Legal Assistant/Secretary

$45,000 - $55,000/Yr

Samuel, Sayward & Baler - Dedham, MA

Full-time - Entry Level

Dedham, MA

Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

About the position

A busy estate planning, estate settlement, trust administration, and elder law firm in Dedham seeks an experienced Legal Assistant. The ideal candidate will be a self-starter who enjoys working in a dynamic environment, possesses excellent people and organizational skills, and has the ability to handle a variety of tasks daily. We are looking for a team player who embodies the firm values: expertise, quality service, professionalism, reliability/dependability, and collegiality. In this role, you will support Senior Paralegals with their work for our clients, ensuring that all tasks are completed efficiently and accurately. You will be responsible for following up with clients to collect necessary information and documents, coordinating with other staff to schedule meetings for clients to review and sign their estate plan documents, and revising and finalizing draft estate plan documents to send to clients. Additionally, you will prepare and finalize correspondence to Registries of Deeds, Probate Courts, other law firms, CPAs, and more. Your communication skills will be essential as you will need to liaise with out-of-state attorneys to coordinate the preparation of deeds, prepare various corporate documents for filing with the Secretary of State's Office, and prepare Trust Funding forms as needed. Administrative tasks such as scanning, copying, and preparing correspondence will also be part of your daily responsibilities, along with handling additional tasks as needed.

Responsibilities

• Support Senior Paralegals with their work for clients.
• Follow-up with clients to collect information and documents.
• Coordinate with other staff to schedule meetings for clients to review and sign their estate plan documents.
• Revise and finalize draft estate plan documents to send to clients.
• Prepare and finalize correspondence to Registries of Deeds, Probate Courts, other law firms, CPAs, etc.
• Communicate with out-of-state attorneys to coordinate preparation of deeds.
• Prepare various corporate documents and file with the Secretary of State's Office.
• Prepare Trust Funding forms as needed.
• Perform administrative tasks such as scanning, copying, and preparing correspondence.
• Handle additional tasks as needed.

Requirements

• High school diploma required; associate or bachelor's degree preferred.
• 3-5 years of law office administrative work experience, preferably with an estate planning or elder law firm.
• Strong attention to detail and proficient proofreading skills.
• Excellent interpersonal, verbal, and written communication skills.
• Excellent organizational skills and the ability to prioritize and handle multiple tasks.
• Ability to work independently with minimal supervision.
• A team-oriented attitude and professional demeanor.
• Ability to maintain the confidentiality of information.
• Familiarity with probate courts and registries of deeds is a plus but not required.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Word, Excel, and Outlook, and other common office applications.
• Familiarity with Clio and Timeslips is a plus.

Nice-to-haves

• Familiarity with probate courts and registries of deeds is a plus but not required.
• Familiarity with Clio and Timeslips is a plus.

Benefits

• 401(k)
• 401(k) matching
• Free parking
• Health insurance
• Paid sick time
• Paid time off
• Parental leave