Associate General Counsel - 90358542 - Washington (Hybrid)

Your success is a train ride away!

As we move America’s workforce toward the future, Amtrak connects businesses and communities across the country. We employ more than 20,000 diverse, energetic professionals in a variety of career fields throughout the United States. The safety of our passengers, our employees, the public and our operating environment is our priority, and the success of our railroad is due to our employees.

Are you ready to join our team?

Our values of ‘Do the Right Thing, Excel Together and Put Customers First’ are at the heart of what matters most to us, and our Core Capabilities, ‘Building Trust, Accountability, Effective Communication, Customer Focus, and Proactive Safety & Security’ are what every employee needs to know and do to be most impactful at Amtrak. By living the Amtrak values, focusing on our capabilities, and actively embracing and fostering diverse ideas, backgrounds, and perspectives, together we will honor our past and make Amtrak a company of the future.

Work Arrangement: Hybrid Weekly out of DC

SUMMARY OF DUTIES:
Amtrak seeks a commercial transactions attorney with broad experience to provide advice and counsel regarding, among other things, real estate and infrastructure transactions; financing transactions; consumer payment matters; and insurance and re-insurance issues and risk matters.

Job responsibilities include: 

• Assist company business leaders with leasing pledged rolling stock, structuring new investments in joint ventures or subsidiaries, and negotiating new or updated grant and financing agreements.  
• Advise company and draft, review, and revise documents relating to large-scale real estate and infrastructure developments.
• Provide advice and assistance with financings, such as government issued or guaranteed loans, bond financings, credit facilities, privately placed notes, capital market transactions, including initial transactions, refinancings, amendments, waiver requests, transfers of registration, and workouts.
• Draft and review materials requiring approval of Amtrak’s Board of Directors including resolutions financial transactions, and changes to insurance programs, hedging policies and investment.  Review audit engagement letters, management representation letters and annual financial statement footnotes, and prepare resolutions for engagement of financial auditors. 
• Advise and assist Amtrak Treasury regarding renewal of various insurance coverages.  Provide advice regarding security and credit instruments including surety bonds and letters of credit.
• Advise and assist with Amtrak’s construction insurance program including the company’s Owner Controlled Insurance Program and Amtrak’s captive insurance subsidiaries.
• Advise and support company business leaders regarding consumer payment laws and regulations and the acceptance and processing of non-cash payments.

The successful candidate must become fully knowledgeable about federal and state statutory and regulatory requirements applicable to Amtrak and the requirements of various grants that Amtrak typically receives.  Familiarity with federal cost principles applicable to non-governmental entities as they relate to insurance and financings would be helpful. Amtrak lawyers regularly work in more than one practice area and serve more than one client or set of clients, regardless of their primary focus and responsibility.  

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:

• Provide legal advice and guidance to company business leaders on matters involving legal issues. 
• Assist the Deputy General Counsel in the delivery of legal services.
• Support company initiatives and handle special projects as assigned by Deputy General Counsel and Senior Law Department leaders. 
• Coordinate with Amtrak business leaders and other attorneys to ensure effective operations and the achievement of company objectives in accordance with policies. 
• Proactively advise business leaders on program improvements and innovations to further Amtrak’s mission. 
• Provide advice on legal and regulatory policy issues, including those pertaining to financings, capital markets, public entity development and infrastructure matters.
• Oversee and manage outside counsel in accordance with Law Department guidelines. 

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

The successful candidate for this position must have:

• Juris Doctor from accredited law school and admission to and current good standing in a state or the District of Columbia bar.
• At least eleven (11) years of professional legal experience providing legal advice and guidance on commercial matters in a corporate, governmental, or law firm environment. 
• Demonstrated ability to both convey clear and accurate legal advice and be solution-oriented to drive achievement of business objectives.
• Demonstrated ability to apply and integrate organizational goals and objectives in work product and procedures.
• Demonstrated record of collaboration with others both within and outside of an organization. 
• Demonstrated experience in budget development, analysis, and monitoring.

MINIMUM KSA (Knowledge, Skills and Abilities):

• Ability to manage a large matter load of varying complexity and work efficiently and productively.
• Ability to provide strategic and day-to-day direction to colleagues at all levels.
• Ability to develop and maintain productive and collaborative relationships and effectively communicate orally and in writing with people at all levels within and outside of the organization.
• Ability to handle potentially sensitive or highly charged issues while working cooperatively with others inside and outside the organization to facilitate understanding and persuade and influence others.
• Ability and experience in drafting memoranda setting forth legal advice.
• Ability and experience in conducting training for business leaders on matters relating to transactions as well as legal requirements of the company and experience in doing so.
• Ability and experience in using common office software to effectively and efficiently deliver legal services (e.g., Microsoft suite of products (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive), Zoom, and other similar applications).     

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

Other areas of expertise could include: 

• Equipment and real estate and infrastructure financing; marketing & advertising and intellectual property matters; 
• E-commerce; leveraged leasing; state and commuter partnerships.  
• Knowledge and understanding of government contracting (at state or federal level), including issues relating to flowdowns, organizational conflicts of interest, domestic buying preferences, etc.   
• Familiarity with government grants requirements and issues. 

WORK ENVIRONMENT:

Physical/Mental Demands:

• Constantly or frequently uses a computer keyboard and monitor to perform a variety of tasks.
• Frequently performs tasks that require sitting for extended periods of time.
• Occasionally performs tasks that require standing, walking, or both for extended periods of time.
• Communicates, comprehends, and responds to verbal statements and instructions, both orally and in writing.
• Frequently expands knowledge, and learns new skills and tasks, both complex and simple, to maintain and enhance professional effectiveness.

Working Conditions: 

• Minimum of 40 hours a week and professional expectations.
• Occasional travel.

COMMUNICATIONS AND INTERPERSONAL SKILLS:
Must have excellent oral and written communication skills.

The salary/hourly range is $166,160 - $215,350. Pay is based on several factors including but not limited to education, work experience, certifications, internal equity, etc. Depending on an employee’s assigned worksite or location, Amtrak may consider a geo-pay differential to be applied to the employee’s base salary. Amtrak may offer additional incentive and pay programs to recognize and reward our employees, including a short-term incentive bonus based upon factors such as individual and company performance that is commensurate with the level of the position and/or long-term incentive plan compensation. In addition to your salary, Amtrak offers a comprehensive benefit package that includes health, dental, and vision plans; health savings accounts; wellness programs; flexible spending accounts; 401K retirement plan with employer match; life insurance; short and long term disability insurance; paid time off; back-up care; adoption assistance; surrogacy assistance; reimbursement of education expenses; Public Service Loan Forgiveness eligibility; Railroad Retirement sickness and retirement benefits; and rail pass privileges. Learn more about our benefits offerings here.​

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Requisition ID:159761
Posting Location(s):District of Columbia
Job Family/Function:Government Affairs; Legal 
Relocation Offered:No 
Travel Requirements:Up to 25% 
 

You power our progress through your performance.
 

We want your work at Amtrak to be more than a job. We want your career at Amtrak to be a fulfilling experience where you find challenging work, rewarding opportunities, respect among colleagues, and attractive compensation. Amtrak maintains a culture that values high performance and recognizes individual employee contributions. 

Amtrak is committed to a safe workplace free of drugs and alcohol. All Amtrak positions requires a pre-employment background check that includes prior employment verification, a criminal history check and a pre-employment drug screen. 

Candidates who test positive for marijuana will be disqualified, regardless of any state or local statute, ordinance, regulation, or other law that legalizes or decriminalizes the use or possession of marijuana, whether for medical, recreational, or other use. Amtrak's pre-employment drug testing program is administered in accordance with DOT regulations and applicable law.  

In accordance with DOT regulations (49 CFR § 40.25), Amtrak is required to obtain prior drug and alcohol testing records for applicants/employees intending to perform safety-sensitive duties for covered Department of Transportation positions. If an applicant/employee refuses to provide written consent for Amtrak to obtain these records, the individual will not be permitted to perform safety-sensitive functions.

In accordance with federal law governing security checks of covered individuals for providers of public transportation (Title 6 U.S.C. §1143), Amtrak is required to screen applicants for any permanent or interim disqualifying criminal offenses. 

Note that any education requirement listed above may be deemed satisfied if you have an equivalent combination of education, training and experience.

Amtrak is an EOE/Affirmative Action Minority/Female employer, and we welcome all to apply. We consider candidates regardless of race/color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth and related conditions), national origin/ethnicity, age, disability (intellectual, mental and physical), veteran status, marital status, ancestry, sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression, genetic information, citizenship or any other personal characteristics protected by law.