with organizational goals.

Leads Ethically and in a Compliant Manner

• Sponsoring and sustaining a high integrity speak-up corporate culture which prioritizes ethics, safety, and compliance.
• Building on necessary level of industry, company, and subject-matter expertise, including laws and regulations.

Provides a High Level of Customer Service

• Building strong customer relationships and delivering customer-centric solutions.

Compensation

PG&E is providing the salary range that the company in good faith believes it might pay for this position at the time of the job posting. This compensation range is specific to the locality of the job. The actual salary paid to an individual will be based on multiple factors, including, but not limited to, specific skills, education, licenses or certifications, experience, market value, geographic location, and internal equity. Although we estimate the successful candidate hired into this role will be placed towards the middle of the range ($255,000), the decision will be made on a case-by-case basis related to these factors.​

A reasonable salary range for this position (Bay Area) is:

Minimum: $189,000

Maximum: $323,000

Background Qualifications

Minimum

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience
• Juris Doctor degree from an accredited law school
• Law Bar Admission, U.S.
• U.S. state bar active member in good standing
• Legal experience, post-JD-Juris Doctor, or other job-related, 10 years
• Experience as Attorney, 7 years

Desired

• Interest in the future of the California utility model and its ability to impact our communities by meeting the state’s clean energy goals while ensuring affordable rates for customers.
• Law Bar admission, CA
• Registered In-House Counsel permit, California.
• Experience in complex legal matters
• Knowledge of Microsoft Office applications, particularly Word, Outlook, Excel, and PowerPoint
• Ability to apply legal terminology and laws relevant to the job and as needed to perform at the job level.
• Ability to recognize relationship of legal issues to Company’s strategic and other business imperatives.
• Competency in stepping up to address difficult issues at all levels of the Company.
• Competency in developing and delivering multi-mode communications that convey a clear understanding of the unique needs of different audiences.
• Competency in building partnerships and working collaboratively with others to meet shared objectives.