(2) Each assistant so appointed shall be a person admitted to the practice of law by the Supreme Court of this state and shall qualify by taking the usual oath of office, conditioned upon the faithful performance of duties.

(3) The Attorney General may appoint temporary assistants for a period not to exceed 15 months. Such temporary assistants shall be legally trained but are not required to be admitted to the practice of law by the Supreme Court of this state.

(4) Each assistant shall receive the salary fixed by the Attorney General, payable as other state salaries are paid. Each assistant so appointed shall devote the full time of the assistant to the business of the state, unless employment on a part-time basis is otherwise fixed by the Attorney General.

(5) Special legal assistants or private counsel may be employed by the Attorney General, under the direction and control of the Attorney General, in particular cases or proceedings, whenever the Attorney General deems it appropriate to protect the interests of the state. The cost of such special assistants or counsel shall be charged to the appropriate officer or agency pursuant to ORS 180.160.

(6) None of the provisions of this chapter prohibit the Attorney General or any of the Attorney General’s full-time deputies or assistants from voluntarily representing, without compensation or expenditure of state resources, indigent clients referred by a nonprofit civil legal aid office or pro bono program. [Amended by 1969 c.543 §2; 1971 c.418 §4; 1991 c.782 §1]