Senior Advisor - Secondary Legislation at Parliamentary Counsel Office, Wellington - Wairarapa

Mō tēnei tūranga mahi | About this role

Help improve the quality, consistency and accessibility of secondary legislation across government

The Parliamentary Counsel Office is seeking a legally qualified senior advisor to support New Zealand's secondary legislation system.

To be considered for this role, you must have a tertiary qualification in law; and admission, or eligibility for admission, as a barrister and solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand.

This legal foundation is essential. You will use your understanding of legislation and legal processes to provide practical advice on how the secondary legislation system operates, from the drafting of empowering provisions through to publication.

Working with government agencies and teams across the Parliamentary Counsel Office, you will help improve the quality, consistency and accessibility of secondary legislation through guidance, training, capability building, issue resolution and continuous improvement.

What you'll do

• Provide advice to agencies and decision-makers on secondary legislation processes, legal requirements, and good practice.
• Develop guidance, tools, and resources to support good secondary legislation practices.
• Deliver training and capability-building initiatives across government.
• Build strong relationships with agencies, suppliers, and other stakeholders, acting as a key link between agencies and the secondary legislation system.
• Identify and help resolve recurring practice issues and opportunities to improve how the secondary legislation system operates.

What you'll bring

Essential:

• A tertiary qualification in law.
• Admission, or eligibility for admission, as a barrister and solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand.
• Strong knowledge of legislative design, drafting, publication, and legislative processes, including how the secondary legislation system operates from end to end.
• The ability to translate complex legislative concepts into clear, practical guidance and advice.

You will also bring:

• Experience developing guidance, training or capability-building initiatives.
• Strong stakeholder engagement and relationship management skills.
• Strong analytical and systems-thinking skills, with the ability to identify improvement opportunities.
• A collaborative approach and the ability to work effectively across organisational boundaries.

Our culture

Located across the road from Parliament, PCO offers you a fascinating insight into Aotearoa's legislation. We are a small office with a passion for producing great legislation.

We value our people and provide a flexible and supportive environment.

We offer a range of resources to support your wellbeing such as 5 weeks' annual leave, access to fitness opportunities such as the Parliament gym, discounted health insurance, annual vision and hearing test reimbursement, in-house te reo classes, and more.

How to apply

For more information about working at the PCO, as well as the job description, please visit our careers page www.pco.govt.nz/careers-at-the-pco.

All applications must be completed through this listing on Seek, and include a cover letter telling us why you are suitable for the role, and a CV.

Enquiries can be sent to: recruitment@pco.govt.nz

Applications close: 5pm, Thursday 15 October 2026