Legal Assistant

City of St. Cloud•City of St. Cloud, FL

21d•Onsite

About The Position

Join our City Attorney’s Office as a Legal Assistant and play a vital role in supporting the City's legal operations and commitment to public service. We are seeking a detail-oriented, professional, and resourceful individual to provide comprehensive administrative, clerical, and legal support to the City Attorneys. This position offers considerable independence in managing daily operations, coordinating legal matters, maintaining records, preparing legal documents, and ensuring deadlines and confidential information are handled with accuracy, discretion, and professionalism. Bring our City values to life: Accountability, Empowerment, Innovation, and Ownership. This position offers considerable independence in managing daily operations, coordinating legal matters, maintaining records, preparing legal documents, and ensuring deadlines and confidential information are handled with accuracy, discretion, and professionalism.

Requirements

High school diploma or GED equivalent is required.
Minimum of three (3) to five (5) years of progressively responsible experience in a legal office, law firm, government attorney's office, or comparable legal environment; or an equivalent combination of education, training, and experience that provides the required knowledge, skills, and abilities.
Demonstrated proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite, including Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint, is required.
Must possess or obtain Florida Notary Public certification within three (3) months of hire and maintain active notary status throughout employment.
Must possess and maintain a valid State of Florida Driver's License with an acceptable driving history.
Working knowledge of legal terminology, legal document formats, and law office practices and procedures applicable to a municipal government setting.
Knowledge of Florida Statutes, local government operations, and the basic structure and procedures of Florida courts and administrative bodies sufficient to support the work of the attorneys in the office.
Proficiency in the preparation, formatting, and proofreading of legal documents and correspondence, and the ability to identify errors and inconsistencies in basic legal forms and materials prior to attorney review.
Strong organizational skills are essential, including the ability to manage multiple attorneys' calendars, track legal deadlines, and prioritize competing demands in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment.
Effective written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to compose clear and accurate correspondence, take and transcribe dictation and meeting minutes, and communicate professionally with City officials, department staff, outside attorneys, and members of the public.
Sound independent judgment in responding to routine inquiries and administrative matters without attorney direction, while recognizing and escalating priority or complex matters appropriately.
A high degree of discretion, confidentiality, and professional demeanor in handling sensitive legal matters and attorney-client privileged information is a critical requirement of this position.

Nice To Haves

Associate's degree in Legal Studies, Paralegal Studies, Office Administration, Business Administration, or a related field is preferred.
Experience with document management systems, legal research platforms, or government ERP systems is preferred.
The ideal candidate will have a minimum of two (2) years’ experience working with county or municipal government.

Responsibilities

Maintains calendars for the Attorneys; schedules and coordinates meetings, appointments, hearings, conferences, and public meetings; makes travel arrangements as needed; and assembles meeting materials, agendas, and briefing packages for attorney attendance.
Monitors and tracks contract and agreement review deadlines; proactively alerts attorneys to approaching deadlines and priority matters requiring their attention.
Coordinates the execution of legal documents by appropriate City officials; manages routing, signature collection, distribution of executed documents, and filing of executed documents in accordance with City record retention policies and applicable law.
Receives and screens telephone calls and visitors; responds to routine inquiries; routes calls and visitors to the appropriate attorney; and takes accurate messages.
Processes, sorts, routes, and distributes incoming correspondence, mail, and legal documents to the appropriate attorney or City department in a timely manner.
Performs data entry into legal management, document management, and City systems; maintains accurate and current records in all systems used by the City Attorney's Office; orders office supplies and processes purchase requisitions and invoices in accordance with City procurement procedures.
Prepares, formats, and proofreads a variety of legal documents including contracts, agreements, ordinances, resolutions, memoranda, legal opinions, correspondence, and legal notices as directed; reviews documents for accuracy, completeness, and conformance to established standards; flags discrepancies prior to attorney review.
Maintains and organizes physical and electronic filing systems for the City Attorney's Office, including legal files, contracts, agreements, and memos of understanding; ensures files are accurate, current, and accessible.
Drafts and transcribes correspondence, meeting minutes, and statements from dictation or written instructions; prepares reports, summaries, and routine replies to non-legal inquiries as directed.
Serves as a Florida Notary Public; notarizes legal documents, agreements, affidavits, and other documents as required.
Maintains records in compliance with Florida Public Records Law and applicable federal and state requirements; ensures appropriate handling and retention of confidential and attorney-client privileged materials.
Conducts basic legal research as directed, including researching Florida statutes, local ordinances, City Charter provisions, and administrative rules; searches public records, court databases, and legal research platforms; compiles and organizes findings for attorney use.
Monitors relevant legal notices, legislative updates, and filing deadlines as directed; keeps attorneys informed of applicable requirements and approaching deadlines.
Performs other related duties as assigned.