Planning and Environment Solicitor

Why work with us?

At Council, we’re proud of our region. We collaborate with community to achieve truly sustainable outcomes, enhance our enviable lifestyle, and create award-winning places and spaces that are uniquely Sunshine Coast. So, if you love it here as much as we do, and you want to shape our region for the future – you’ll want to join our team!

With the vision to be Australia’s most sustainable region - Healthy, Smart, and Creative, council is at the forefront of delivering a number of region-shaping projects that will see the region become a hub for innovation, entrepreneurship and creativity, along with opportunities and a lifestyle for all to enjoy.

About the Role

The Legal Services branch focuses on the delivery of professional legal services to the organisation.  It handles a wide range of quality legal work that contributes to successful real-world outcomes in the local community.

Council’s legal services team is seeking an experienced planning and environment law solicitor to join and work closely with the established Legal Service branch as an in-house solicitor for a fixed term, to provide legal representation and advice to council and its managers and staff on a wide range of legal issues including complex planning matters and take primary conduct of a broad range of disputes and advisory work. In this role you will:

• Assist Council in resolving disputes, manage and advise in legal proceedings, including proceedings in the Planning and Environment Court and various other courts and tribunals.
• Advise Council on a diverse range of legal issues relevant to planning and local governments.
• Draft, review, and advise on infrastructure agreements and various commercial documents.

In this role you will receive a variety of challenging and quality work that is important to the future of the region.

This position has recently relocated to Sunshine Coast City Hall, based in the heart of Maroochydore CBD. This state of the art and sustainable building is designed to achieve an innovative and collaborative workspace.

About you

As a professional in the industry, you will hold a current unrestricted Legal Practicing Certificate.

You will have demonstrated knowledge and experience in planning and environment law, litigation and dispute resolution, experience in negotiating disputes.

You will possess high level written and oral communication skills, interpersonal skills and excellence in delivery of independent legal advice and service including tact, integrity and discretion.

You will be self-motivated with strong analytical and problem-solving skills and sound judgement, attention to detail, and you will be a team player who can contribute to a collegiate group and is outcome and client-focused.

Other requirements of the position are that you hold a current ‘C’ class Drivers Licence and that the appointment is subject to the satisfactory completion of a Criminal History Check.

Our Culture & Employee Benefits

Council is committed to creating an inclusive, culturally diverse, healthy, skilled and dedicated workplace culture. As an employee you will enjoy a range of benefits and working styles to suit you:

• Wellbeing: Your wellbeing is important to us therefore we offer a number of different initiatives such as discounted health related memberships, fitness passport, employee assistance program and development opportunities. 
• Flexibility: We offer a hybrid WFH model that help you be your best.
• Extras: Those extras make a difference therefore we offer salary packaging options on novated leases, superannuation, smartphones and devices. We also pay you 17.5% leave loading and Superannuation where council will contribute 12% Superannuation in addition to your 6% superannuation contribution.

How to apply

Your written application should include:

• A 1-2 page cover letter demonstrating your ability to fulfil the mandatory and desirable requirements on the Position Profile. Keep the key responsibilities in mind when addressing this criteria; and
• A current resume or curriculum vitae.

Once you have these two documents ready, click ‘Apply Now’ and follow the prompts to complete your application.

Further Information

Helpful information to assist you in completing your application is available on the Sunshine Coast Council website.

To learn more about Council’s vision and projects, you can view the Corporate Plan 2024-2028.

For specific enquiries contact Mitchell Birks during business hours on 0448 136 214.

We're working hard to create an inclusive workplace that reflects the diverse community we serve. If you require adjustments at any stage of the recruitment process, please reach out to the Recruitment Team [email protected].

At Sunshine Coast Council, we embrace differences in gender, age, ethnicity, race, cultural background including First Nations, disability, religion and sexual orientation. To deliver the best service to our region we want a workforce that reflects the diverse community that we serve. Sunshine Coast Council strongly encourages all suitable applicants to apply for this role.