Senior Legal Typist Legal Secretary Series

California State Personnel Board Specification

Series established May 5, 1999

Scope

This series specification describes two classes used in the California state service, which perform a variety of legal support duties in a legal program within a State agency.

Definition of Series

Senior Legal Typists and Legal Secretaries perform a variety of legal secretarial and administrative duties necessary to maintain the support functions of a legal office.

Factors Affecting Position Allocation

Relative degree of difficulty, variety and complexity of duties, independence of action and decision-making, the level of supervision received, and scope and complexity of the legal program within a Department are factors used in differentiating between the levels.

Although there is a direct relationship between the scope of the attorney's and legal secretary's responsibilities, the incumbent's skill and knowledge level, ability to perform independently and assume delegated responsibilities, and the presence of other positions that tend to dilute the secretary's tasks are also considered in position allocation. Additional information regarding functions performed, complexity factors, and scope of responsibility are contained in a separate document titled "Allocation Guidelines for Senior Legal Typist/Secretary Series."

Definition of Levels

Senior Legal Typist

This class is typically used for incumbents performing the less complex legal secretarial work in State service. Under general supervision, in either a secretarial capacity or in a typing pool, incumbents perform legal typing and difficult clerical work that may involve transcribing dictation from a dictating machine and performing related office work required in preparing and processing a variety of legal documents.

Legal Secretary

Incumbents in Range A perform the full range of legal secretarial work. Under general supervision, in a secretarial capacity, incumbents type, format, file, and serve legal pleadings in multiple jurisdictions, including State, Federal, and appellate courts or Office of Administrative Hearings; perform complex clerical work; and coordinate and schedule court-related services with specific instruction.

Incumbents in Range B perform the most complex legal secretarial work. Under direction, incumbents independently perform the most difficult and responsible legal secretarial and clerical work, with minimum instruction, involving either: (1) work in a legal office with Level IV attorneys; or (2) work for a chief legal administrator with major administrative responsibility for a complex legal program and a large professional staff.

Minimum Qualifications

Senior Legal Typist

Either I

Experience: One year of experience in typing and clerical work, at least six months of which shall have been in work of a legal nature requiring the preparation of legal correspondence, petitions, briefs, motions, depositions, and various legal notices and forms. Academic education above the 12th grade may be substituted for six months of the required general experience on the basis of either one year of general education being equivalent to three months of general experience, or one year of education of a business or commercial nature being equivalent to six months of general experience.

Or II

Completion of a certificated legal secretarial program at either a regionally accredited college or business school approved by the Bureau of Private Postsecondary and Vocation Education and accredited by the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools may be substituted for all of the required general and legal experience.

Legal Secretary

Either I

Experience: One year of experience in the California state service performing the duties of a Senior Legal Typist, Range B.

Or II

Experience: Two years of experience in a private law firm, corporate law office, or a legal program in a governmental agency performing a full range of legal secretarial duties, which requires the preparation of legal documents for filing and service. [(1) Academic education above the 12th grade may be substituted for six months of the required experience on the basis of either (a) one year of the general education being equivalent to three months of the required experience; or (b) one year of education of a business or commercial nature being equivalent to six months of the required experience; or (2) Completion of a certificated legal secretarial program at either a regionally accredited college or a business school approved by the Bureau of Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education and accredited by the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools may be substituted for one year of the required experience.]

(Candidates who are within six months of satisfying the experience requirement for this class will be admitted to this examination, but they must fully meet the experience requirement before being eligible for appointment.)

Knowledge and Abilities

Senior Legal Typist

Knowledge of: Technical legal terms and various legal forms and documents and their processing; modern office methods, supplies, and equipment; business English and correspondence.

Ability to: Type at a speed of 45 words per minute; read and write English at a level required for successful job performance; establish and maintain effective working relationships; prepare correspondence independently; perform difficult legal clerical work including the ability to process a large variety of legal documents, spell correctly, use good English, and make arithmetic computations; transcribe accurately difficult dictation involving a variety of legal terms from a dictating machine; communicate effectively; follow directions; analyze situations accurately and take effective action.

Legal Secretary

Knowledge of: All of the above, and an understanding of the judicial process, Department and legal procedures and practices, and multiple and specialized areas of law; proper format of State and Federal citations; use of legal resources from traditional library references and software applications.

Ability to: All of the above, and type, format, file, and serve legal pleadings in multiple jurisdictions, including State, Federal and appellate courts, or Office of Administrative Hearings; independently perform complex clerical and legal secretarial work; coordinate and schedule legal services; screen mail, visitors, and telephone calls and take appropriate action; interact with courts, administrative agencies, governmental entities, co-counsels, opposing counsels, or witnesses as directed by the attorney ensuring deadlines are met; compose correspondence; give information and provide assistance using good judgment and discretion; maintain case and administrative files and records; may act in a lead capacity over clerical staff including legal typists.

Special Personal Characteristics

Senior Legal Typist

A demonstrated interest in assuming increasing responsibility.

Legal Secretary

A demonstrated interest in assuming increasing responsibility, mature judgment, loyalty, poise, tact, and discretion.

Additional Desirable Qualification

All Levels:

Education equivalent to completion of the 12th grade.

Class History