Senior Legal Assistant

Job Description

Position Summary

The Senior Legal Assistant will work to support the attorneys by performing legal work in addition to clerical duties. The Senior Legal Assistant communicates on a daily basis with members of the public, attorneys, and department heads. The Senior Legal Assistant will work with other Legal Assistants and Clerks as part of a team to ensure that the responsibilities of the unit are met.

Essential Functions

Administrative duties 

• Work with the other legal assistants and attorneys to organize discovery and discovery processes; lead discovery collection and organization for complex litigation cases, including e-discovery 
• Create case chart tracking stages of division cases and anticipated future cases 
• Draft and issue litigation holds to various governmental entities 
• Draft and issue subpoenas as needed, and work with division attorneys to collect and process data received in response to subpoenas 
• Document Gathering - Working with City and Outside Agencies to gather all documents/materials relevant to each litigation file, including but not limited to, criminal hearing transcripts, certified records of conviction, EMS and Fire records, DAO records, DHS records, Prison records, OPA records and tax records   
• Assist in preparing witnesses for hearings and requesting discovery 
• Coordinate appearance of court reporters and technology providers  
• Prepare court notices, subpoenas for witnesses, trial exhibits  
• Schedule Independent Medical/Psychological Examinations, depositions 
• Interview City employees and witnesses as part of investigations 
• Follow up on action items 

Clerical work 

• Set up all new cases files 
• Copy, scan, fax and hand-deliver documents 
• Redact sensitive information from discoverable documents  
• Preserve electronic copies of documents  

Miscellaneous  

• Duties as the Chief requires 
• Assisting attorneys with the logistics of case management, document preparation and trial  

Competencies, Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Excellent organizational skills
• Effective and professional oral and written communication
• Client management skills
• Ability to manage numerous assignments.
• Strong commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion;
• Strong interpersonal skills, including the ability to work on teams and collaborate with colleagues and clients;

Qualifications

The preferred candidate will possess an Associate’s degree, paralegal certificate or equivalent and have experience in a legal setting.