Legal Secretary; Exempt

THE POSITION

THIS POSTING WILL BE OPEN UNTIL FILLED

Application cut-off dates are the first and third Tuesday of each month.

With supervisor approval, incumbents may be eligible for intermittent remote work; however, they must physically reside within the Sacramento region or have the ability to regularly report to a City of Sacramento physical worksite with little notice.

The Legal Secretary position provides comprehensive litigation support, with a primary focus on accurately filing documents in State and Federal courts. Filings in Appellate and Supreme Court matters may occasionally be required. The role includes supporting law and motion practice, discovery, calendaring legal deadlines, and trial preparation from inception through completion.

The ideal candidate will have experience as a civil litigation legal secretary. Candidates will be comfortable and competent to handle civil litigation from inception to conclusion, including any post-trial motions and appeals. Candidates with strong litigation experience with Sacramento Superior Court are greatly desired. Experience with federal and appellate courts are also ideal.

The ideal candidate will have experience as a legal secretary. Experience in criminal law is preferred but not required. Litigation experience is strongly desired.

Under general supervision, Legal Secretary performs a variety of confidential and responsible clerical, secretarial, and paraprofessional duties in the City Attorney’s Office; transcribes and processes documents; compiles data and prepares reports; creates and maintains files and maintains law library.

This is a journey-level classification populated with multiple incumbents. The Legal Secretary performs the full range of complex legal secretarial work. Incumbents perform assignments with only occasional instruction or assistance, exercise judgment and discretion in the performance of duties and work is normally reviewed only on completion.

General supervision is provided by the administrative staff or staff attorneys in the City Attorney’s Office. Incumbents may provide technical supervision of other clerical positions and temporary personnel.

• Types a variety of correspondence and legal documents from draft, oral dictation, or tapes, including resolutions, ordinances, legal opinions, contracts, briefs, leases, and agreements.
• Assists attorneys in the preparation of motions, discoveries, intakes of new cases, calendaring, scheduling of hearings, and trials and depositions; copies and serves (by mail) pleadings and discovery documents; indexes, and files legal documents.
• Assists the Office Administrator with various tasks including accounts payable, information gathering for budget purposes, preparation of requisitions/purchase orders for office supplies, maintenance of personnel records.
• Works with various public agencies to facilitate the processing of City code violations; contacts and works with other City departments, agencies, courts, and law offices in the performance of duties; answers and screens telephone calls and requests for information, routes to proper attorney, department, or agency; responds if appropriate.
• Compiles information and data for statistical and financial reports; maintains a variety of records; checks and tabulates data; prepares simple statistical reports; creates, maintains, and organizes case files; conducts research as necessary concerning various litigation cases.
• Maintains law library and updates loose-leaf binders, manuals, and resource materials.
• Performs other or related duties as assigned.

• Standard legal references, legal terminology, forms and documents used in legal clerical work.
• Municipal legal procedures, and procedures and practices involved in composing, processing, and filing a variety of legal documents.
• English usage, spelling, grammar, and punctuation; business letter writing.
• Modern office practices, procedures, and equipment.
• Criminal and…