Job Summary

The Legal Assistant acts as personal assistant for administrative and professional superiors and may also be required to act in the capacity of lead worker for other clerical classifications within the Clark County Public Defense. As assistants to assigned teams of attorneys, the Legal Assistant studies case files and prepares proposed court orders, retrieves criminal history information, serves as a liaison between witnesses and attorneys, handles correspondence and maintains case files. Alternate assignments may involve performing lead functions such as planning work and setting daily priorities, distributing and checking work, developing office procedures, and resolving minor work or personnel problems and providing input to performance evaluations.

This recruitment will be used to fill multiple positions.

This position is represented by Local 11 – OPEIU (Office and Professional Employees International Union, AFL-CIO).

Qualifications

Education and Experience:

Four years responsible experience performing legal support activities such as a legal assistant or paralegal; or

Two years of experience in a legal assistant capacity and completion of legal assistant of paralegal course work at an accredited college or business school.

Special Requirements:  possession of, or ability to obtain, a motor vehicle driver’s license.

Other combinations of education, training and experience that would demonstrate the required knowledge and ability will be considered.

Knowledge of: Legal terminology, forms, policies and procedures; general office practices and procedures; technical and specialized functions, policies and procedures of the work unit, including filing systems and data recording methods; procedures, documents and procedural law related to conduct of legal practice in county court systems; legal terminology and diction; standard formats for legal and business correspondence, court orders and jury instructions; business English, spelling, punctuation, diction and grammar; commonly used office machines and equipment, including various personal computer applications and software programs.

Ability to: Exercise tact and mature judgment in all personal contacts; compose legal correspondence and statistical information and prepare periodic reports; understand and render clear explanation of legal procedures and policies; understand and execute complex oral and written instructions; apply extensive guidelines to a variety of work situations; maintain or supervise the keeping of complex records; interview defendants, candidates, witnesses and victims; develop and maintain effective working relationships with co-workers, supervisors, the general public and employees and officials of other public and private agencies; perform lead worker duties and assist in the maintenance of smooth office work flow and proper office decorum.

Selection Process:

Resume and other documents must be attached together in the 'Resume Upload' section of the application.  Multiple files are allowed, but all applicant attachments must be uploaded simultaneously, as there is no way to edit or append uploaded materials after submitting the application.

 

Application Review (Pass/ Fail) - An online application is required.  Attaching a resume does not substitute for a completed application; incomplete applications will not pass the application review.  Candidates deemed most qualified will be invited to participate in the remainder of the selection process.

 

Practical Exam (Pass/Fail) - This recruitment may require a practical exam which will be job related and may include, but not limited to, the qualifications outlined in the job announcement.  Candidates deemed most qualified will be invited to participate in the remainder of the selection process.

 

Oral Interview - The interview will be job related and may include, not limited to, the qualifications outlined in the job announcement.  Top candidate(s) will continue in the process.

 

Employment references will be conducted for the final candidates and may include verification of education.

 

It is general policy of the County that new employees should be hired at the lower steps of the applicable range and advance through the range at the normal progression.

First review of candidates will be September 9, 2024. This recruitment may close at any time on or after the first review date.

Examples of Duties

Duties may include but are not limited to the followin