Job Description

Job Description and Duties

Join the Covered California team!

Covered California is seeking an enthusiastic and motivated individual with strong legal expertise and exceptional leadership skills to join our team as the Assistant Chief Counsel/Deputy Director of the Office of Legal Affairs, overseeing the Program Unit. This critical leadership role provides strategic direction and legal guidance on key programmatic initiatives that are central to Covered California’s mission of providing affordable, high-quality health coverage to Californians.

• Lead and Manage: Direct day-to-day operations of the Program Unit, ensuring quality, accuracy, and timeliness of work while fostering a high-performing and collaborative team environment.
• Provide Legal Guidance: Advise and direct the work of attorneys and staff on a wide variety of legal matters, including policy development, program compliance, and contract administration.
• Collaborate and Build Relationships: Build and maintain positive and effective relationships with staff, leadership, and external partners, exhibiting professionalism, diplomacy, flexibility, tact, and sound judgment.
• Provide Strategic Leadership: Assist in policy development and provide strategic legal advice on programmatic matters impacting Covered California.
• Oversee Administrations: Support divisional budget development and management, oversee vendor management for outside counsel, and assist with contract administration.

This position is headquartered in Sacramento County. Business travel may be required, and reimbursement considers an employee’s designated headquarters office subject to regulations and bargaining unit contract provisions. Travel expenses associated with commuting to the employee’s office headquarters location are not reimbursable, other than authorized transit subsidies.

NOTE: To be considered for this job opportunity, applicants must be reachable on an employment list, have transfer eligibility, or have reinstatement eligibility. If you are new to California State service and you do not have list eligibility, you must take the exam for this classification. To gain employment list eligibility, please to access the exam bulletin.  Possession of minimum qualifications will be verified prior to interview and/or appointment . If it is determined that an applicant does not meet the minimum qualifications, the applicant's name may be removed from the eligibility list.

Covered California does not provide visa sponsorship and is not an E-Verify employer.

Effective July 1, 2025, in response to the budget deficit, the Department of Human Resources (CalHR) has implemented the Personal Leave Program 2025 (PLP 2025). PLP 2025 requires that each full-time employee working their assigned work schedule receive a 4.62 percent reduction in pay in exchange for 8 hours of PLP 2025 leave credits monthly through October 31, 2026. 

You will find additional information about the job in the .

Working Conditions

This position may be eligible for telework. In accordance with Government Code section 14200, only employees who reside in California are eligible for telework. The amount of telework is at the discretion of the Department and based on Covered California’s current telework policy. While Covered California supports telework, in-person attendance may be required based on operational needs. Employees are expected to be able to report to their worksite with minimal notification if an urgent need arises, as determined by the Department.

Special Requirements

Statement of Qualifications (SOQ) Instructions: A SOQ is required to apply. The SOQ will be used as a pre-interview screening tool. Applicants who do not follow the SOQ instructions and/or do not answer the prompt as stated below may not be considered.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools can be useful in the development of written responses; however, it is important to use these tools responsibly and ethically. Where assistive tools may be used, responses within the SOQ should be your own original work. Applicants must write in their own words and avoid plagiarism. Failure to comply may be cause for disqualification.

Your SOQ must be typed, Arial 11 pt. font, and no more than three pages in length.

Prepare a narrative discussion and describe how your education, experience, skills, and training meet the minimum and desirable qualifications; demonstrate how you will successfully fulfill the position’s key responsibilities. The narrative also serves as documentation of your ability to present information clearly and concisely in writing.

Desirable Qualifications

In addition to evaluating each candidate's relative ability, as demonstrated by quality and breadth of experience, the following factors will provide the basis for competitively evaluating each candidate:

• Strategic Legal Advisor: Provides sound, practical legal counsel to management and executive leadership, including shaping legal policies, recommending strategic changes, and aligning programs and organizational objectives to further Covered California’s mission.

• Proven Leadership and Management: Demonstrated experience leading attorneys and professional legal staff, applying sound management principles to personnel oversight, EEO and workplace policies, budget administration, contract oversight, and effective team and project leadership, including mentoring and developing others.
• Comprehensive Legal Expertise: Broad and diverse legal experience with state and federal laws applicable to Covered California as a public entity and state-based marketplace under the Affordable Care Act.

• Exceptional Communication, Judgment, and Analytical Skills: Advanced analytical, research, and written and oral communication skills, with a proven ability to synthesize complex issues, advise executives, manage competing priorities and tight deadlines, and oversee multiple complex projects while keeping leadership informed of critical developments.

• Strategic, Proactive, and Collaborative Problem-Solver: Demonstrated ability to anticipate challenges and organizational needs, think strategically about the broader context, take initiative and ownership in advancing leadership priorities (including in the absence of specific direction), collaborate effectively across programs, and influence others to drive projects through to successful completion.

Benefits

The State of California offers a comprehensive benefits package that includes Health, Vision, Dental, Retirement, and an array of other options. For more information on the benefits offered by the State of California, please click below:

Pre-Employment Requirements

Background Check: All applicants shall be subject to a pre-employment background investigation. The investigation will consist of completion of a pre-employment questionnaire, fingerprinting, and an inquiry to the Department of Justice and Federal Bureau of Investigation to disclose criminal records.

Incompatible Activities: To maintain our integrity and focus on serving Californians, Covered California adheres to unique conflict of interest restrictions on the outside employment and activities of its board members and staff. If you’re considering a role with us, it’s important to know at the time of your start:

• You must not be employed by or otherwise affiliated with health insurance carriers, other insurers, agents, brokers, health care professionals, health facilities, or health clinics, or trade associations of any of these entities. This also means that you must not hold an active license to sell health insurance in California.
• You must not hold an active license to sell health insurance in California.
• Health care professionals are welcome to join our team, provided you do not receive payment for professional services and do not hold ownership or financial interests in a health care practice.

Conflict of Interest: This position is also designated under Covered California’s Conflict of Interest Code. This means if you’re selected to join us, you’ll be required to disclose certain financial interests, including of a spouse, that could potentially interfere with your ability to perform your duties impartially and with the best interests of the public in mind. You may also be disqualified from participating in decisions that may affect those financial interests.  

Please email any questions or concerns you may have prior to accepting a final offer of employment to Form700@covered.ca.gov .

Required Application Package Documents

The following items are required to be submitted with your application. Applicants who do not submit the required items timely may not be considered for this job:

• Current version of the State Examination/Employment Application STD Form 678 (when not applying electronically), or the Electronic State Employment Application through your Applicant Account at All Experience and Education relating to the Minimum Qualifications listed on the Classification Specification should be included to demonstrate how you meet the Minimum Qualifications for the position.
• Resume is required and must be included.
• Statement of Qualifications - Please attach your Statement of Qualifications (SOQ) to your application. Applications received without an SOQ may not be considered. Resumes and cover letters will not be accepted in place of an SOQ. Please see above “Special Requirements” section for SOQ instructions.

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