Estate Planning Practice Assistant (Legal Assistant/Secretary)

Stoel Rives LLP has an immediate opening for an Estate Planning Practice Assistant in our Portland office. This position provides billable and non-billable support to private client attorneys in the Benefits, Tax and Private Client (BTP) practice group. This position reports to the Practice Assistant Supervisor.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS/RESPONSIBILITIES

Legal Document Preparation and Filing

Review client information and input data to automation program to generate specialized estate planning documents; revise, proofread and format estate planning documents, including powers of attorney, health care powers of attorney, health care directives/advance directives, bills of sale, authorizations, estate planning summaries, wills, pour over wills, revocable trusts, delegation of trustee powers, trust amendments, trust restatements, irrevocable trusts, trust administration memorandums, sample crummey letters and sample acknowledgement of withdrawal right letters; draft form SS-4’s and third-party authorizations; obtain EIN numbers form the IRS; draft certificates of trust for revocable and irrevocable trusts; draft assignments of membership interest of LLCs/stock power transfers, premarital agreements; legal research regarding real property; draft deeds; check status of businesses through Secretary of State website; organize information and aid attorneys by producing accurate, timely, complete and thorough work product; custom edits of documents depending on the situation of the client(s).

Word Processing

Keyboard correspondence and simple to complex legal documents and forms from transcription, handwritten drafts, or notes; apply track changes, formatting, and styles; proofread, format, edit, label and redact documents; compare documents using document comparison software and produce redline comparison; and create and edit flow charts.

Timekeeping and Billing

Enter, proofread and close time on a daily basis, adhering to timekeeping rules; review, proofread, distribute, and track proformas and client invoices; manage complex proformas, incorporate edits, and coordinate mailing of client invoices as needed; research and resolve billing problems and questions from clients and accounting as needed; and process expense reports and invoice disbursement requests.

Client Service

Communicate with clients and outside counsel via phone and email; assist as a witness and/or notary for client document signing meetings; work with clients to obtain signatures on legal documents, including regular follow up; schedule client meetings; field client questions and escalate to attorneys as needed; coordinate with Private Client team and other departments to prepare for client meetings; ensure that files contain all information needed in advance signing meetings; interact with clients to monitor status, and gather information and maintain ongoing communication by phone and email; track outstanding items from clients (regarding missing information needed to complete documents or outstanding funding issues after signing), and follow up as needed.

Teamwork

Work with and provide coverage for other Private Client team members during times of need, such as heavy workload and unplanned or planned absences; delegate and coordinate projects with support departments; assist coworkers and timekeepers with questions related to technology or firm procedure; and participate in team meetings; and maintain status notes in shared team resources.

Process Improvement

Work with the members of the Private Client group and other Firm administrative departments on process improvement efforts; assisting Private Client attorneys and paralegals with creation and implementation of standard processes and procedures for each file/project; and knowledge management related to clients (client contacts, members of boards, lists of family members, list of documents to be produced as part of the project, any other info that needs to be tracked and may be referenced throughout the project).

File and Document Management

Scan, copy, fax, print, and organize documents; request and review conflict reports; collect information needed for new business intake; open new client/matters using firm’s electronic records system; maintain electronic and physical files; retrieve documents from document management system and hard copy files; prepare and maintain notebooks; and place client originals in the office vault with photocopies and/or PDFs assembled.

Other Administrative Support

Maintain timekeepers’ calendars and stay apprised of upcoming meetings and deadlines; review documents and correspondence for important deadlines and information; schedule meetings and coordinate reservations for conference rooms; answer phone call