ORGANIZATIONAL PROFILE: The Office of Special Enforcement (OSE), organized within the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice (MOCJ), oversees civil enforcement response to conditions at properties throughout the City that threaten community livability and require a coordinated response from multiple agencies. The work of the office currently focuses mainly on preventing the conversion of permanent housing into illegal short term rentals. Additional existing subject areas include illegal massage parlors, adult establishments, and special assignments. To accomplish its duties, OSE oversees and conducts joint investigations and inspections with various City agencies, such as New York City Departments of Buildings (“DOB”), New York City Fire Department (“FDNY”), New York City Department of Finance (“DOF”), and New York City Police Department (“NYPD”) to bring unsafe conditions into compliance with the law. OSE also maintains a robust and creative affirmative litigation docket to address persistent owners and operators, seeking remedies to compel compliance and halt flagrant violations using the City’s Nuisance Abatement Law, building and fire safety statutes, and consumer protection law, among others. OSE is also the regulating agency for the New York City Short-term Rental Registration program

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES: The Deputy Executive Director reports to the Executive Director of OSE, and assists or directs all aspects of OSE operations. OSE is seeking an attorney who is an effective self-starter and possesses both the capacity for independence and the ability to work cooperatively to advance the goals of both OSE and MOCJ. The Deputy Executive Director’s responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

- Oversight of the Short-Term Rental Registration program, including: supervising and training registration team members; ensuring accurate and efficient processing of all applications; developing enforcement protocols; engaging with stakeholders, agencies, and the public regarding the program; developing reports and metrics to describe the status of the programs; handling complicated or novel issues that arise in applications; identifying and proposing changes to program rules as needed.

- Oversee OSE’s Legal Director and litigation program, including: ensuring that cases identified for litigation are developed with clear case strategy and effectively implemented; ensuring that the administrative adjudication process is monitored to ensure favorable caselaw development; guiding overall settlement strategy and negotiation, and participating in legal team member recruitment, training, and development.

- Manage and oversee the administrative operations of the office, including: the hiring and onboarding of agency team members; OSE’s contracting and budgeting; and the supervision of OSE’s Legal Team Director, Assistant Director for Registration, Senior Project Manager, Data Systems Managers, Assistant Chief Department of Buildings Inspector, and outside vendors.


- Provide operational direction for field operations and investigations conducted by OSE’s multi-agency team of inspectors who respond to community complaints and conduct proactive investigations, including creating internal operational guidelines; preparing office-wide training on office protocols, ensuring training compliance with regulatory requirements, and creating a learning culture by encouraging debriefing after significant events or stages of project completion.

- Assisting the Executive Director in developing the strategic direction of OSE’s utilization of legal and enforcement tools, including: conducting legal analysis and advising the OSE Director on legislation and regulation; reviewing and preparing reports, policy statements, testimony, and other written materials; and consulting on communications strategy.

- Representing OSE in meetings with community organizations, elected and other government officials, and various stakeholders.

Admission to the New York State Bar; and four years of recent full-time responsible, relevant, satisfactory legal experience subsequent to admission to any bar, eighteen months of which must have been in the supervision of other attorneys, in an administrative, managerial or executive capacity, or performing highly complex and significant legal work.

Incumbents must remain Members of the New York State Bar in good standing for the duration of this employment.

- Eight years of full-time professional experience, four years of which must have been as an attorney admitted in any State, ideally working in a mission-driven affirmative impact litigation, enforcement, or regulatory environment. - Strong managerial experience - ideally managing legal and investigative staff engaged in litigation and conducting investigations - with experience providing constructive feedback, addressing performance issues, and handling performance reviews. - Excellent organizational, managerial, time-management, and multi-tasking skills, including the ability to take initiative, problem solve, balance competing priorities, work independently and with teams in a fast-paced environment, pay close attention to detail, meet deadlines, and work well under pressure. - Either a member in good standing of, or eligible to waive into, the New York State Bar, with federal admission not required but considered favorably. - Experience conducting civil proceedings in New York State pursuant to NYS CPLR, with additional preference for experience with: the New York City Nuisance Abatement Law New York City Building, Fire, and Housing Maintenance Codes and the NYS Multiple Dwelling Law and Real Property and Proceedings Law. - Strong oral and written communication skills, including skill at public speaking and a demonstrable ability to present the agency’s position in meetings with high level officials and other governmental and private entities. - Proven ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with a wide range of entities from government agencies, other prosecutorial and regulatory bodies, and community organizations.

As a prospective employee of the City of New York, you may be eligible for federal loan forgiveness programs and state repayment assistance programs. For more information, please visit the U.S. Department of Education’s website at https://studentaid.gov/pslf/.

New York City Residency is not required for this position

The City of New York is an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and providing a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment based upon any legally protected status or protected characteristic, including but not limited to an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender identity, or pregnancy.