Legal Assistant - Disability & Elder Law Division

Position Description

The Harris County Attorney's Office (HCAO) is seeking a Legal Assistant to join the Disability and Elder Law Division which provides legal representation for the Harris County Guardianship Program, in which adults are under the supervision of the Harris County Probate Courts. This Division represents the State of Texas in Mental Health commitments and the Harris County Senior Justice Assessment Center, a consortium of state and county agencies that review cases and offer services for elderly victims of abuse and exploitation. The legal assistant in this role will assist the Mental Health attorneys in managing the civil commitment docket.

The legal assistant will draft and prepare legal correspondence, pleadings, and briefs, perform legal research and writing, maintain a specialized legal case file system, and perform other tasks as requested by the mental health attorneys.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Review involuntary commitment cases to ensure proper documents are filed as they relate to the Texas Mental Health Code and Rules of Civil Procedure.

• Research statutes, legal articles, and legal codes to prepare cases accordingly.

• Within each case file, confirm that the threshold criteria for civil commitment is met for filing.

• Keep accurate files of pleadings and related documents.

• Investigate facts and obtain evidence in cases for the Mental Health attorneys to present at trial.

• Schedule court hearings and meetings for the Mental Health attorneys.

• Convey information to courts, hospitals, and law enforcement regarding the status of cases.

• Communicate with the public and serve as liaison for the Mental Health attorneys, court staff, medical professionals, and law enforcement personnel.

• Prepare orders and correspondence required under the Mental Health Code.

• Maintain the court calendar for the attorneys and attend hearings, as necessary.

• Draft legal documents such as motions and pleadings, as necessary.

• Schedule zoom court proceedings with witnesses, attorneys and patients, as necessary.

• Performs other related duties as assigned.

Other Duties:

• This Job Description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties, or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this position. Management may, at its discretion, assign, or reassign duties and responsibilities to this job at any time.

Harris County is an Equal Opportunity Employer

https://hrrm.harriscountytx.gov/Pages/EqualEmploymentOpportunityPlan.aspx

If you need special services or accommodations, please call (713) 274-5445 or email ADACoordinator@bmd.hctx.net.

This position is subject to a criminal history check. Only relevant convictions will be considered and, even when considered, may not automatically disqualify the candidate.

Requirements

Supporting Job Application Documents:

Applicants should provide a cover letter, resume, and three (3) professional references with their application.

Education and Experience Requirements:

• High School Diploma or G.E.D. equivalent from an accredited educational institution.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Excellent research, writing, and organizational skills.

• Excellent attention to detail.

• Excellent interpersonal communication skills and the ability to communicate and collaborate independently or within a team setting.

• Proficiency in using technology and legal tools, such as Microsoft Office Suite, PDF editing software, JWEB, and DEEDS.

• Knowledge of Texas and federal electronic filing systems such as Texas e-file and federal ECF/Pacer to file and retrieve court documents.

• Familiarity of the Texas Mental Health Code, the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure, the Texas Rules of Professional Conduct, and Federal statutes related to mental health laws.

• Ability to use case management software effectively.

• Ability to perform in-person and online e-notary services as a Traditional and Online Notary Public in the State of Texas.

• Ability to perform thorough legal and factual analyses and exercise good judgment.

• Ability to perform multiple projects simultaneously while maintaining an effective balance of priorities and high productivity.

• Ability to comply with the Harris County Personnel Policies and Procedures and the policies of the County Attorney.

• Ability to comply with the organization's training requirements.

• Occasional ability to work extended hours when necessary to accommodate caseload demands.

NOTE: Qualifying education, experience, knowledge, and skills must be documented on your job application. You may attach a resume to the application as supporting documentation but ONLY information stated on the application will be used for consideration. "See Resume" will not be accepted for qualifications.

Preferences

• A minimum of five (5) years of experience working as a legal assistant is preferred.

General Information

Located in downtown Houston, the Harris County Attorney's Office represents Harris County government, the Harris County Flood Control District, the Harris County Toll Road Authority, and the Greater Harris County 9-1-1 Emergency Network in all civil matters, including lawsuits. The office also provides legal advice to county officials and employees.

Position Type and Typical Work Schedule:

• This is a full-time position. Days and hours of work are typically Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Hours may vary based on the business needs of the HCAO.

• This job typically operates in a professional office environment, and the individual in this role uses standard office equipment such as computers, printers, scanners/copiers, and phones.

Physical and Mental Demands:

• This is largely a sedentary role that requires standing or sitting for prolonged periods, exerting up to 10 pounds of force occasionally, and/or a negligible amount of force frequently or constantly to lift, carry, push, pull or otherwise move objects, including the human body, repetitive motions requiring dexterity such as keyboarding that may include the wrists, hands, and/or fingers, communicating with others to exchange concepts and information, problem-solving, decision-making, organization, the ability to read/write, and the ability to manage workplace stressors such as adversarial interactions.

Compensation:

• The base compensation for this position will be determined on the candidate's qualifications and the pay of other employees in the job function. Total compensation includes attractive paid leave programs, health benefits, and retirement plans.

• In addition, the position is eligible for the accrual of compensatory time off for hours worked over 40 in a workweek, consistent with Harris County personnel policies and procedures.

Employment may be contingent on passing a drug screen and meeting other standards.

Due to a high volume of applications positions may close prior to the advertised closing date or at the discretion of the Hiring Department.

BENEFITS

Harris County offers a competitive benefits program, including comprehensive group health and related benefits plan as well as defined benefit retirement plan.

The following list of benefits is offered only to employees in regular (full-time) positions:

• Medical Coverage

• Dental Coverage

• Vision Coverage

• Wellness Plan

• Life Insurance

• Long-term disability

• Employee Assistance Program

• Ten (10) days of vacation each year for the first five (5) years of service

• Accrual rates increase based on years of service

• Eleven (11) County-observed holidays and one (1) floating holiday

• Professional development opportunities

• Dependent Care Reimbursement Plan

• Healthcare Reimbursement Account

• 457 Deferred Compensation Plan

The following benefits are also available to regular (full-time) employment and may be available to part-time employees:

• Retirement Pension (TCDRS)
• Flexible schedule (varies by department)
• Transportation Assistance (Metro RideSponsor Program)

In accordance with the Harris County Personnel Regulations, Group Health and related benefits are subject to amendment or discontinuance at any time. Commissioners Court reserves the right to make benefit modifications on the County's behalf as needed.

For plan details, visit the Harris County benefits website:

https://benefitsathctx.com/

01

Which of the following best describes your highest level of education completed as it relates to this position?

• High School or GED diploma

• Associate Degree

• Bachelor's Degree

• Master's Degree or higher

• None of the above

02

Which of the following best describes your experience working as a legal assistant?

• Less than two (2) years

• Two (2) years but less than three (3) years

• Three (3) years but less than four (4) years

• Four (4) but less than five (5) years

• Five (5) years or more

• I do not have this experience

03

Which of the following describes your level of proficiency using a personal computer and common office software such as MS Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook). Please select your level of proficiency based on the following descriptions: Advanced: A person with this level of skills is able to produce very large, complex formal documents that require a table of contents, footnotes, endnotes, bookmarks, and other special elements; a wide range of graphic effects, and use advanced techniques for analyzing and manipulating data. Has full mastery of Macro commands and skills to tie the objects together into a cohesive system by using Macros and Visual Basic for Applications code. Makes interactive presentations by using hyperlinks and action buttons. Intermediate: A person with this level of skills is able to customize toolbars, import and insert graphs, embed Excel data, and elaborate reports. Understands the concepts of databases and is able to work with charts and to use the list management capabilities of Excel. Able to use complex query techniques, create efficient forms and reports, and create Macros to automate these forms. Makes interactive presentations by using hyperlinks and action buttons. Basic: A person with this level of skills is able to use basic formatting, editing, printing functions, and understands the document page setup. Has the ability to enter and correct data, modify a workbook, format a worksheet, and use printing functions. Understands the different database concepts and structures and is familiar with data validation and is able to create a simple presentation in PowerPoint, run it, and print it. Entry Level: A person with this level of skills has the ability to open, create, save and modify documents in Word, send and receive email in Outlook and create spreadsheets in Excel. Format documents for printing, comfortable using the printer menu to preview documents. Has ability to change the font, the margins, insert or delete pages and use the built-in spellchecker and grammar check.

• Advanced

• Intermediate

• Basic

• Entry Level

• Not proficient

04

Applicants should provide a cover letter, resume, and three (3) professional references with their application. Did you provide these supporting documents along with your application?

• Yes

Required Question

Agency Harris County

Address 1111 Fannin St

Ste. 600

Houston, Texas, 77002

Phone 713-274-5445

Website https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/harriscountytx