Career Center

Department: Law Legal Clinic
Salary/Grade: NEX/11

For over 50 years, the Bluhm Legal Clinic has provided service through clinical education, which enhances the law school experiences for our students while serving the community at large. You will work in an innovative environment with cutting-edge legal experts from diverse and comprehensive legal backgrounds. The Bluhm Legal Clinic is internationally recognized for its involvement with legal reform and advances the bar for passionate legal services for our underserved and underrepresented communities. Located on Chicago's lakefront, the Clinic is easily accessible with its picturesque backdrop and ease to transportation and shops. You will be able to gain a vast array of knowledge, assist with community outreach and collaborate with teams who are committed to challenging the fairness of our legal institutions and to proposing solutions for reform.

Job Summary:

The Legal Assistant 2 will assist faculty with preparation and court filing of various applications and legal documents for government agencies.  This position will interact with a variety of international agencies and outside community service agencies.  Conduct legal and other research, coordinates administrative processes, and prioritizes, directs, and responds to business matters involving administrative functions associated with education and grant related financial activities. This position assists with coordinating court filings, client databases, meetings, special events, etc. and alerts supervisor of critical issues. 

DEI Statement

Northwestern Pritzker Law prides itself on its active and diverse community, which brings together a passionate and talented group of students, staff, and faculty. The Law School endeavors to take principled action towards ensuring that we live up to our responsibility—and our institutional values—to create a diverse, equitable, and inclusive community for all constituents. Law School leadership commits to working tirelessly to ensure every member feels valued, all students can study and train to be successful in their careers, all staff members can develop personally and professionally, and where our faculty can both teach and support our students and produce top quality research and scholarship.

Specific Responsibilities:

Faculty Support

• Prepare and edit legal documents, correspondence, scholarly articles, and confidential reports.
• Provide bi-lingual interpreting and translation services in Spanish for clients and inquiries.
• Draft routine motions; arrange for filing and service; format briefs (including pagination, table of authorities, cite checking, appendices).
• Prepare and maintain accurate account of meeting minutes.
• Obtain and scan records on appeal; prepare necessary paperwork for court reporters and courts for fee reimbursement.
• Collect and monitor attorney feedback and other evaluations for clinic classes.
• Maintain course management system for assigned attorneys.
• Update course packs for clinic classes.
• Schedule meetings and maintain Faculty calendars with the ability to independently decide scheduling based upon priorities.
• Maintain and manage faculty calendars; discern appropriate action and prioritizations of events.
• Communicates with faculty, clients, and other relevant parties on active matters as necessary for case related matters.

Accounting

• Create and maintain financial records for Center operations and grant related expenses.
• Verify appropriateness and accuracy of charges.
• Process and reconcile expenses, accounting transfers, and/or appropriation changes for domestic and international business.
• Update financial transaction spreadsheets and databases.
• Generate summary reports and statistics.
• Prepare and process all travel and other expense reimbursements for faculty, fellows and students including foreign and domestic travel.
• Purchase books and other supplies as needed.

Student Support

• Assist students with their client casework that includes training and advising new students each semester on creating and preparing legal documents (e.g., briefs, exhibits, discovery materials, notices, certificates of service, tables of authority, affidavits, researching/understanding court rules, etc.).
• Provide students with administrative support in preparing correspondence, mailings, court filings, prison visits, and legal phone calls.
• Assist students in making equipment reservations, room reservations, travel reservations, and car rental reservations.
• Provide students with limited IT support, translation services when appropriate, and serve as intermediary in communications between the faculty and students for all course and client related matters.
• Collect work from students and integrate it with that of their supervising attorney(s). This includes reconciling various document versions from multiple students, faculty members and external co-counsel.

Coordination

• Coordinate travel arrangements (domestic and international) and prepare itineraries with the ability to anticipate travel obstacles.
• Manage event planning to include all Clinic and Center celebrations, events, and various meetings.
• Organize and coordinate events; both onsite and off-site that may include creating timelines.
• Collect agenda items and background materials.
• Verify invoices and expense reports; and/or reconciles to budget.

Records Management

• Process client conflict check and other intake forms for Clinic centers.
• Maintain meticulous client records (hardcopy and electronic version of all files).
• Data entry of all new and closing client case file information into the case management system and produce monthly reports for the Legal Practice Administrator.
• Comprehensive knowledge of litigation guidelines (i.e., local, federal, and state court rules) and necessary filing procedures; both manually and electronically (e-filing)
• Manage and maintain client files of assigned attorneys. Keep client files orderly.
• Independently respond to and compose correspondence.
• Responsible for properly filing documents within court requirements and maintaining accurate records for client filing deliveries.
• Occasionally deliver and pick up items from various businesses, including but not limited to clients, opposing counsels, co-defendants, experts, etc.
• Obtains copies of pleadings and docket reports at courthouses and government agencies.

Other

• Cover lunches and breaks in the reception area as needed. Provide professional and helpful customer service.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study in an accredited college or university.
• 4 years of administrative support or other relevant experience required.
• Intermediate knowledge of word processing, spreadsheet, email, and database software programs is required.
• Bilingual (Fluent in Spanish reading, writing and translation)

Minimum Competencies: (Skills, knowledge, and abilities.)

• Demonstrated strong verbal, written and interpersonal communication skills and ability to communicate in a professional manner to develop rapport with clients.
• Ability to exhibit meticulous attention to detail and handle confidential information.
• Thorough knowledge of Microsoft Office platform; specifically, MS Word, PowerPoint, Excel, SharePoint, Adobe, or similar database systems.
• Fluent in Spanish (written, translation and spoken).
• Must be able to work independently; as well as in a team setting.
• Maintain a realistic balance among multiple priorities and meet deadlines.
• Demonstrated knowledge of court e-Filings and associated procedures with various jurisdictions.
• Ability to use Westlaw and LexisNexis.
• Ability to exercise good judgment and discretion.
• Ability to work independently under attorney’s supervision.
• Possess basic IT trouble shooting skills.
• Possess basic accounting and financial reporting skills.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree.
• Experience working in an academic environment.
• Experience working in a legal environment for a minimum of 3 years or more.
• Experience as a paralegal in a law firm or in-house counsel setting preferred.
• Experience in contract administration.

Preferred Competencies: (Skills, knowledge, and abilities)

• Strong skills with legal writing, creation of table of authorities and table of contents in MS Word.
• Ability to synthesize information from a variety of sources.

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  About Northwestern University

  Northwestern University is a major private research university with 12 academic divisions located on three campuses in Evanston, Chicago, and Education City in Doha, Qatar. We have approximately 2,500 full-time faculty members, 17,000 graduate and undergraduate students, and over 5,700 full and part-time staff. Northwestern University combines innovative teaching and pioneering research in a highly collaborative environment. It provides students and faculty exceptional opportunities for intellectual, personal and professional growth.

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