The Position:

Reporting to the Executive Director and Secretary of the UTC, provides leadership and coordination for all litigation before the commission, including complex, high stakes, multi-party hearings relating to regulation of utility and transportation companies. The Director manages decision-making processes that have significant long-range impacts in constantly evolving regulatory frameworks and embraces a collaborative, teamwork driven approach to change management. 

What You’ll Do:

Administer the commission's formal case docket and provide procedural, substantive legal, and policy counsel ensuring commission orders reflect sound and lawful policies and principles. 

The incumbent will oversee rulemaking proceedings in conjunction with professional staff to ensure that all legal requirements are met, and orders reflect sound and lawful policies and principles. The Director serves as principal contact for communication with external interests in matters relating to procedures and processes. 

The Director reviews complaints proposed by commission staff to initiate against regulated companies, ensuring that a probable cause exists to initiate the complaint. In addition, reviews petitions, complaints, and other requests from parties outside the commission to initiate a formal adjudication to determine whether to initiate an adjudication, subject to the Commissioners' review. 

The Director is responsible for individual adjudications or rulemakings as an administrative law judge as the need arises. 

Additionally, the incumbent is responsible for scheduling administrative hearings, assignment of judges, reviewing initial orders for sound and lawful decision making, assisting the Commissioners with final orders on review of initial orders, approving the issuance of all notices and entry of all initial orders, considering leave requests, and preparing employee evaluations for the administrative law judges.

Additional duties include, but aren’t limited to the following: 

• Serve as the director and principal operating administrator of the division, providing overall management, legal guidance, resource management, and administrative direction to administrative law judges.
• Direct internal legal staff and administrative law judges in the disposition of adjudicative proceedings.
• Represent the commission on regulatory issues of interest and at various functions for regulated companies, private businesses, and state and national organizations. Works closely with the industry attorneys to coordinate workshops on regulatory issues.
• Management of caseload so that initial review, date of hearing, close of record, and issuance of decision occur within timelines established for each type of case.
• Review final drafts of commission orders for legal or policy deficiencies and coordinates production and entry of final orders.