Legal Assistant - Litigation

Taft Stettinius & Hollister Llp - Indianapolis, IN

Full-time - Entry Level

Indianapolis, IN

Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

About the position

Taft is currently seeking a legal assistant to join our Litigation team in Indianapolis. We are looking for a Legal Assistant with over 3 years of experience supporting our Indianapolis office specifically in the area of litigation. Legal Assistants play a crucial role in serving clients by providing essential administrative support to attorneys. At Taft, all employees operate under a "Client First" philosophy, which means that in all aspects of our work, we strive to deliver exceptional services to our clients. This position requires a proactive individual who can manage multiple tasks efficiently while maintaining a high level of professionalism and attention to detail. The Legal Assistant will be responsible for a variety of tasks that are vital to the smooth operation of the litigation team. This includes greeting guests, scheduling meetings, and conducting telephone conferences with an outstanding client service orientation. The ideal candidate will exhibit strong attention to detail and will be proactive in supporting attorneys by responding to requests with urgency and effectively prioritizing their workload. The role also involves preparing and reviewing letters and memoranda according to firm standards, monitoring deadlines, processing requests for payment and reimbursements, and entering attorney billable hours into the firm’s billing program. Additionally, the Legal Assistant will create, maintain, and retire files in accordance with Taft's Information Governance Policy, manage client contacts, emails, and print documents, and file documents with the courts electronically. This position requires excellent communication skills, both verbal and written, as the Legal Assistant will need to transcribe dictation and draft various documents and filings. The ability to read and identify pleadings and other documents related to litigation matters is essential, as is the capacity to reason and apply common sense to resolve problems and carry out instructions. The role may also require occasional overtime, exceeding 40 hours per week, to meet the demands of the litigation team.

Responsibilities

• Exhibits outstanding client service orientation in greeting guests, scheduling meetings, and conducting telephone conferences.
• Displays strong attention to detail.
• Proactively supports attorneys.
• Responds to requests with a sense of urgency and effectively prioritizes work.
• Prepares and reviews letters and memoranda according to Firm standards using word processing and document management systems.
• Proactively monitors deadlines.
• Processes requests for payment and reimbursements.
• Enters attorney billable hours into the firm billing program.
• Creates, maintains and retires files in accordance with Taft's Information Governance Policy.
• Assists in managing client contacts, emails, and print documents as well as processing mail.
• Clearly communicates in a concise, professional manner.
• Transcribes dictation.
• Files documents with the courts electronically.
• Draft documents and filings.

Requirements

• Proficiency in the use of Microsoft Office programs is required.
• Proficiency with Kofax/Nuance, InTapp, LMS+, iManage, or equivalent programs preferred.
• Knowledge of the litigation process and general court operations.
• Ability to read and identify pleadings and other documents related to a litigation matter.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Ability to reason and apply common sense understanding to resolve problems and carry out instructions furnished verbally or in writing.
• Ability to occasionally work more than 40 hours per week.

Nice-to-haves

• Education beyond high school or coursework related to the legal industry preferred.