Legal Assistant - Family Services

at  Frederick County Government

JOB INFORMATION

Non-exempt; full-time; 40 hours per week; Monday through Friday ; 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. may require some evening work; full-benefits; grant-funded
This Legal Assistant position is assigned to provide administrative and clerical support and legal analysis, legal research to the Family Services Law Attorney and occasionally to the Family Services program. The legal assistant will interview litigants, review documents, prepare documents for review, and assist with organizing and preparing litigants for hearings. This position is located in a fast-paced environment and must perform client based interviews, case screenings, and must be able to handle sensitive-confidential information and comply with laws, rules, guidelines and procedures. This position may encounter difficult topics and exposure to domestic violence, child abuse, and animal abuse. This position reports to the Family Services Family Law Attorney and is supervised by the Family Services Administrator.
Pursuant to Section 2-501 of the Courts and Judicial Proceedings Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland, this position serves at the discretion of the Circuit Court Judges. This means that this position is at will and that either an employee, or the court, may terminate the employee relationship at any time, with or without cause. There are no contractual relationships between the Circuit Court and an employee; letters, benefit or policy statements, performance evaluation, handbooks, or other employee communications should not be interpreted as such. The at-will relationship remains in full force and effect notwithstanding any statements to the contrary made by court personnel or set forth in any documents.
NOTE: The upper pay range reflects possible wage rates for internal County transfers and promotions. For transfers and promotions, wage rates are calculated per County policy.

QUALIFICATIONS AND REQUIREMENTS

The qualifications/requirements, knowledge/skills/abilities and physical requirements or working conditions described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.

• High school graduation or the equivalent
• Minimum of 4 years administrative work experience
• Experience working with the public
• Intermediate skills in the use of Microsoft Outlook, Word, and Excel
• NOTE: Additional related education/certifications and work experience may be counted towards the overall requirements for this position

KNOWLEDGE / SKILLS / ABILITIES:

• Knowledge of legal terminology and preparation of legal documents specifically Family Law
• Knowledge of Maryland Court documents and filing process with Maryland Courts
• Ability to narrow legal issues based on facts collected
• Ability to effectively perform legal research and summarize findings
• Ability to communicate effectively with attorney’s, associates, clients and other agencies; provide support and assistance as needed
• Discretion and impeccable judgment in dealing with sensitive information and confidential matters
• Ability to deescalate angry or distraught visitors
• Ability to think clearly and maintain a pleasant, professional demeanor under crowded and chaotic conditions (e.g., children crying or misbehaving, multiple people insisting on your attention, simultaneously)
• Ability to create and edit forms, court documents, tables, signs, spread sheets
• Ability to effectively organize work, determine priorities, perform multiple tasks concurrently, and complete assigned duties with minimal supervision and instruction
• Ability to exercise discretion and good judgment
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
• Strong and effective spoken and written (English) communication skills, with the ability to effectively create, update, and maintain paper and electronic files, records and filing systems
• Ability to develop and maintain positive and effective working relationships with internal and external professionals and with the public

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS / WORKING CONDITIONS:

• While working in this position, the employee is required to constantly sit and perform repetitive motions; occasionally walk and reach; and rarely stoop, lift up to 20 pounds and drive
• While working in this position, the employee is required to constantly work indoors

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND JOB RESPONSIBILITIES

• Greet and assist clients seeking legal assistance from the Help Center with a professional demeanor, both virtually and in-person
• Perform initial interview/intake of litigants
• Review case information to narrow legal issues based on facts collected
• Draft and prepare legal documents for review and approval by attorney
• Research and analyze applicable substantial and procedural law
• Assist with providing and requesting discovery; assist with organizing and hearing preparation
• Maintain and track names of clients, including walk-ins, and search database to find matches with past clients
• Schedule virtual meetings with client and attorney
• Track client information for case progress
• Maintain inventory of center supplies, brochures, and other written material; review on-line resources for accuracy regarding Family Services available; oversee law library resources
• Open and close center daily; arrange furniture, post notices, prepare devices for use, etc.
• Assist clients with organizing and preparing for trial explicitly as directed by Family Law Attorney
• Perform research of related case information and any resources that may be available within the community
• Assist parties with the public assess computers; provide direction to sites and resources available
• As needed, provide administrative support to the Family Law Attorney and Family Services Supervisor
• Assist with overseeing and giving direction to Interns
• As needed, provide administrative support to the Family Law Attorney and Family Services Supervisor
• Perform data entry, filing, reception duties; including answering phone calls and emails
• Perform other related duties as required
  To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. Any single position may not be assigned all duties listed above, nor do the examples cover all duties that may be assigned. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

The qualifications/requirements, knowledge/skills/abilities and physical requirements or working conditions described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.

• High school graduation or the equivalent
• Minimum of 4 years administrative work experience
• Experience working with the public
• Intermediate skills in the use of Microsoft Outlook, Word, and Excel
• NOTE: Additional related education/certifications and work experience may be counted towards the overall requirements for this positio