SELF-HELP ATTORNEY

Superior Court of California, County of San Joaquin; Stockton (CA); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Telecommuting consideration

Excellent benefits

Job summary

The Superior Court of California, County of San Joaquin, is seeking a Self-Help Attorney to provide legal assistance and information to self-represented litigants in family law and related matters. The role involves supervising the Self-Help Center staff, educating the public on court procedures, and developing educational materials to support litigants.

The position is a full-time, journey-level attorney role with potential for telecommuting.

Qualifications

• Juris Doctorate from an accredited school of law is required.
• Knowledge of family law, mediation techniques, and related court procedures is highly desirable.
• Experience delivering self-help legal services in court or nonprofit settings is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Supervise Paralegals, office staff, and interns in the Self-Help Center and ensure policy compliance.
• Review documents for completeness and procedural accuracy; guide non-lawyer staff.
• Develop and provide educational materials to the public about court rules and procedures.

Skills

Legal supervision

Family law knowledge

Legal research

Court procedures

Education

Juris Doctorate

Job description

The Superior Court of California, County of San Joaquin, is now accepting applications for Self-Help Attorney. This is an outstanding opportunity with the Court. The Court offers a competitive salary, excellent benefits, and consideration for telecommuting.

Under general direction, provides legal assistance and legal information to self-represented litigants with regard to family law, guardianship, and other related matters in accordance with applicable statutes, regulations, and court policies; supervises and provides direction to staff within the Self-Help Center, educates and assists self-represented litigants regarding court procedures; develops and provides educational materials to self-represented litigants concerning the law and procedures; provides referrals to other court-based services; and performs related work as assigned.

This is the full journey-level professional attorney classification in the Self-Help and Family Law Facilitator Services. Attorneys in this class provide legal and procedural assistance to self-represented litigants in a variety of legal matters, provide legal guidance and direction to the Court’s non-lawyer Self-Help staff and provide work review of documents and forms they generate. Self-Help Attorney is distinguished from the Family Law Facilitator in that the latter is responsible for the overall planning, development, and administration of self-help services.

• Supervises Paralegals, office staff, and interns in the Self-Help Center, enforces compliance with policies and procedures, provides coaching for performance improvement, and recommends disciplinary action to address deficiencies in accordance with department resources and policies.
• Reviews legal documents and forms for completeness and procedural compliance with specific requirements set forth in applicable legal codes; provides guidance and assistance to non-lawyer court staff to determine appropriate procedures and applicable forms and documents needed; reviews, for technical accuracy, the work performed by Paralegals and assigned staff.
• Develops and provides information and educational materials to the public regarding court rules and procedures; reviews court documents with self-represented parties and explains legal options; assists with the preparation of legal documents; screens cases and refers to outside agencies if necessary; disburses legal documents to self-represented parties.
• Assists in the daily operation of the office, including the maintaining of statistics and ensuring staff coverage.
• Assists in developing community outreach programs for unrepresented and financially disadvantaged litigants; performs community outreach activities to inform the public of the services offered.
• Responds to email requests for assistance and written correspondence from incarcerated litigants.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

Any combination of training and experience that would provide the required knowledge, skills, and abilities is qualifying. A typical way to obtain the required qualifications would be:

Equivalent to possession of a Juris Doctorate degree from an accredited school of law.

Knowledge in the area of work to be performed and experience providing legal self-help services through either a court-based Self-Help Center or nonprofit legal aid organization are highly desirable.

Licenses and Certifications

Active membership in the State Bar of California.

Possession of, or ability to obtain and maintain, a valid California Class C Driver's License and a satisfactory driving record, or the ability to utilize an alternate method of transportation when needed to perform job-related functions is required.

Individuals who do not meet this requirement due to a disability will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

KNOWLEDGE OF

• Principles and practices of employee supervision, including work panning, assignment, review and evaluation, and the training of staff in work procedures.
• Family law, including mediation techniques and approaches, and or provisions of domestic violence, probate, landlord/tenant or consumer law. Legal processes, and Rules of Court.
• Litigant assistance programs, including legal aid and legal assistance services.
• Family law and other legal software programs.
• Principles, practices, methods, and materials of legal research and analysis.
• Legal terms, procedures, forms, and documents.
• Principles and practices of sound business and legal communication, data collection and report preparation.
• Modern office practices, methods, and computer equipment and applications related to the work.
• English usage, grammar, spelling, vocabulary, and punctuation.

ABILITY TO

• Assist in developing and implementing goals, objectives, practices, policies, procedures, and work standards.
• Supervise, select, train, motivate, and evaluate the work of staff.
• Establish and maintain staff and work schedules to meet assignment coverage needs.
• Work with people of diverse socio-economic backgrounds.
• Use tact and diplomacy when dealing with sensitive, complex, and or confidential issues, situations, and or difficult individuals.
• Analyze problems and legal issues and identify solutions.
• Apply legal principles to case facts and make sound decisions.
• Research and analyze a variety of legal documents.
• Organize and prioritize a variety of projects and multiple tasks in an effective and timely manner, organize own work, set priorities, and meet critical time deadlines.
• Use English effectively to communicate in person, over the telephone, and in writing.
• Establish, maintain, and foster positive and effective working relationships with those contacted in the course of work.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

Must possess mobility to work in a standard office setting and use standard office equipment; vision to read printed materials and a computer screen; and hearing and speech to communicate in person, before groups, and over the telephone. This is primarily a sedentary office classification although standing and walking between work areas may be required. Finger dexterity is needed to access, enter, and retrieve data using a computer keyboard or calculator and to operate standard office equipment. Positions in this classification occasionally bend, stoop, kneel, reach, push, and pull drawers open and closed to retrieve and file information.

ENVIRONMENTAL ELEMENTS

Employees work in an office environment with moderate noise levels, controlled temperature conditions, and no direct exposure to hazardous physical substances. Employees may interact with upset staff and or public and private representatives in interpreting and enforcing departmental policies and procedures.