How to hire a city solicitor

How to hire a city solicitor, step by step

Here's a step-by-step city solicitor hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a city solicitor job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new city solicitor
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the city solicitor you need to hire. Certain city solicitor roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A city solicitor's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, city solicitors from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list presents city solicitor salaries for various positions.

   Type of City Solicitor	Description	Hourly rate
   City Solicitor	Lawyers advise and represent individuals, businesses, and government agencies on legal issues and disputes.	$25-51
   Legal Extern	Legal externs are law students who took the opportunity to do on-the-job training at a law firm. Instead of monetary compensation, they receive academic credits... Show more	$11-44
   Corporate Counsel	A Corporate Counsel, also known as a corporate lawyer, works for a business or company providing legal advice to the employer. They usually work in the employers main office, but also can travel to participate in meetings, trials, and other legal proceedings.	$47-99

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Litigation
   • Administrative Hearings
   • Jury Trials
   • Appeals
   • Legal Research
   • Legal Advice
   • Legal Issues
   • Child Abuse
   • Legal Opinions
   • Arbitration
   • Real Estate
   • Administrative Law
   • DHS
   • Federal Courts

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage the in-house final appeals process for all labor grievances.
   • Prepare and litigate cases for jury trial and arbitration.
   • Try dozens of binding arbitration labor cases before AAA mediators.
   • Represent all inter-city departments within civil litigation proceedings.
   • Represent the municipal corporation of Cincinnati, Ohio in the civil litigation division.
   • Draft dispositive motions, discovery motions, pleadings, initial disclosures, respond to discovery requests and interrogatories.

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your city solicitor job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A city solicitor salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, city solicitors' average salary in maine is 67% less than in california.
   • Seniority. Entry-level city solicitors earn 50% less than senior-level city solicitors.
   • Certifications. A city solicitor with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a city solicitor's salary.

   Average city solicitor salary

   $75,829yearly

   $36.46 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level city solicitor salary

   $53,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 18, 2025

4. Writing a city solicitor job description

   A good city solicitor job description should include a few things:

   • Summary of the role
   • List of responsibilities
   • Required skills and experience

   Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a city solicitor job description:

   City solicitor job description example

   The ideal candidate will have at least 5 to 7 years of e-discovery and/or civil litigation experience. The Deputy City Solicitor will report to the Executive Office and will handle projects for the City Solicitor, First Deputy City Solicitor, Chief of Staff and Chairs. When needed, this position will be used as a floater for any Law Department Unit when they need e-discovery help or additional help.
   Essential Functions
   
   Supervising all aspects of e-discovery to support litigation and Right to Know requests, including electronic document preservation, collection, review, and production.
   
   Onboard new discovery software and train attorneys and assistants in best practices.
   
   Serve as project manager on a variety of legal matters involving large volumes of data.
   
   Coordinate activities between in-house counsel, external counsel, City Office of Information Technology, and the external technology e-discovery team responsible for data collection, processing, and production.
   
   Working with attorneys to create search terms, perform bulk coding, and categorizing documents.
   
   Develop internal e-discovery policies and procedures.
   
   Create and manage system for intake and response to third party subpoenas.
   
   Aid internal teams with organization and storage of case files and internal documents.
   
   Support deposition and trial teams with collection and presentation of exhibits.
   
   Ensures that proper security is maintained overall project materials, in accordance with City security procedures.
   
   Competencies, Knowledge, Skills and Abilities
   
   Requires expert knowledge of litigation support; outstanding writing skills; excellent oral communication skills; and excellent management skills.
   
   Demonstrated ability to manage numerous complex and time-critical litigation support activities simultaneously, including technical/data processing and e-discovery support activities.
   
   Experience with one or more e-discovery platforms such as Relativity or Microsoft Advanced e-discovery (including familiarity with boolean searching, file types, and metadata fields).
   
   Strong understanding of privacy and cyber security issues with respect to data management and transfer.
   
   Experience with discovery practice in Pennsylvania state and federal courts.
   
   Ability to maintain large volumes of documents and data utilizing databases such as Sharepoint.
   
   Qualified candidates must be hard working, organized, attend to detail, and have an eager, helpful attitude.
   
   Knowledge of City procedures is a plus.
   
   Excellent time management skills
   
   Excellent organizational skills
   
   Ability to work in a demanding and fast-paced setting
   
   Ability to work productively on one's own, and collaboratively
   
   Experience with Word , Excel (including formulas), Teams, and Adobe Acrobat (including bates stamping and redaction)
   
   Knowledge of legal concepts such as attorney-client privilege and relevance

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find city solicitors for your business:

   • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your city solicitor job on Zippia to find and recruit city solicitor candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting city solicitors requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new city solicitor

   Once you've decided on a perfect city solicitor candidate, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, it should include benefits and perks available to the employee. Qualified candidates may be considered for other positions, so make sure your offer is competitive. Candidates may wish to negotiate. Once you've settled on the details, formalize your agreement with a contract.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   To prepare for the new city solicitor first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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