Legal Assistant - Litigation Team - City Attorney's Office (8173)

City & County of San Francisco (CA)•San Francisco, CA

41d•Hybrid

About The Position

The San Francisco City Attorney's Office is looking for a qualified and motivated legal assistant to join its Litigation Team. The San Francisco City Attorney's Office is an innovative, nationally-recognized municipal law office working to protect and advance the rights and interests of the City and County of San Francisco and its residents. With nearly 350 talented and dedicated employees, the Office provides exceptional legal services to the City's Mayor, Board of Supervisors, officials, and departments. Our work empowers City leaders with effective, responsive, and creative legal solutions and representation so they can deliver critical public services, and our affirmative advocacy enhances the lives and wellbeing of San Francisco's residents and visitors. The Office recognizes that diversity in the backgrounds, identities, and experiences of our employees enriches our workplace and enhances our work. We aspire to recruit, employ, retain, and promote talented individuals representing the full spectrum of our community, and welcome all candidates, including candidates of any race, religion, national origin, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, and age, and candidates with disabilities. We have a clear vision: to be the place where a diverse mix of people want to come and stay, grow professionally, and find purpose and engagement, and where all employees feel welcomed and respected, and valued for their work and contributions to the Office and the City. To learn more about the Office's efforts to provide an inclusive workplace where employees feel they belong and can meaningfully contribute, please visit: https://www.sfcityattorney.org/aboutus/dei/. The Office provides a hybrid work schedule for eligible employees. To learn more about the City Attorney's Office please visit our website. The Litigation Team is a collaborative and dynamic group of 23 attorneys, seven paralegals and legal assistants, and seven legal secretaries. The Team defends litigation filed against the City and County of San Francisco in State and Federal court, and handles cases such as personal injury, civil rights and property damage. Legal Assistants work under the direction of attorneys and/or paralegals and provide a variety of paraprofessional legal duties in a fast-paced, high-volume litigation practice. The responsibilities listed below represent the range of duties assigned and are not intended as an exhaustive list.

Requirements

Compliance with California Business & Professions Code Section 6450 by possessing at least one of the following:
A certificate of completion of a paralegal program approved by the American Bar Association.
A certificate of completion of a paralegal program at, or a degree from, a postsecondary institution that requires the successful completion of a minimum of 24 semester, or equivalent, units in law-related courses and that has been accredited by a national or regional accrediting organization or approved by the Bureau for Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education.
A baccalaureate degree or an advanced degree in any subject, a minimum of one year of law-related experience under the supervision of an attorney who has been an active member of the State Bar of California for at least the preceding three years or who has practiced in the federal courts of this state for at least the preceding three years, and a written declaration from this attorney stating that the person is qualified to perform paralegal tasks.
A high school diploma or general equivalency diploma, a minimum of three years of law-related experience under the supervision of an attorney who has been an active member of the State Bar of California for at least the preceding three years or who has practiced in the federal courts of this state for at least the preceding three years, and a written declaration from this attorney stating that the person is qualified to perform paralegal tasks. This experience and training shall be completed no later than December 31, 2003.

Nice To Haves

At least 1 year of litigation experience as a legal assistant or paralegal or 5+ years as a legal secretary providing proof of performing high level duties as described under Responsibilities section above.
Excellent verbal and writing skills, and an ability to work independently, as well as collaboratively with attorneys, other paralegals, secretaries and others.
Ability to analyze legal problems and perform detailed analytical work with accuracy and initiative.
Ability to manage multiple tasks and deadlines, accept and implement written and oral instructions, and communicate effectively and tactfully with attorneys, office personnel, court personnel, vendors and representatives of other governmental departments/entities and the general public.
Working knowledge of civil legal procedures, legal terminology, and court rules.
Adept in Microsoft Office Suite.
Experience with Adobe Professional, Cisco WebEx, Microsoft Team, TextMap, Concordance, IPRO Eclipse, CaseMap, Trial Director, or other similar software.
Strong interpersonal skills and a positive attitude.
Commitment to valuing diversity and contributing to an inclusive working and learning environment.
Desire and ability to work successfully as part of a team.
Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university

Responsibilities

Implement document litigation holds across various City departments.
Coordinate with the Litigation Support Team to set up cases and establish and maintain databases.
Create and organize case-specific databases and maintain case custodian lists on assigned cases.
Draft and issue subpoenas.
Assist with discovery, including electronic discovery, and the organization, case management, collection, review strategy, and production of documents obtained from litigants and City departments; prepare privilege logs.
Conduct database searches using software such as Eclipse, Concordance, CaseMap, and Text Map, and review documents within these programs for relevance, responsiveness, and privilege.
Assist in preparing motions by gathering exhibits, preparing and managing declarations, and fact and legal cite checking briefs and supporting documents using both Blue Book and California styles.
Assist on appeals, including assembling the record and conducting fact and legal cite checking.
Organize, review, search, and prepare documents, exhibits, transcripts, and other materials for use during investigations, discovery, hearings, trials and arbitrations using Eclipse, Concordance, CaseMap, Text Map, Trial Director, and other software.
Estimate and communicate realistic deadlines and expectations to attorneys.
Coordinate with attorneys, investigators, paralegals, legal assistants, secretaries, and others and effectively communicate with respect to assignments, workloads, status, and work product.

Benefits

The City offers robust health, retirement and other benefits.
Legal Assistants are represented by the International Federation of Professional & Technical Engineers, Local 21.

Stand Out From the Crowd

Upload your resume and get instant feedback on how well it matches this job.

Upload and Match Resume