Legal secretary job description sample, including tasks, skills, and responsibilities to edit to attract top candidates for your business.
The career of a legal secretary is similar to that of a regular secretary or a regular administrative assistant. However, this type naturally works in the legal environment, and the law will be the main activity of their employer.
Legal secretaries are hired by law firms, a multi-specialty firm with a separate legal department, attorney’s chambers and other legal and judicial institutions. However, the names of jobs used to describe these legal administrators may differ from organization to organization, e.g, barristers’ clerk, court secretary or legal personal assistant (PLA).
Most of their professional lives are dominated by general administration and office administration. They can manage incoming phone calls, taking minutes or dictation, then write correspondence or prepare other documents.
In addition, they will set up meetings with clients and assign workplaces and resources for new employees and internal candidates, such as phones, computers, and LANs and Internet connections. They will be required to develop their organizational muscles by managing and maintaining databases and library resources.
Duties of the Legal Secretary:
- Greet guests and clients by welcoming them personally or by phone; response or direct requests.
- Produces information by replicating, formatting, entering, editing, downloading, copying and transferring text, data, and graphics; coordinate case preparation.
- Saves attorneys time by reading, investigating, reviewing, verifying and directing correspondence, reports, and legal documents; write letters and documents; collect and analyze information; start telecommunications; organize conferences with clients and attorneys; courier services, court reporter, expert witness and other special functions; coordinate the preparation of tables, graphics and other visual elements in the field; prepare cost statements.
- Conduct conferences, teleconferencing, arranging and attorneys’ travel; recording and monitoring the date of the court appearance, allegations and requests for filing; monitor the gathering of evidence; anticipate changes in lawsuits or prepare transactions.
- Represents a lawyer for communication and obtaining information; monitoring delegated tasks; to know when to act and when to refer cases to a lawyer.
- Generates revenue by documenting and entering attorneys’ time and reimbursement costs; prepare invoices; payment tracking
- Maintains customer trust while keeping clients/attorneys confidential.
- Provides historical references through the development and use of submission and retrieval systems; write the discussion about the meeting; keep transcripts; document and retain evidence.
- Maintains office spending by checking the inventory; accommodate and speed up orders; evaluating new products.
- Guarantees the operation of equipment by meeting preventive maintenance requirements; ask for repairs
- Update working experience by participating in educational activities; reading professional publications; maintenance of personal networks; participating in professional organizations.
- Improving the reputation of a department and organization by accepting ownership over the application of new and different requests; exploring opportunities to add value to your professional achievements.
Education and Experience
Relevant qualifications or training
- Knowledge and experience of relevant software applications
- Processing, presentation and database management
- Working understanding of legal procedures and legal terminology
- Knowledge of local, state, and federal filing rules
- Ability to spell, punctuation, grammar and other English skills
- Good knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures
- Transcription and typing skills
Key Skills
- Verbal and written communication skills
- Attention to detail
- Privacy
- Plan and organize
- Information management
- Integrity
- Judgments and decisions
- Orientation towards customer service
- Initiative
- Reliability
- Tolerance to stress
