Law Office Assistant 1/2

This position is open to Alaska Residents only. Please check our residency definition to determine if you qualify.

What You Will Be Doing

This position provides support to the Office of Public Advocacy’s Public Defense section in Palmer through experienced administrative and communication skills combined with a strong work ethic. The position provides administrative support with the following tasks:

• Filing legal documents with the court and serving parties. Format, edit, proofread and revise documents for correct caption, syntax, punctuation, grammar, and spelling.
• Processing incoming and outgoing mail;
• Monitoring the section’s email inbox for incoming court notices, orders, and other documents;
• Organizing paper and electronic files;
• Calendaring deadlines for attorneys;
• Answering incoming phone calls;
• Managing daily office needs such as maintaining office equipment and ordering office supplies.

Our Organization, Mission, and Culture

The Office of Public Advocacy (OPA) provides legal advocacy and guardianship services to indigent and vulnerable Alaskans. The Palmer Criminal Defense section provides skilled and professional court-appointed attorneys for defendants in criminal cases, parents and children in Child in Need of Aid cases, and juveniles in delinquency cases. OPA is a fast-paced work environment comprising individuals who care deeply about their responsibilities to our clients to whom the Agency is appointed.

The Benefits of Joining Our Team

Our office presents the opportunity to work as part of a strong team providing legal services for indigent Alaskans while enhancing your administrative skills and legal acumen.

The Working Environment You Can Expect

The Palmer Criminal Defense office is located in downtown Palmer. Free parking is available. The office is next to the courthouse and near many restaurants and shops. The Law Office Assistant position is part of a larger support team providing administrative support to the office’s attorneys.

Who We Are Looking For

We are interested in candidates who possess some or all of the following position specific competencies:

• Adaptability: adjusts planned work by gathering relevant information and applying critical thinking to address multiple demands and competing priorities in a changing environment.
• Attention to Detail: Is thorough when performing work and conscientious about attending to detail.
• Clerical: Knowledge of filing, typing, entering data, maintaining records, taking shorthand, and using and completing forms.
• Computer Skills: Uses computers, software applications, databases, and automated systems to accomplish work.

PI01A1 – Law Office Assistant 1

One year of experience that involves some combination of providing significant customer service contact; eliciting or exchanging information as related to requirements or procedures necessary to secure services, authorizations, or goods on behalf of the client; and/or performing standard administrative tasks such as preparing correspondence or reports, filing, entering data, receiving payments, and/or maintaining logs and includes the regular, proficient use of electronic management information systems and word processing and other standard business software applications.

Substitutions:

Any combination of post-secondary education from an accredited college or university (2.67 semester hours or 4 quarter hours equal one month) in any area of study and/or applicable experience, as defined above, may substitute for the required experience.

An associate’s degree or specific vocational-technical certification in a legal support career area (e.g., paralegal, legal assistant, legal secretary, or criminal justice) may substitute for the required experience.

Vocational-technical certification in a generalized business support career area (e.g., administrative office technology, business and marketing management, entrepreneurship, or office assistance) may substitute for up to 6 months of the required experience.

PI01A2 – Law Office Assistant 2

One year of specific experience as a Law Office Assistant 1 with the State of Alaska;

OR

Successful completion of training under a formally established Law Office Assistant 1-2 flexible staffing training plan with the State of Alaska;

OR