Legal Secretary I

About Us

The Office of the Los Angeles City Attorney is one of the nation's largest municipal law offices. With over 1,000 legal professionals, including 500 attorneys, the Office provides the City of Los Angeles (“City”) with the highest caliber of legal services, ranging from prosecuting criminal misdemeanors and playing a leading role in criminal justice reform to advising on homelessness initiatives, defending civil lawsuits and claims, and bringing civil enforcement actions in the name of the People of the State of California.

Guided by an overarching commitment to integrity, service and accountability, we find great meaning in the work we do and the services we provide. We seek collaborative team players who understand that fulfilling our mission is key to making a positive impact.

Description

The General Litigation Division defends the City of Los Angeles and its employees in civil tort litigation, particularly in personal injury and property damage actions.

Duties and Responsibilities

The Legal Secretary performs a complete range of secretarial duties for one or more attorneys. Duties include:

• Generating documents for federal and state court litigation;

• Preparing and serve legal documents;

• E-filing court documents with the court(s) and court reservations;

• Processing reports for Board and City Council approval;

• Processing settlement packages and record retention;

• Uploading and updating CityLaw for case information, lodging, generating documents, calendaring, and closing out cases;

• Google calendaring for assigned attorney(s) for hearings, meetings, deadlines and events;

• Utilizing Microsoft Office and Google Sheets/Docs to lodge information and review updates;

• Ordering records, videos, and transcripts;

• Preparing general correspondence;

• Scheduling meetings, depositions, appointments and preparing petty cash forms, if required;

• Organizing case materials;

• Preparing trial binders and exhibit notebooks, including daily jury fees;

• Providing backup support to other staff/attorneys;

• Heavy telephone contact and emails with the public, various City departments, and court personnel; and

• Other related duties as assigned.

Requirements

• Applicants must be on the Legal Secretary I eligible list. Applicants who are not on the Legal Secretary eligible list will be contacted and scheduled to complete the spelling test and letter composition exercise.

• The position requires a fast and accurate typist who portrays strong initiative skills, detail-oriented, and professional communication presence with the public and City departments, by phone and email.

• Applicant must be responsible, reliable, punctual, and able to work well with others while under minimal supervision.

• Strong ability to prioritize, multi-task, and organize tasks to meet deadlines. The applicant must also have strong ethics, be able to exercise discretion and maintain confidentiality.

• Proficiency in the operation of personal computer equipment/programs

• Applicants must be able to lift items up to 25 lbs., with or without reasonable accommodation.

• The hours for this position are from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. Reliable attendance and punctuality are mandatory.

• At least one year of clerical or secretarial experience is required.

• Knowledge of legal procedures and terminology is desirable.