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About the Office

The San Francisco City Attorney’s Office is an innovative, nationally-recognized municipal law office working to protect and advance the rights and interests of the City and County of San Francisco and its residents.  With just over 300 talented, dedicated, and diverse employees, the Office provides exceptional legal services to the City’s Mayor, Board of Supervisors, officials, and departments.  Our work empowers City leaders with effective, responsive and creative legal solutions and representation so they can deliver critical public services and our affirmative advocacy enhances the lives and wellbeing of San Francisco’s residents and visitors.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Office recognizes that diversity in the backgrounds, ideas and lived experiences of our employees enriches our workplace and enhances our work.  We aspire to recruit, employ, retain and promote capable individuals representing the full spectrum of our community, and welcome all candidates, including candidates of any race, religion, national origin, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age and candidates with disabilities.  We have a clear vision: to be the place where a diverse mix of talented people want to come and stay, and where employees feel welcomed, engaged and valued for their work and contributions to the Office and the City.  To learn more about the Office’s efforts to provide a welcoming, diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace please click here.

Current Opportunities

Deputy City Attorney, Code Enforcement Team

The San Francisco City Attorney’s Office is looking for a qualified and motivated litigation attorney to join its Code Enforcement Team.

The team is a collaborative and dynamic group of six attorneys, one legal assistant, and two legal secretaries. The team investigates and civilly prosecutes property owners and businesses that violate local and state codes, or who are otherwise misusing their property to endanger public health and safety. Team members direct investigation into cases and handle all phases of litigation. Representative lawsuits have addressed unpermitted construction, substandard housing, blight, health hazards, affordable housing fraud, and unlawful business practices such as the operation of illicit gambling dens and brothels. Team members also are responsible for Gun Violence Restraining Order and Workplace Violence Restraining Order.

If you are interested in the position, more information about the job and application process is available here.

Deputy City Attorney, Complex & Affirmative Litigation Team

The San Francisco City Attorney’s Office is looking for an experienced and motivated civil litigator to join its Complex & Affirmative Litigation Team.

The team is a collaborative, nimble, and dynamic group of attorneys, paralegals, and legal secretaries. The team handles both affirmative and defensive matters, in state and federal court, in trial and on appeal. The team’s docket is broad, and matters generally involve one or more of the following: novel legal issues, constitutional concerns, statewide and/or nationwide remedies and public policy reforms, or a large volume of litigants, witnesses, and/or evidence. In addition to representing the City and County of San Francisco, the team pursues affirmative litigation as determined by the City Attorney on behalf of the People of the State of California, to remedy unlawful, fraudulent, and unfair business practices throughout the state and public nuisances. The team also participates in the San Francisco Affirmative Litigation Project, a partnership between the City Attorney’s Office and Yale Law School, which pairs Yale law students with lawyers across the Office who are developing and/or litigating complex affirmative litigation matters.

If you are interested in the position, more information about the job and application process is available here.

Deputy City Attorney, Health & Human Services Team

The San Francisco City Attorney’s Office is looking for a qualified and motivated attorney to join its Health & Human Services Team.

The Health & Human Services Team is a collaborative and dynamic group of nine attorneys, one paralegal, and two legal secretaries. The team serves as general counsel for the Department of Public Health, the Human Services Agency, the City’s programs for people experiencing homelessness, and certain other health-related City departments.  This includes working with:  The City’s two public hospital facilities, its ambulatory and mental health clinics, and its street medicine teams; the Medical Examiner’s Office; Jail Health; the Health Officer and Population Health; the Department of Disability and Aging Services (DAS); the Department of Children, Youth & Their Families (DCYF); Environmental Health; and the Department of Homelessness & Supportive Housing (HSH).  This work includes assisting with Medical Probate (Probate Code Section 3200) petitions, tuberculosis (TB) civil detention petitions, legal issues related to involuntary mental health hold petitions (Welfare & Institutions Code Section 5150, etc.), Health Officer orders and directives related to the COVID-19 pandemic, other litigation as assigned, and permit and enforcement proceedings.

If you are interested in the position, more information about the job and application process is available here.

Deputy City Attorney (Advice), Tax Team

The San Francisco City Attorney’s Office is looking for a qualified and motivated attorney to join its Tax Team.

The Tax Team advises City elected officials and departments with respect to local tax issues, including drafting all tax legislation; advises the Office of the Treasurer and Tax Collector and Office of the Assessor‑Recorder on both tax and non-tax issues; represents the City with respect to tax claims filed against the City; and defends the City in tax suits filed by taxpayers.

This tax advice position would draft tax legislation; advise City elected officials and departments with respect to local tax issues; represent the City with respect to administrative claims for tax refund filed against the City; and work with our litigators to defend the City in tax suits filed by taxpayers.  The position would advise on a wide range of local taxes, including the City’s business taxes, hotel taxes, parking taxes, and others.  And it would provide advice on a wide range of issues related to those local taxes, including federal and state constitutional issues (Commerce Clause, special vs. general taxes); issues interpreting federal, state, and local laws and regulations related to the City’s taxes; and issues relating to the application of the City’s taxes to the diverse and emerging industries comprising San Francisco’s business community.

If you are interested in the position, more information about the job and application process is available here.

Deputy City Attorney (Litigator), Tax Team

The San Francisco City Attorney’s Office is looking for a qualified and motivated attorney to join its Tax Team.

Litigators on the Tax Team work primarily on defending the City in tax refund lawsuits.  Cases may involve a wide range of local taxes, with amounts in dispute ranging from the tens of thousands to hundreds of millions of dollars.  Issues litigated in these cases include federal and state constitutional doctrines (e.g., Commerce Clause, state preemption of city taxing power); valuation of taxable and nontaxable property; interpreting federal, state, and local laws and regulations; and the application of the City’s taxes to the diverse and emerging industries comprising San Francisco’s business community.  While experience with state or local tax matters is helpful, it is not required. Litigators on the Tax Team benefit from the subject matter expertise of the Team’s advice attorneys and collaborate with each other as well as with auditors and appraisers in the Office of the Treasurer and Tax Collector and the Office of the Assessor-Recorder.

If you are interested in the position, more information about the job and application process is available here.

Cyber Forensic Analyst, IT Team

The San Francisco City Attorney’s Office is looking for a qualified and motivated Cyber Forensic Analyst to join its Information Technology (IT) Team.

The team is a collaborative and dynamic group of 13 employees, including an IT Director, two Systems Engineers, three IT Operations Support Administrators, two Application Support/Training employees, a Database Manager, a Business Application Administrator, a Microsoft 365 Analyst, and a Project Manager. The team provides its customers with a comprehensive package of applications including litigation support and digital forensic tools essential to delivering efficient and timely legal services to the City and County of San Francisco; conducts ongoing research of hardware and software developments; identifies technologies and knowledge resources appropriate for existing and anticipated office needs; effectively integrates equipment and software into the daily workflow; and facilitates productivity and customer satisfaction through effective customizations and timely support.

If you are interested in the position, more information about the job and application process is available here. To apply, please use the citywide job posting here.

Law Librarian, Library Team

The San Francisco City Attorney’s Office is looking for a qualified and motivated law librarian to join its Library Team.

The Law Librarian is an integral part of the City Attorney’s Office, providing research services and training to support the legal work of attorneys and professional staff across all practice teams. The position manages all aspects of the library’s administrative work including prioritizing resources within the budget, managing the budget, acquisitions, serials control, collection maintenance, contract negotiations, and invoice processing. The library has physical resources in the Office’s work spaces in both San Francisco City Hall and Fox Plaza.

If you are interested in the position, more information about the job and application process is available here.

Applying

Prospective candidates for all city government positions—including the City Attorney’s Office—are encouraged to visit the Careers with Purpose page of the City’s website to learn more about employment with the City and County of San Francisco.