Legal Assistant I/II

Section:                    Insurance Fraud Section/Criminal Law Division

Class:                        Legal Assistant I/II

Location:                  Norristown

Telework:                 This position will report to the headquartered location a minimum of 2 days per week.  You may have the opportunity to telework the remainder of the week, if desired and based on business need.  

Position Type:          Full-time, Non-civil service, Union

Work Hours:             8:30 – 5:00

Salary Range:           Legal Assistant I:  Pay range 4 - Starting salary of $39,785

                                   Legal Assistant II:  Pay range 5 - Starting salary of $44,890

Basic Function

This position entails a variety of legal clerical and staff support work in assisting attorneys in the practice of law in a section that investigates and prosecutes a broad spectrum of crimes but specializes in Insurance Fraud.  Employees in this position draft, review, analyze, and process legal correspondence and documents and provide clerical support for a team of attorneys, agents, and analysts.  Work assignments include the processing of the many legal documents required through all stages of a criminal case such as logging in new cases; typing, filing, and distributing copies of reports of investigation with any pertinent attachments; organizing documentary evidence; tracking statistics related to cases handled by the section; and closing case files once investigations and/or prosecutions have concluded. Additional duties include word processing and formatting of legal documents and reports of investigation from written or dictated sources, assisting in the analysis of evidence by preparing charts and Excel spreadsheets, drafting responses to routine inquiries from citizens and other governmental officials, maintaining legal files, preparing trial binders, and organizing exhibits. This work typically involves handling sensitive and confidential matters consistent with attorney-client privilege.

Legal clerical and staff support work is performed with considerable independence under the direction of a higher level supervisor or attorney who reviews the work for timeliness, accuracy, correct formatting, and adherence to procedural and other legal requirements.

• Proofreads and corrects drafts for grammar, spelling, punctuation, format, syntax, and legal citation
• Schedules appointments; prepares and submits out-service training forms, general invoices for reimbursement, travel expense reports, and monthly mileage reports; makes travel arrangements; and coordinates attendance at conferences, classes, and seminars
• Orders and maintains office supplies
• Writes responses to routine inquiries for signature by the Section Chief or staff attorney
• Advises attorneys of important due dates
• Processes and files documents in accordance with internal policy
• Utilizes electronic databases or library resources to obtain copies of cases, statutes, and regulations for attorneys
• Opens, logs, and distributes incoming mail
• Handles telephone calls from Commonwealth agency staff, law enforcement organizations, and the general public
• Maintains office files
• Maintains, catalogs, inventories, and stores case files
• Prepares the monthly reports for the prosecutors for submission to the Attorney General indicating the number of assigned cases, closed cases, arrests, pleas, sentencings, etc. 
• Transcribes tape-recorded witness statements, prison calls, etc.
• Assists prosecutors in receiving, assimilating, inventorying, and filing documents and other investigative materials obtained during the course of various investigations 
• Performs duties to assist prosecutors in pre-trial preparation which includes: 
  • Composing and typing criminal informations 
  • Compiling, preparing, and organizing all discoverable materials and composing discovery letters 
  • Assisting in drafting and filing motions, briefs, and other legal documents with the appropriate courts 
  • Preparing witness lists 
  • Typing and assisting in the preparation of jury instructions 
  • Preparing, organizing, marking, and copying exhibits and composing exhibit lists 
  • Assisting with trial preparations including the use of Trial Director 
  • Creating and organizing witness files which contain all witness statements and other documents associated with witnesses 
  • Preparing Sentencing Guidelines
• Assists the investigative team with cataloging, Bates stamping and scanning all grand jury subpoenaed documents 
• Prepares and catalogs all grand jury exhibits for the attorney’s presentation to the grand jury 
• Expunges arrest records, per Court Order, and prepares the required Affidavit of Expungement
• Performs related work as required

Legal Assistant I:

• Three years of responsible clerical, enforcement, or investigative work OR
• An equivalent combination of experience and training

Legal Assistant II:

• One year as a Legal Assistant 1 OR 
• Four years of responsible clerical, investigative or enforcement work including one year of legal clerical support experience OR
• An equivalent combination of experience and training