Assistant Public Defender

Horry County•Conway, SC

About The Position

The primary responsibility of assistant public defenders is to provide highly efficient and professional representation to indigent clients appointed by the court. This role involves accepting, researching, and preparing each case efficiently and expeditiously, advising and counseling clients on plea offers, rights, options, strategies, sentencing, and appellate rights. The position requires establishing and maintaining professional relationships with clients, witnesses, and court personnel, utilizing support staff appropriately, and seeking expert assistance when needed. The Assistant Public Defender must demonstrate maturity, a professional demeanor, and sound judgment, handle emergency assignments, and attend training seminars and conferences. Adherence to all Public Defender and County policies and procedures, including attendance, punctuality, and professional dress code, is mandatory. The role also includes representing clients in court at motions hearings and jury trials, and performing other related work as required.

Requirements

Must be a member in good standing of the South Carolina Bar
Able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily
Communicate effectively and professionally with clients and staff
Use correct English grammar, spelling, and punctuation
Follow written and oral instructions and procedures
Exhibit sound judgment and good listening skills
Handle matters with integrity and confidentiality
Plan and prepare reports, correspondence, and charts in a variety of formats
Use personal computer/software programs and general office equipment
Be extremely organized, establish priorities, and meet deadlines
Manage multiple assignments simultaneously including long- and short-range projects
Be flexible in work assignments and processes based upon need
Travel to various locations throughout the circuit for jail and investigations
Effectively utilize Defender Data, Microsoft Word and Outlook
Ability to read, analyze and interpret general business periodicals, technical procedures, legal documents, and governmental (county, state and federal) regulations
Ability to write reports, business correspondence, transcripts and/or legal briefs
Must be able to apply common sense understanding to carry out instructions furnished in written, oral, or diagram form
Ability to deal with problems involving several concrete variables in standardized situations
Must be able to evaluate problems, isolate key issues, research and develop alternative solutions

Responsibilities

Accepting, researching, and preparing each case efficiently and expeditiously
Advising and counseling each client regarding plea offers, client’s rights and options, strategies, sentencing, appellate rights, etc.
Establishing and maintaining a professional relationship with each client, witness, and court personnel
Maintaining open lines of communications with clients, witnesses involved in the case and court personnel
Utilizing the investigator, interns and other support staff appropriately
Seeking assistance from experts appropriate to the case
Demonstrating maturity and a professional demeanor at all times
Exercising sound judgement to achieve desired results
Handling emergency assignments when needed
Attending and participating in training seminars, conferences and staffing sessions
Abiding by all Public Defender and County policies and procedures outlined in manual including but not limited to attendance, punctuality and professional dress code
Performing other related work as required
Representing clients in court at motions hearings and jury trials