Special Counsel

About the Agency

As the steward for digitally enabling Australia’s health system, the Agency plays a key role in coordinating national engagement, delivery, and adoption of digital health to facilitate person-centred, connected healthcare. Our responsibilities span national digital health services and systems, including My Health Record, Electronic Prescriptions, and the 1800Medicare App.

What you will love about this role

The Australian Digital Health Agency has an exciting opportunity for an experienced Special Counsel (EL2) to join the Agency in a fulltime, ongoing role. The Legal Team provides high-quality, cost-effective in-house legal advice and assistance to the Agency’s Executive and staff across a broad range of matters, including commercial, legislative, administrative, corporate and employment law. Reporting to the General Counsel, the Special Counsel works closely with the Technology Services Division and the Chief Technology Officer to support complex and strategically significant ICT projects that are central to the Agency’s vision and mission. At this level, the role influences legal strategy and operational practices, provides high level advice to senior management, and leads the delivery of complex and sensitive work programs of strategic and operational significance while building strong relationships with key internal and external stakeholders.

Skills and Experience (Essential criteria)

To be successful in this role, you will demonstrate:

• A minimum of seven years’ post-admission experience, including significant experience as a government or in-house lawyer.
• Demonstrated experience providing legal advice within government and/or inhouse environments, including advising on complex ICT-related matters.
• Admission as a legal practitioner of the High Court or the Supreme Court of an Australian State or Territory, with a current unrestricted Government practising certificate or eligibility to obtain one.
• Proven ability to identify key legal issues and deliver clear, concise, and practical legal advice that meets client and organisational needs.
• Highly developed communication and stakeholder engagement skills, with experience building productive relationships in a collaborative in house environment.
• Demonstrated leadership and people management experience, including leading and developing legal teams, managing legal services effectively, and exercising sound judgement, integrity, and discretion in sensitive matters.

Eligibility

• Ability to obtain and maintain a Baseline security clearance with the ability to obtain and maintain a higher clearance if required by the Agency.
• Ability to obtain and maintain national police check.
• Australian Citizenship is a condition of eligibility.

Our Benefits

• Superannuation employer contribution of 15.4%.
• Salary packaging (also known as salary sacrifice) is available.
• Annual Christmas closedown– with no leave deduction!
• Our Wellbeing Sessions & Employee Assistance Program will give you the best opportunity to balance work and life.
• Work From Home & Attractive Flexible Working Arrangements: All staff can apply for flexible work arrangements that offer a range of options for how, when and where you work.
• Collaborative workspaces with new technology available within central locations.
• Agency Study bank: Our employees are eligible for financial assistance up to 100% of costs and up to 7.5 hours per week study leave as per our study assistance guidelines.
• Generous leave opportunities including Parental (primary & secondary), compassionate, Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Leave, Cultural, Emergency Response, Defence, Half Pay option, and Portability of leave across most State and Federal government agencies.
• Accumulate flextime for hours performed in addition to ordinary hours of work. This can go towards leave.

Notes: Order of Merit: Applicants rated as suitable will be placed in a merit pool that may be used to fill similar ongoing or non-ongoing positions throughout the Agency for up to 18 months.

Application

To apply for the role, please submit your resume and a cover letter (1 page maximum) addressing the skills and experience requirements above and outlined in the position description. Please contact the recruitment team at careers@digitalhealth.gov.au with queries relating to the application process.

Closing Date: Sunday, 12th April 2026, 11pm (AEST)