Litigation Legal Secretary

$80,000 - $95,000/Yr

Burnett Specialists - Dallas, TX

Full-time

Dallas, TX

Administrative and Support Services

About the position

The Litigation Legal Secretary plays a crucial role in supporting litigation lawyers and other legal personnel by providing executive-level administrative and secretarial assistance. This position requires a proactive approach to managing all aspects of high-level professionals in a fast-paced environment. The secretary will coordinate and maintain effective office procedures and ensure an efficient workflow while adhering to the policies and procedures set by the firm. Establishing and maintaining harmonious working relationships with top-level management, supervisors, co-workers, and clients is essential for success in this role. Key responsibilities include assisting in the preparation for hearings, trials, mediations, and arbitrations, as well as providing on-site and off-site support during these events. The secretary will manage U.S. and foreign travel arrangements, ensuring accuracy in scheduling all aspects of travel, including air, hotel, rail, and car reservations. They will also prepare and track travel expense reports and manage reimbursements for firm and client-related expenses using the electronic accounting system. In addition to travel management, the Litigation Legal Secretary will maintain an electronic calendar of meetings and appointments, proactively advising lawyers of their responsibilities in advance. They will coordinate luncheons, schedule conference rooms, and manage email communications, ensuring that important matters are highlighted and addressed promptly. The role also involves maintaining client litigation files, facilitating work with the accounting department, processing new business forms, and drafting and proofreading various legal documents. Overall, this position requires a self-starter who takes strong initiative and demonstrates ownership and commitment to their work.

Responsibilities

• Assists in preparing for hearings, trials, mediations, and arbitrations, providing on and offsite support as needed.
• Manages U.S. & Foreign travel arrangements, securing and finalizing air, hotel, rail, and car reservations.
• Prepares and tracks travel expense reports and other business-related expenses using the electronic Accounting system.
• Maintains electronic calendar of meetings and appointments, proactively advising lawyers of responsibilities in advance.
• Coordinates luncheons and schedules conference rooms for meetings using the electronic room scheduler.
• Reads, responds, and highlights important emails, keeping lawyers apprised of pressing matters.
• Develops and maintains an email filing system and ensures proper archiving of emails.
• Inputs and maintains contacts in Outlook for assigned lawyers, according to their preferences.
• Maintains a list of principal contacts or working group lists for each client and matter.
• Receives, screens, and transmits telephone calls to lawyers, taking messages as necessary.
• Schedules conference calls for lawyers and effectively manages conflicting appointments.
• Creates, maintains, and updates all client litigation files in accordance with standards set by the Records Management Center.
• Facilitates work with the Accounting Department to coordinate and manage tracking of client bills and respond to client inquiries.
• Processes, tracks, and apprises status of new business forms, new client/matter reports, and conflict of interest checks.
• Drafts, inputs, and tracks daily time entries for lawyers in the electronic Time Billing System, proofreading for accuracy.
• Proofreads and revises all documents for accuracy of copy, grammar, punctuation, and syntax, and drafts correspondence.
• Manages lawyers' CLEs to ensure hours are accurate and reported appropriately.
• Performs other job-related duties such as compiling notebooks and exhibits, and preparing documents for bar association activities.

Requirements

• Minimum 3 years of related work experience.
• Proficiency in MS Office applications.
• A self-starter and forward thinker who takes strong initiative and shows ownership and commitment.