Legal Secretary - La Crosse

National Legal Aid & Defender Association; La Crosse (WI); On-site; USD 39,000 - 50,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Dental insurance

Life insurance

Disability insurance

Profit sharing

Vacation and holidays

Flexible work arrangements

Language premium

Job summary

Legal Action of Wisconsin is seeking a full-time Legal Secretary for the La Crosse office. The role supports attorneys and paralegals, handles client communications, maintains records, and assists with office operations and data reporting.

Qualifications include a high school diploma or equivalent, strong typing (45 wpm), and excellent technology skills. Flexible in supporting equity and inclusion efforts within the firm.

Qualifications

• High school diploma or prior experience in legal or social services.
• Excellent technology skills including Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, Adobe and Google Apps.
• Highly organized with ability to manage multiple deadlines in a fast-paced environment.
• Able to communicate tactfully with clients, staff, attorneys, and outside parties.

Responsibilities

• Screen calls and handle client inquiries, educate clients about Legal Action of Wisconsin programs and services.
• Maintain client electronic records and assist with case management and file organization.
• Coordinate office operations, track petty cash, and manage office supplies.

Skills

Typing 45 wpm

Highly organized

Clear communication

Tech-savvy

Education

High school diploma

Tools

Microsoft Word

Excel

Outlook

Adobe

Google Apps

Job description

Position Description

LEGAL SECRETARY

INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL POSTING

LA CROSSE OFFICE

October 16, 2026

Legal Action of Wisconsin is seeking applications for one full-time legal secretary to work at our La Crosse Office.

Legal Action of Wisconsin, Inc. (“Legal Action”) is a non‑profit law firm, funded by the federal Legal Services Corporation, the Wisconsin Trust Account Foundation, and many other sources and supporters. Legal Action provides free civil legal aid to low-income persons in Wisconsin with offices in Milwaukee, Madison, Racine, Oshkosh, Green Bay, La Crosse and Wausau. Legal Action attorneys and paralegals have expertise in a range of substantive areas, but most of our direct representation is in the areas of housing, public benefits, removing barriers to employment, consumer law, and family law.

Mission Statement: Legal Action’s mission is to deliver exceptional civil legal services and structural change advocacy, free of cost, to those most in need. Our core values (equity, advocacy, client-centered, integrity and community) guide our work and actions. Please see our website for a description of the core values and vision that guides our work.

Office Location: This position will be based in Legal Action’s La Crosse office located at 700 Third St. N, Suite 203, La Crosse, WI 54601, which currently consists of 2 staff Attorneys, 1 Paralegal and a Managing Attorney.

Governance: Legal Action’s personnel policies and other operating policies and procedures, which are subject to change by our Board of Directors, govern this position.

Position Description: The legal secretary shall provide administrative, clerical and organizational support to attorneys, paralegals and other staff. The legal secretary shall interact with various individuals on a regular basis mostly over the telephone, but some in person interaction is also required.

Key Responsibilities

Client Communication

Screens incoming calls, responds to sensitive and escalated inquiries from clients and visitors, obtains information regarding legal service inquiry, educates clients regarding Legal Action of Wisconsin programs and services. Refers calls and inquiries to appropriate staff member for a response. A large portion of the position will be answering the telephone and communication with clients and prospective clients, the courts and opposing counsel.

Job duties also involve making referrals to other organizations or law firms when appropriate and responding to e‑mail and text message correspondence from clients.

Organization and File Maintenance

The secretary will assist with case management recordkeeping by maintaining client electronic records. Electronic records may include phone downloads, as well as records in the client database. The secretary may also help attorneys and other advocates with large‑scale organization and administrative projects, such as outreach planning, travel reimbursement, maintaining client trust accounts, and organization of non‑case related electronic files.

Office Operation

The secretary will coordinate and provide administrative support to site staff to ensure efficient operation of the office. Including, but not limited to maintaining petty cash and client trust recordkeeping to track office expenditures. Track and order office supplies as needed for the office. Perform clerical functions such as filing, processing incoming and outgoing mail, maintaining case files and documents, ordering office supplies, etc.

Data Reporting

The secretary may assist staff with the collection and tabulation of project data and other internal LAW data while maintaining confidentiality of all client information.

Other

The secretary will be assigned other duties, including participation in the firm’s race equity alignment and diversity, equity, and inclusion work.

Required Qualifications

A high school diploma or prior experience in the legal or social service field.

Excellent technology skills and willingness to develop existing skills in technology such as Internet searching and other web‑based work, email, Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, Adobe, Google Apps, texting applications, and phone data preservation.

Highly organized, with the ability to juggle multiple deadlines in a fast‑paced work environment.

Ability to tactfully communicate and work cooperatively with other Legal Action staff, community partners, potential clients, clients, volunteer attorneys, opposing counsel, court staff, and other outside parties.

Accurately type at least 45 wpm (net without errors.)

Preferred Qualifications

Ability to communicate with persons in the client community who speak a language other than English as their principal language. Mostly Spanish or Hmong.

Knowledge and understanding of legal problems and the needs of low-income persons.

Prior work in the client community or in other programs that work with low-income persons.

Prior experience of administrative office work in a law firm or other legal office.

Salary/Compensation

Legal Action’s salaries are not negotiable: Our salary scales are based solely on years of experience with each step on the scale equivalent to one full year of experience. We strongly encourage applicants to include details in their resume about the duties they performed and the months they worked at each employer so that we can accurately calculate experience and salary. If we make an offer to an applicant, we depend on the resume that the applicant submitted, and we do not allow for revisions after submission.

The salary steps for this position range from:

• Step 0: $39,122 (Tier 1) / N/A (Tier 2)
• Step 5: $42,382 (Tier 1) / $46,681 (Tier 2)
• Step 10: $45,643 (Tier 1) / $50,272 (Tier 2)

Fringe Benefits

All Legal Action employees receive a full package of fringe benefits. It currently includes: employer‑paid health and dental insurance for employee, spouse, and family with a Health Reimbursement Account (HRA), employer‑paid life and long‑term disability insurance; employee‑paid income protection benefits; a profit‑sharing plan; generous sick leave accrual; and at least four weeks of vacation leave and four personal holidays per year. (Legal Action policies require employees with a spouse to contribute $200/month to the health insurance premium if the spouse has other health insurance available to them.)

Spanish or Hmong Language Frequency Premium

Legal Action’s Salary Administration Plan includes additional pay of either $2,400 annually or $4,800 annually to those employees who are fluent in Spanish or Hmong.

Flex Work

Legal Action supports flexible work arrangements that meet the goals of the organization and the employee. All employees are eligible to request flexible work, including flextime, compressed work week, and remote work.

Supervision

This position will report to the Managing Attorney of the La Crosse office.

Probationary Period

This position is subject to a probationary period of up to six months.

Legal Action of Wisconsin, Inc. is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.