Warren County supervisors hope to find a new lawyer by week’s end after accepting the resignation Monday of attorney Marcie Southerland.

Southerland told the board she’s accepting a job offer from the District Attorney’s Office to fill a vacancy in the office’s staff of assistants, now back to three people with her addition. The departure, a subject of talk last week in local government on which the longtime attorney didn’t elaborate when first asked, leaves the county a small window to find someone to take over the county’s legal matters, one of which includes high-profile civil litigation involving former circuit clerk Shelly Ashley-Palmertree.

“I have been offered a position as an assistant DA working with Ricky Smith and his staff,” Southerland said. “I really am compelled to accept that position.”

Southerland, 61, a practicing attorney since 1996, was appointed the county’s legal counsel in January 2012. The position of county attorney is one of 10 so-called “will-and-pleasure” position that supervisors may consider at any time. Most reappointments and new appointments coincide with the first meeting of a calendar year. Though state law allows counties to pay attorneys as employees, Warren has left its subcontractor-style arrangement alone; Southerland and predecessor Randy Sherard worked under contracts that stipulated $150 hourly rates.

“We understand and it’s a great job (with the DA’s office),” Board President Bill Lauderdale said. “We thank you.”

Supervisors said they’d direct interest in the position to the chancery clerk’s office, where resumes may be handed in until 5 p.m. Friday. The county board’s next formal meeting is Nov. 17.

Legal fees skyrocketed in the past 14 months as the county has argued in Hinds County Chancery Court that the former circuit clerk, now serving a five-year sentence for embezzlement, should pay back about $1.04 million in questioned salary and contractor payments. Since August 2013, Southerland has billed the county approximately $100,834.26 to work the case. The total is separate from the contract rate for legal work unrelated to the case.

Southerland fills a vacancy left by Lane Campbell, who left the office in October. Angela Carpenter and Bert Carraway are the 9th Circuit Court District’s two tenured assistants.

Assistant DA’s in Warren County have been paid about $60,000 annually in the most recent turnovers in the positions. The state kicked in additional funding for extra assistant DA’s starting this fiscal year to take the burden off local governments’ general funds, among them Warren County.