Bilingual Court Clerk 1 - Justice Court

Marion County • Salem, OR

7d • Onsite

About The Position

Under general supervision, the Bilingual Court Clerk 1 performs violations court clerk duties related to processing and adjudicating traffic citations, wildfire and county ordinance violations, small-claims or civil disputes under $10,000, and evictions heard through the Justice Court. The role also performs limited routine violation-trial, civil-case, and finance tasks as assigned. The position primarily provides customer service, including services to monolingual Spanish-speaking clients, and requires fluent Spanish and English. Work is performed on-site; remote work is not available. The position works under the supervision of the Office Manager or designee and does not supervise employees.

The position is full-time and eligible for overtime. The typical schedule is Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., with flexibility based on department and program needs. The employee may be asked to work 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on the first and third Wednesday of each month depending on court needs. An additional 5% of the hourly wage is provided for the required bilingual skill. The employee must obtain Law Enforcement Data System (LEDS) certification within six months of hire and pass a criminal-history background check, including fingerprinting. A finalist must also pass a verbal Spanish/English fluency assessment.

Marion County is a qualifying public employer for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program; eligible full-time employees may qualify for loan forgiveness after meeting program requirements. The county does not offer visa sponsorship. The position is represented by a union.

Requirements

• High school diploma or equivalent, and one year of related court experience; or a satisfactory combination of relevant work, education, training, or experience as determined by Marion County.
• Fluent bilingual Spanish/English skills; finalists must pass a verbal standardized Spanish/English fluency assessment.
• Pass a criminal-history background check, including fingerprinting.
• Obtain LEDS certification within six months of hire.
• Working knowledge of customer-service techniques; office operations, procedures, and equipment; cash handling; business math; English spelling, punctuation, grammar, and composition; relevant Oregon Revised Statutes and vehicle code; DMV and LEDS rules; court orders and procedures for traffic and violation matters; and strategies for working with people from varied socioeconomic, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds.
• Ability to assist customers and explain court policies and procedures without giving legal advice; manage multiple tasks in a detail- and deadline-driven environment; handle high volumes of in-person and telephone customers; review documents for completeness; follow established procedures and policies accurately; operate office equipment, computers, software, databases, and scanning applications; perform accurate data entry and arithmetic; handle cash; communicate effectively orally and in writing; draft concise correspondence; maintain effective professional working relationships; remain composed under stress; and protect confidential information under applicable legal standards and county regulations.

Responsibilities

• Provide customer assistance in person, by mail, email, and telephone, including information about violation plea options, citations, collection processes, payment options, and obtaining license clearances.
• Gather relevant information and coordinate with a supervisor or lead worker to resolve traffic cases; communicate basic case information to law enforcement and collection agencies.
• Maintain case workflow in the court case-management program; compare citations with court dockets and verify information; prepare and proofread arraignment and specialty dockets; refer inaccuracies to a supervisor.
• Update and close traffic or violation cases when a person enters a plea and pays a fine; send conviction abstracts to the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) as assigned; provide filed motions to the Justice of the Peace.
• Process traffic and violation cases at the court window, online, by mail, fax, or telephone according to the violations bureau order; access driving records as allowed by LEDS guidelines to reduce fines; assist with payment options; verify insurance and registration documents; inspect vehicles for compliance with court findings.
• Open, distribute, and process mail; receipt mail payments; review letters addressed to the Justice of the Peace and draft response letters for review and approval.
• Generate and review reports concerning failures to appear and failures to comply with payment plans; send notices; prepare and submit DMV documents requesting suspension notifications or license clearances; monitor eligibility to reinstate driving privileges.
• Cashier, receipt, process, and track traffic or violation fees, payments, and bonds; establish payment plans; maintain internal records; balance transactions, receipts, and the cash drawer; submit cases to collections and review collection-agency updates.
• Perform assigned routine traffic-violation trial tasks, including preparing and proofreading trial dockets, entering or removing driving records in electronic case files, scanning documents, adding parties, sending subpoenas, notifying parties of trial-date changes, and completing assigned LEDS tasks.
• Perform assigned routine duties in civil, small-claims, and landlord-tenant cases, including entering and scanning case information and checking civil dockets against court software files.
• Perform assigned routine finance work, including preparing daily bank deposits and summaries, preparing civil-case check disbursements, tracking civil trust deposits and disbursements, reconciling collection payments, preparing accounts-payable vouchers for monthly statements, and processing refunds.
• May serve as a witness for wedding ceremonies.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Benefits

• An additional 5% of the hourly wage as compensation for the required bilingual skill.
• Eligible full-time employees may qualify for Public Service Loan Forgiveness, subject to program requirements.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: High school or GED