Legal Assistant

Department

Law: Clinic - Staff

About the Department

The University of Chicago Law School occupies a unique niche among this country's premier law schools. Located on a residential campus in one of America's great cities, UChicago Law offers a rigorous and interdisciplinary professional education that blends the study of law with the humanities, the social sciences, and the natural sciences. Students, faculty, and staff form a small, tightly knit community devoted to the life of the mind.

Job Information

Job Summary:

The University of Chicago Law School's Edwin F. Mandel Legal Aid Clinic (Clinic) seeks a Legal Assistant to provide legal, administrative, and communications support to a group of Clinical Law Professors/attorneys and their law students. The Clinic teaches and trains law students to serve as advocates for people typically denied access to justice, provides legal assistance to clients in state and federal court, and works to reform the legal system and government policies.

Responsibilities:

• Preparing and filing legal documents in civil and criminal cases in state and federal courts and international tribunals, including electronic filings.

• Assisting with civil and criminal discovery.

• Handling correspondence and coordinating meetings.

• Organizing and maintaining electronic and paper files and databases.

• Searching electronic dockets.

• Issuing discovery and record requests.

• Drafting and coordinating production of public education materials, including, blog posts, updates to website and press releases.

• Conducting basic searches in and retrieving documents from legal databases such as Westlaw, Lexis, Bloomberg Law.

• Proofreading, copyediting, and formatting legal and policy documents.

• Organizing and coordinating logistics for workshops, conferences, and events, including an intensive trial practice workshop.

• Providing support for faculty teaching responsibilities, including but not limited to: uploading course materials to Canvas, our learning management system, conducting basic research, coordinating conference calls and individual/team meetings, and preparing recommendation letters.

• Preparing expense reimbursements, and tracking expenditures.

• Assisting in preparation of grant applications, tracking grant expenditures, and assisting in grant reporting.

• Developing marketing and promotional content regarding clinic activities.

• Coordinating and arranging travel.

• Other duties as assigned.

Competencies:

• Superior computer, database, and Internet skills; including experience with Excel, Outlook/other email applications, PowerPoint, Adobe Acrobat.

• Excellent communication, interpersonal, organizational, writing, proofreading and formatting skills.

• Ability to work closely and effectively with multiple supervising attorneys and students.

• Ability to take ownership of projects, take initiative, and manage diverse tasks efficiently and independently.

• Ability to handle confidential information with absolute discretion.

• Strong work ethic, strong problem-solving skills, sound judgment.

• Efficiency, persistence, creativity, excellent attention to detail.

Additional Requirements

Education, Experience, or Certifications:

Education:

• High School Diploma or GED required.

• Bachelor's Degree strongly preferred.

Experience:

• Administrative assistant experience preferred.

• Experience working in a law-related context preferred.

• Experience with trial software, time-tracking applications and design software preferred.

Technical Knowledge or Skills:

• Knowledge of general office procedures and practices.

• Ability to keep records; assemble and organize data and prepare and submit reports in acceptable formats.

• Working knowledge of Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, Adobe Acrobat and ability to navigate web-based systems.

• Ability to learn a range of position-related software applications.

Working Conditions and Physical Requirements:

• Ability to bend, crouch, or stoop.

• Ability to carry or lift loads up to 49 lbs.

• Ability to sit for 8 hours or more.

• Ability to use computers extensively for 4 hours or more.

• Ability to stand for 4 to 8 hours.

• Flexibility to work in alternative areas as needed.

• Willingness to work occasional overtime hours to meet court filing deadlines.

Pay Range:

• $22.62-$30.07 per hour.

Required Documents:

• Resume/CV
• Cover Letter

When applying, the document(s) MUST be uploaded via the My Experience page, in the section titled Application Documents of the application.

Benefit Eligibility

Yes

Requires Compliance with University Covid-19 Vaccination Requirement

No

Pay Frequency

Hourly

Pay Range

Please refer to Additional Requirements to see the pay ranges

Scheduled Weekly Hours

37.5

Union

024- Local 743, I.B.T. Clerical

Job is Exempt

No

Drug Test Required

No

Motor Vehicle Record Inquiry Required

No

Health Screen Required

No

Posting Date

2023-01-19-08:00

Remove from Posting On or Before

2023-07-19-07:00

Posting Statement:

Employees must comply with the University's COVID-19 vaccination requirements. More information about the requirements can be found on the University of Chicago Vaccination GoForward.

The University of Chicago is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity/Disabled/Veterans Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, age, status as an individual with a disability, protected veteran status, genetic information, or other protected classes under the law. For additional information please see the University's Notice of Nondiscrimination.

Staff Job seekers in need of a reasonable accommodation to complete the application process should call 773-702-5800 or submit a request via Applicant Inquiry Form.

We seek a diverse pool of applicants who wish to join an academic community that places the highest value on rigorous inquiry and encourages a diversity of perspectives, experiences, groups of individuals, and ideas to inform and stimulate intellectual challenge, engagement, and exchange.

All offers of employment are contingent upon a background check that includes a review of conviction history. A conviction does not automatically preclude University employment. Rather, the University considers conviction information on a case-by-case basis and assesses the nature of the offense, the circumstances surrounding it, the proximity in time of the conviction, and its relevance to the position.

The University of Chicago's Annual Security & Fire Safety Report (Report) provides information about University offices and programs that provide safety support, crime and fire statistics, emergency response and communications plans, and other policies and information. The Report can be accessed online at: http://securityreport.uchicago.edu. Paper copies of the Report are available, upon request, from the University of Chicago Police Department, 850 E. 61st Street, Chicago, IL 60637.