Template Specialist

Smokeball, Inc.; Chicago (IL); Hybrid; USD 65,000 - 75,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Vacation days

Reboot days

Birthday off

Volunteer time

Excellent medical coverage

Dental coverage

Vision coverage

401(k) match

Wellness stipend

Office lunch and snacks

Swag

Job summary

Smokeball, Inc. in Chicago, IL is seeking a Template Specialist to craft polished document templates and ensure quality delivery for law firms.

As part of TemplateLab, you’ll translate client needs into high-quality templates, review contractor work, and decide when AI-assisted drafting is appropriate. This hybrid role requires in-office presence Wednesdays and Thursdays in Chicago.

Qualifications

• 3+ years in a law firm in a legal support role.
• Experience with document templates or form building/configuration is strongly preferred.
• Confident working directly with clients: gathering requirements, managing follow-up, setting realistic expectations.
• Exceptional attention to detail and a track record of highly accurate work.
• Strong ownership and judgment — able to work independently and uphold quality.
• Curious, adaptable, and excited to use AI tools to work more efficiently.
• Knowledge of Microsoft Office — Word, Outlook, etc.

Responsibilities

• Consult with clients to gather requirements and translate them into clear build instructions.
• Execute template building and template quality assurance per standards (court/agency forms, starter templates, custom templates).
• Troubleshoot complex technical issues and act as final decision-maker on template readiness.
• Research and build court captions across areas of law and jurisdictions using Smokeball’s configuration app.
• Configure and deliver new-firm letterhead and paid letterhead customizations.
• Maintain Smokeball’s library of 20,000+ forms and prioritize updates with client usage data.
• Liaise with contractors by answering questions, reviewing work, and giving feedback.
• Adopt AI and automation tools to accelerate template development.
• Partner with Legal Engineering, Product, and Client Success to improve tooling and workflows.
• Define and evolve template quality standards and drive process improvements.

Skills

Document templates

Client communication

AI tools

Attention to detail

Independent work

Microsoft Word

Tools

Microsoft Word

Job description

With offices in Australia, the US, and the UK, Smokeball is the leading provider of legal practice management software helping small and mid-sized legal practices run their best firm and live their best life. We’re passionate about what we do, and our clients know it!

Culture plays a big part in our success, and our clear purpose and vision motivate us daily.

About the Job

Are you a paralegal or legal assistant who loves creating polished document templates, solving tricky formatting challenges, and finding smarter ways to work? At Smokeball, you'll combine your legal expertise with technology to help law firms build better document templates

As part of TemplateLab, one of Smokeball's premium document drafting solutions, you'll work directly with law firms to understand their document needs, transform those requirements into high-quality templates, and ensure every deliverable meets our high standards. You'll also be the final quality checkpoint, reviewing and signing off on work configured by our contractors before it reaches clients.

The best part? You’ll set the standard, not just follow one. You’ll shape how templates are built, delivered, and improved, and work closely with clients to determine whether traditional templates or AI-assisted drafting best serves their use case. As the technical expert your colleagues rely on, you’ll partner with Legal Engineering, Product, and our client teams to surface client needs, shape decisions, and sharpen the tools behind the work.

If you're excited about the role but don't tick every box below, we'd still love to hear from you. We care just as much about curiosity, potential, and a willingness to learn as we do about experience. In addition, our detailed, supportive, and immersive training will ensure you are ready for success in the role.

This is a hybrid role based in our office in Chicago, IL. All Chicagoland employees are required to be in the office on Wednesdays and Thursdays.

Key Responsibilities

Document Templates, Quality & Delivery

• Consult with clients who purchase custom template packages, gathering their requirements, translating them into clear build instructions, uploading templates into clients’ accounts and testing them, and owning improvements through the post-completion feedback period.
• Execute template building and template quality assurance based on standards set for all document template solutions (court & authority forms, starter templates, and custom templates).
• Troubleshoot complex technical issues and serve as the final decision-maker on template readiness before release to clients.
• Research, design, build, and maintain court captions across areas of law and jurisdictions using Smokeball’s configuration application, including collaborating with clients to capture caption needs.
• Configure and deliver new-firm letterhead during onboarding, along with paid letterhead customizations, building reusable solutions that control formatting and behavior across templates.
• Work closely with the Legal Product Operations Manager to maintain and evolve Smokeball’s library of 20,000+ court and agency forms, using client usage data and jurisdictional changes to prioritize what to add, update, or retire.
• Liase with our team of template-building contractors by answering questions, reviewing work, and providing feedback.
• Adopt emerging AI and automation tools to accelerate template development and help decide which documents are best kept as traditional templates versus AI-assisted drafting.
• Partner with Legal Engineering, Product, and Client Success to resolve issues, improve tooling and workflows, and reinforce quality standards.
• Define and evolve template quality standards, surfacing gaps and risks and driving process improvements that reduce rework and scale over time.

Skills & Experience

• 3+ years in a law firm (1–30 employees) in a legal support role (e.g., paralegal or legal assistant), with hands-on experience drafting legal documents and/or court forms.
• Experience with document templates, document field code tools, or form building/configuration — strongly preferred.
• Confident working directly with clients: gathering requirements, managing follow-up, and setting realistic expectations.
• Exceptional attention to detail and a track record of highly accurate work in a detail-oriented environment.
• Strong ownership and judgment — able to work independently, act with urgency, and hold a high bar for quality.
• Curious, adaptable, and excited to use AI tools to work more efficiently.
• Knowledge of Microsoft Office — Word, Outlook, etc.

Nice to Have

• Experience with Smokeball or a similar legal practice management platform.
• Experience working with outsourcing teams or reviewing delegated work.
• Familiarity with multiple areas of law and their document workflows.
• Experience using AI in a work context, both for document drafting and to streamline day-to-day work.
• Experience with and understanding of Word document formatting.

Compensation

Template Specialist: $65-$75k per year

What's in it for you?

Work-Life Balance: 20 vacation days, 3 reboot days, birthday off, volunteer time, and more!

Benefits: Excellent medical, dental, vision coverage. 401(k) match, & monthly wellness stipend

Office lunch and loads of snacks

And of course...the SWAG!

Want to Know More?

Why do we do what we do? Where did the name ‘Smokeball’ come from? What are our values? Learn more here !

*Smokeball values diversity & inclusion and is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. Smokeball considers all individuals seeking employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, marital status, ancestry, physical or mental disability, veteran status, gender identity, sexual orientation, or any other legally protected characteristic.