The Paralegal/Litigation Secretary professional will work directly and support the Personal Injury Attorneys and with other members of the Personal Injury department, as well as other departments (i.e., Workers’ Compensation, Employment Law, Administration, Intake, etc.), as assigned. In addition, they may be tasked with special projects on an as needed basis requiring direction and guidance by Management and/or other Pod Leaders.
Primary duties/responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
- Oversee and manage approximately 50 to 75 litigation matters with the assistance of the assigned pod leader and Firm support staff
- Communicate and correspond with client(s) about case status and preparation (i.e. telephonic-ally, in-person, etc.)
- Receive/screen incoming calls, take accurate messages and enter into voicemail per attorney preferences
- Prepare documents for filing with the appropriate court or other government office, by hand delivery or e-filing, in compliance with rules set out by that agency
- Create and maintain litigation files for each matter
- Prepare legal documents for service on appropriate counsel and parties
- Propound and respond to written discovery
- Draft meet and confer correspondence regarding deposition subpoenas
- Assist in gathering documents and evidence from client throughout the discovery phase and course of litigation
- Review, index, organize, and summarize documents produced by other parties and medical healthcare providers
- Manage attorney’s calendar and calendar all related litigation dates (i.e. hearings, depositions, mediation, etc.)
- Ensure that all court appearances are covered either by the assigned attorney, court call or a covering attorney service
- Draft legal documents such as deposition notices for attorney review/approval and service on opposing counsel and parties
- Schedule interpreters for depositions, IMEs, court hearings
- Assist in coordinating and scheduling depositions and mediation
- Assist in tracking and monitoring pending attorney tasks
- Review deposition transcript with client
- Assist in trial preparation, including but not limited to preparing trial documents, exhibits and binders
- Communicate with medical and legal experts throughout litigation to assist in maintaining and coordinating expert deposition documents and availability
- Perform legal research and writing
- Draft and edit memorandum, correspondence, pleadings, charts and tables using appropriate and effective software applications
- Schedule appointments, set up conference calls, arrange meetings, schedule conference rooms and make travel arrangements using Firm applications and appropriate resources
- Fax, photocopy, scan, and convert or export/import documents to/from other applications
- Maintain electronic and hard copy files in accordance with the Firm's policies/procedures
- Process attorney weekly time summaries, review billing and prepare monthly invoices
- Open and sort incoming litigation mail; and perform other duties as assigned by Management and/or Pod Leaders
Competencies/Skills:
- Ability to handle confidential and sensitive information with a high degree of discretion and tact
- Ability to communicate effectively with a range of individuals
- Possess strong organizational/clerical skills
- Ability to work alone or as part of a team
- Ability to pay very close attention to detail
- Ability to adhere to law office procedures
- Ability to identify urgent tasks and to prioritize accordingly
- Able to practice appropriate office etiquette
- Ability to manage their time and multi-task effectively
- Ability to maintain composure and professionalism under pressure
- Ability to adapt to new situations and changing priorities
- This position requires physical activity including, but not limited to bending, stooping, repetitive motion, and lifting of up to 20 pounds (lbs.). In addition, lifting heavy items and transport/guide up to 100 pounds (lbs.) of material on a cart is sometimes required.
Qualifications:
- Possess a working knowledge of all phases of litigation
- Minimum 3 – 5 years’ experience working in a law firm
- Familiarity with Microsoft Office Suite (i.e., Outlook, Word, Excel) and other applications and/or systems (i.e., Adobe, Internet)
- Professional appearance and “get it done” attitude
- The right candidate will have excellent written and verbal communication skills; and
- Bilingual, fluent in English and Spanish, is required as over 90% of the Firm’s clientele are Spanish speaking
