Legal Assistant 2

Duties Description Duties and Responsibilities:

• Manages file for administrative matters throughout the administrative process and ensures their accuracy.
• Manages unit calendar, files, and electronic resources and databases.
• Reviews and screens general inquiries to the unit, handles all communication needs, and makes referrals to appropriate unit where appropriate. This may include drafting responses to incoming inquiries and correspondence, including responding to telephone calls, electronic mail, and mail.
• Processes incoming administrative matters in preparation for scheduling, assigning, and scheduling administrative appearances, manages workflow and schedules, and conducts other tasks regarding the administrative hearing process or the unit. This includes the preparation, review, and editing of content for a variety of communications, including reports, proposals, emails, and websites.
• Receives, reviews, summarizes, and processes requests, submissions, correspondence, motions, and documents to the unit and for the preparation of materials related to an administrative hearing.
• Independently analyzes and develops assigned cases or files to the point where a hearing officer can depend on the accuracy of the content.
• Ensures that correspondence and all relevant case materials for each administrative matter are preserved for the file.
• May draft various legal documents and assist in the preparation for appearances of administrative matters by completing a variety of activities. This may include responses to requests, motions, affidavits, affirmations, discovery demands, interpreter requests, or scheduling requests.
• Reviews and processes decisions and orders.
• Prepares each administrative file for closing.
• Coordinates, manages, and stays up to date on the documentation of internal processes and unit data.
• May supervise administrative and clerical staff.
• Understands and respects the importance of and is able to maintain confidentiality, including when responding to questions from the public.
• Act as a liaison to other units within the Agency and ensure that the unit is informed about contacts with other units in the Agency.

Minimum Qualifications

• This title is part of the New York Hiring for Emergency Limited Placement Statewide Program (NY HELPS).

Current New York State employee with one year or more permanent, contingent-permanent or 55b/c service as a Legal Assistant 2 and are interested in reassignment; OR current New York State employees with one year or more of permanent, contingent-permanent or 55b/c service in a Senior Attorney position and eligible for transfer under section 70.1 of the Civil Service Law.

Provisional Appointment: If a viable eligible list does not exist, a provisional appointment may be made in accordance with Civil Service Law. Candidates who accept a provisional appointment must take the next competitive examination and be reachable on the resultant eligible list in order to be considered for permanent appointment to the position. Please visit https://www.cs.ny.gov/jobseeker/ for additional information on state examinations. The minimum requirements for Legal Assistant 2 are: one year of permanent competitive or 55b/c service as Legal Assistant 1, SG-14.

Non-Competitive Promotion: If there are no more than three qualified candidates in the promotion field for this position, the agency will request approval from the Department of Civil Service to fill this position via a non-competitive promotion (NCP) examination, pursuant to Section 52.7 of the Civil Service Law. In order to be eligible for the NCP, candidates must be in the direct promotion field, a current NYS Justice Center employee, and have one year of permanent competitive service as a Legal Assistant 1, SG-14 and must not have failed, or failed to take the last holding of the promotion examination for the title listed above.

Non-Competitive Minimum Qualifications (NY HELPS) : Three years of full-time experience as a Paralegal/Legal Assistant (see “definition” below).

Definition: a Paralegal/Legal Assistant is someone who applies knowledge of the law and legal procedures in rendering direct assistance to lawyers, clients, and courts; prepares and interprets legal documents and forms; research, compiles, and uses information from legal materials to provide both written and verbal comments on their findings; and analyzes and handles routine procedural problems indepen…