Legal Assistant
Job Title: Legal Assistant
Job Responsibilities:
The legal assistant plays a crucial role in supporting legal teams by providing administrative and secretarial assistance to attorneys. The responsibilities include a range of complex and specialized tasks aimed at ensuring the efficient delivery of legal services to clients. Key duties include:
- Providing excellent service to both internal and external customers.
- Preparing routine correspondence, memoranda, and legal documents such as pleadings, notebooks, indexes, and exhibits.
- Accurately filing court documents electronically and in document form, adhering to any local or judge-specific requirements.
- Anticipating the needs of assigned attorneys to promote timekeeper efficiencies by drafting correspondence and preparing shell pleadings and discovery documents in advance.
- Proofreading all documents to ensure accuracy and completeness before distribution or filing.
- Preparing and submitting client intake forms accurately.
- Establishing and maintaining appropriate files and records.
- Maintaining control files of matters in progress and following up to ensure court-ordered actions are completed.
- Utilizing standard naming and profiling conventions when scanning, emailing, and saving documents in the document management system.
- Updating contact records in Outlook and firm databases.
- Requesting pre-bills and statements for billing purposes, preparing statements for signatures, and sending them out.
- Routinely reviewing and following up on client deadlines and calendar appointments.
- Coordinating arrangements for meetings, such as depositions, mediations, interviews, and attorney travel.
- Assisting with completing and tracking CLE compliance, presentations, and training programs, and organizing other non-billable activities.
- Answering telephone calls, taking messages, providing information, and receiving information concerning matters related to the legal work handled by the assigned attorneys.
- Preparing and sending faxes, documents, mail, certified mail, overnight mail, FedEx packages, and interoffice mail.
- Mastering skills specific to the assigned practice group, including tasks such as correspondence, spreadsheets, minutes, reports, and other documents.
- Providing assistance to legal and non-legal personnel as requested.
- Serving as a Notary Public when applicable.
- Performing other duties as assigned.
Education and Experience Information:
Education: A High School Diploma is required; however, a Bachelor’s degree is preferred.
Experience: Prior experience as a legal assistant is required. Experience in corporate and securities is strongly preferred.
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:
- Demonstrated knowledge of legal terminology and legal document comparison and conversion.
- Advanced computer skills, including proficiency in MS Word, Outlook, Excel, as well as document management systems, e-Filing, and database software. Experience with NetDocs is strongly preferred.
- Ability to learn and adapt to new software programs.
- Competency in making travel arrangements.
- Ability to act as a liaison between attorneys and clients.
- Excellent oral and written communication skills.
- Accuracy, attention to detail, and good organizational skills.
- Ability to work effectively and proactively under pressure in a fast-paced environment.
- Capability to coordinate multiple tasks concurrently and meet deadlines.
- Strong client service focus and ability to work effectively in a team environment.
- Demonstrated initiative, flexibility, resiliency, and ability to adapt to change.
- Self-motivation and ability to work with minimal supervision.
- Various physical activities may be required.
Salary Information:
The job position is categorized under a non-exempt pay type. Specific salary details are not provided in the text.
Additional Information:
The law firm is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, and gender identity or expression), marital status, age, physical or mental disability, veteran status, genetic information, or any legally protected status.
