Senior Paralegal - Litigation

Kirkland & Ellis; New York (NY); On-site; USD 70,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Kirkland & Ellis seeks an experienced litigation paralegal to support complex matters across various teams. The role involves coordinating discovery, managing documents, and helping prepare court filings and exhibits.

You will use Relativity, Westlaw, TextMap, and other litigation tools to streamline processes. Ideal candidates have 5–10+ years of paralegal experience in litigation, strong organizational skills, and the ability to work with cross-functional teams under deadlines.

Qualifications

• 5–10+ years of litigation paralegal experience supporting complex matters.
• Experience with discovery workflows, document management, and trial preparation.
• Proficiency with litigation technology and legal research databases.

Responsibilities

• Drive case and discovery management: coordinate collection, organization, review, and production of documents and data; maintain chain of custody.
• Own court filings and legal documents: assist in preparing and filing briefs and routine documents; coordinate service and local counsel; perform cite checking.
• Conduct substantive research and support hearings and trials; use litigation tools to organize case information and manage workflows; collaborate across case teams.

Skills

Litigation paralegal

Analytical thinking

Communication skills

Organization

Overtime and travel flexibility

Education

Bachelor’s degree preferred

Paralegal certification preferred

Tools

Microsoft Office

Relativity

TextMap

Westlaw

PacerPro

Job description

About Kirkland & Ellis

At Kirkland & Ellis, we don’t just meet the standard for legal excellence — we set it. Our culture is built on teamwork, ingenuity and an unwavering commitment to continuous growth. We tackle the most sophisticated legal challenges with bold ideas and innovative solutions, powered by the exceptional experience and ambition of our 7,000+ people, including 4,000+ attorneys, across 24 offices worldwide. Our dedicated professionals share our lawyers’ commitment to excellence and show up each day to do meaningful work that helps drive global business, investment and innovation forward.

What You’ll Do

• Drive case and discovery management: Coordinate the collection, organization, review, and production of documents and electronic data, maintain chain of custody, and support complex discovery efforts.
• Own court filings and legal documents: Help prepare and file briefs and routine legal documents, compile exhibits and appendices, coordinate service and local counsel, and conduct legal and factual cite checking.
• Conduct substantive research: Analyze case materials and research applicable court rules and procedures, venue-specific requirements, precedent, prior testimony, and other case-related information.
• Support hearings and trials: Coordinate pretrial preparation, organize and track exhibits, manage transcripts, and provide hands-on support through hearings and trial.
• Leverage litigation technology: Use litigation support tools to organize case information, manage document review workflows, support electronic filings, and coordinate discovery materials.
• Collaborate across case teams: Work closely with attorneys, litigation support teams, clients, experts, consultants, local counsel, court personnel, and other external parties to keep matters progressing efficiently.
• Lead based on experience: More senior paralegals may supervise junior paralegals and litigation teams, coordinate workflows, manage databases, and help prioritize competing deadlines across multiple matters.

What You’ll Bring

• Education: Bachelor’s degree preferred; paralegal certification is also preferred. Candidates working in California must satisfy applicable California paralegal requirements.
• Experience: 5–10+ years of litigation paralegal experience, with demonstrated experience supporting complex matters, discovery, and trial preparation.
• Litigation expertise: Strong experience organizing significant volumes of case information, managing filings and discovery workflows, and preparing matters for hearings and trial.
• Technology proficiency: Proficiency with Microsoft Office, including Excel, Relativity and other document management systems, along with experience using additional litigation tools such as TextMap, Westlaw, electronic court filing systems, and PacerPro.
• Organization and judgment: Excellent analytical and organizational skills, strong attention to detail, initiative, and the ability to prioritize multiple matters and deadlines.
• Communication and collaboration: Strong written and verbal communication skills with the ability to build productive relationships and contribute effectively within collaborative case teams.
• Flexibility: Ability to accommodate overtime and travel based on case and trial needs.

Equal Employment Opportunity

All employment decisions, including the recruiting, hiring, placement, training availability, promotion, compensation, evaluation, disciplinary actions, and termination of employment (if necessary) are made without regard to the employee’s race, color, creed, religion, sex, pregnancy or childbirth, personal appearance, family responsibilities, sexual orientation or preference, gender identity, political affiliation, source of income, place of residence, national or ethnic origin, ancestry, age, marital status, military veteran status, unfavorable discharge from military service, physical or mental disability, or on any other basis prohibited by applicable law.