Legal Assistant 2 (In-Training)

Description

Schedule: Monday – Friday, 8 a.m. – 5p.m. This position is designated as mobile, but requires in-person office work three days per week and as office requires. 

About us:
The Environmental & Land Use Hearings Office (ELUHO) houses three quasi-judicial tribunals: the Pollution Control Hearings Board (PCHB), the Shorelines Hearing Board (SHB), and the Growth Management Hearings Board (GMHB). These Boards manage a wide variety of cases and make significant decisions affecting Washington State’s environment and local land use plans. Our agency is comprised of a small team of legal and administrative professionals whose mission is to support these three independent and impartial boards. We strive to make board appeal processes easy and accessible, and to provide timely and exemplary review of appealed issues.
   
ELUHO prides itself on being an employer of choice that values diversity and provides a workplace inclusive of different cultures, backgrounds, and ideas. We are committed to the health and well-being of our employees and their families. We support healthy lifestyles and a healthy work/life balance, and we aim to provide employees with professional development opportunities.

Why you, a skilled professional, will want this position:
We are a smaller state agency that values and appreciates staff for who they are, not just for what they do. The work we do is unique and provides opportunities for innovation and for learning a wide variety of (non-repetitive) skills and responsibilities. Our agency is a place where you will be supported by others who want you to succeed and grow. This position is a growth opportunity for a professional with some legal assistant skills to grow into a high level legal assistant job classification.

Who we are looking for:

You are an experienced professional who values teamwork and wants to be part of an agency where you are respected and valued. You are a proactive, effective communicator who appreciates collaboration and enjoys building relationships with others, including professional staff, attorneys, and judges. You are detail-oriented, skilled in problem-solving, and adept in case management practices. You are a creative thinker who enjoys bringing ideas forward and you are invested in the work you perform. You can manage your time effectively in a fast-paced environment, work independently, and you demonstrate good judgment. You take pride in your work and you are looking for meaningful employment in an environment that cultivates longevity.

What you will be doing:
You will be part of a small team of legal professionals who work closely with one another to provide technical and complex legal support functions to Board members and administrative appeals judges for all three (3) boards. You will perform routine legal support functions such as: preparing routine legal pleadings and or forms; proofreading and editing of legal documents for content and grammar; entry and navigating legal databases to meet legal deadlines; creates and maintains legal files; reviews and identifies relevant information for docketing; coordinating; scheduling and calendaring hearings, conferences, and meetings. These functions include tracking and managing case timelines and documents, scheduling hearings and conferences, working directly with attorneys and judges, and reviewing/proofreading legal materials. You will be working in a fast-paced legal office and you will use the MS Office Suite and an electronic legal case management system to do the majority of your work. In addition, you will provide customer service to attorneys, litigants, state agencies, vendors, and the public. This position will also provide backfill support to other legal assistants and legal office assistants.

Duties

Some of what you will enjoy doing includes:

• Preparing, drafting, editing, proofreading, and citation checking various legal documents
• Managing Board calendars and case deadlines
• Entering data and uploading, filing, and retrieving documents into/from an electronic legal case management system
• Assisting with preparing legal documents and certifying records to the Courts including copying, bates numbering, and preparing certification documents
• Indexing, filing case documents
• Drafting correspondence, legal letters, and memos
• Maintaining a well-organized office filing system
• Independently responding to requests for information and other requests
• Maintaining office supplies, including conducting inventories, ordering supplies, and tracking orders
• Preparing and processing vendor, travel, and expense vouchers/invoices
• Receiving and screening clients, vendors, and the public by phone and in person while directing them to the appropriate resources
• Assisting agency Director and Director of Legal and Administrative Services with special projects
• Backup to legal assistant team and front desk staff as needed

Qualifications

NOTE:  A skills assessment will be administered as a part of the selection process.

AND

• Two (2) years of working experience showing basic knowledge of current legal office practices, methods, procedures and court rules.
• Two (2) years of working experience showing proficiency in MS Office Suite (Outlook, Word, Excel and PowerPoint).
• Two (2) years of working experience knowledge of common software programs used in a legal office for word processing, data tracking, and calendaring.
• One (1) year professional or personal experience working on Zoom, TEAMS or other video conferencing systems.
• Professionalism, confidentiality and punctuality.
• Demonstrates reliability and the desire to learn new skills.
• Communicates effectively verbally and in writing.
• Ability to work independently.
• Manage multiple priorities, difficult phone conversations with the public and ability to work in a fast-moving environment.

• Keyboard and type accurately
• Use litigation software and case management systems
• Proofread for accuracy and content
• Understand and apply procedures, policies, and guidelines
• Prepare legal pleadings
• Analyze situations accurately and take effective action
• Proficiently use MS Office Suite (Outlook, Word, Excel and PowerPoint)
• Follow current legal office practices, methods, procedures and court rules 
• Proficiently use Zoom, TEAMS, or other video conferencing systems

• Proficiency in MS Office Suite (Outlook, Word, Excel and PowerPoint)
• One year professional or personal experience working on Zoom, TEAMS or other video conferencing systems
• Professionalism, confidentiality and punctuality
• Demonstrates reliability and the desire to learn new skills
• Communicates effectively verbally and in writing
• Ability to work independently
• Manage multiple priorities, difficult phone conversations with the public and ability to work in a fast-moving environment

• Keyboard and type accurately
• Use litigation software and case management systems
• Proofread for accuracy and content
• Understand and apply procedures, policies, and guidelines
• Prepare legal pleadings
• Analyze situations accurately and take effective action
• Proficiently use MS Office Suite (Outlook, Word, Excel and PowerPoint)
• Follow current legal office practices, methods, procedures and court rules; and
• Proficiently use Zoom, TEAMS, or other video conferencing systems

• Two or more years of experience working in a fast-paced legal or court clerk office
• Two or more years of experience using electronic legal filing and legal case management systems
• Expert level proficiency using MS Office Suite
• Two or more years’ experience proofreading and formatting legal pleadings

Supplemental Information

Please provide the following documents in order to be considered, failure to do so may result in you not being considered for the position:

• A letter of interest, describing why you are the best candidate and how you meet the specific qualifications for this position;
• A current resume, detailing experience, and education; and
• A current list of at least three (3) professional references, including at least one supervisor,with current contact information (attached or available to provide at the time of interview)

NOTE:  By submitting these materials, you are indicating that all information is true and correct. The state may verify information. Any untruthful or misleading information is cause for removal from the applicant pool or dismissal if employed.  A resume will not substitute for completing the “duties summary” section or supplemental questions of the application.  Please do not “refer to resume” for detail, or your application may be disqualified. 

Opportunity for All:

ELUHO celebrates our differences and we are committed to a workplace that supports equal opportunity employment and inclusion regardless of race, creed, color, national origin, citizenship or immigration status, marital status, families with children (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sex, sexual orientation, gender identity diversity, age, status as a protected veteran, honorably discharged veteran or military status, status as an individual with the presence of any sensory, mental, or physical disability or the use of a trained dog guide or service animal by a person with disabilities or other applicable legally protected characteristics. We will also consider qualified applicants with criminal histories, consistent with applicable federal, state and local laws.
    
You are welcome to include the name and pronoun you would like to be referred to in your materials and we will honor this as you interact with our organization.
    
Persons with a disability who need assistance with their application or need this announcement in an alternative format, may call (360) 664-1960 or toll free (877) 664-1960. TTY users should first call 711 to access the Washington Relay Service.
    

Contact Information:
For questions about this recruitment or to request a reasonable accommodation in the application process, contact Angie Anderson at (360) 407-8446 or email jobs@des.wa.gov. 

Applicants who are deaf or hard of hearing may call through the Washington Relay Service by dialing 7-1-1 or 1-800-833-6388.