DIRECTOR, DIVISION OF MENTAL HEALTH ADVOCACY

Examples of work

• Supervises and acts as chief administrative officer of the Division of Mental Health Advocacy.
• Retains such other expert assistants by contract, when exceptional circumstances arise an with the approval of the Public Advocate, as are necessary to protect the public interest.
• Recommends fee schedules to the Public Advocate for payment to contract personnel.
• Assigns cases to staff attorneys or to attorneys hired on a contract basis calculated to provide competent representation in the light of the nature of the case, the services to be performed, the experience of the particular attorney and other relevant factors.
• Directs the investigation of the financial status of each client as the circumstances warrant.
• Coordinates all division activities with other governmental or private agencies.
• Plans and directs the operations of his staff.
• Counsels his staff or contract attorney and establishes operating programs for representing mental hospital admittees, individually or as a class.
• Directs the preparation of and prepares correspondence in the course of official duties.
• Gives speeches to interested groups as required concerning the operations and responsibilities of his division.
• Directs the preparation of and prepares clear, technically sound, accurate and informative statistical, legal progress and other reports containing findings, conclusions and/or recommendations.
• Directs the establishment and maintenance of essential division records, reports, and files.
• <b>REQUIREMENTS
• EDUCATION</b>
• Graduation from an accredited college with a law degree.

Experience

Five years of high level legal and administrative experience in government or the private sector or equivalent skills.

Member of the bar of the State of New Jersey.

Knowledge, skills and abilities

• Thorough knowledge of State and Federal laws and regulations applicable in the field of mental health.
• Thorough knowledge of the operations, responsibilities and policies of the other divisions in the department, or other state departments and agencies and of any non-governmental agency that is concerned with mental hospital admittees.
• Ability to assign, instruct and direct a highly technical legal, investigative and clerical staff.
• Ability to apply modern principles and practices and employee supervision in order to effectively produce results.
• Ability to comprehend, analyze and interpret laws and administrative regulations with particular emphasis as to how they relate to mental hospital admittees.
• Ability to maintain effective working relationships with the head and principal staff members of the state, county and local governmental and appropriate non-governmental agencies and with departmental staff members and division heads.
• Ability to present speeches to groups of varied educational, ethnic and interest backgrounds on a wide range of subjects involving representing the interests of mental hospital admittees.
• Ability to prepare official correspondence.
• Ability to prepare clear, sound, accurate and informative reports containing findings, conclusions and/or recommendations.
• Ability to direct the establishment and maintenance of essential records, reports and files.
• Good health and freedom from disabling physical and mental defects which would impair the proper performance of the required duties or which might endanger the health and safety of oneself or others.