Paralegal

Overview

Agency Summary
The Office of Corporation Counsel (OCC) provides legal services to the City and County through its three main
divisions. First, OCC represents the City, County agencies, and City-County employees in litigation, handling a
diverse docket that ranges from tort and contract matters to constitutional law. Second, through its counseling
division, OCC provides legal advice to City and County agencies, officials, and oversight bodies to ensure that
public entities remain compliant with the law and standards of ethical conduct, to safeguard public funds, and
to promote the efficient functioning of local government for Marion County taxpayers. OCC’s third division is
the Office of the City Prosecutor, which is responsible for enforcing City-County ordinances. OCC also oversees
the Office of Equal Opportunity, which administers the City’s human rights ordinance, protecting against
discrimination in employment and other contexts. In exercising these crucial legal functions, OCC cultivates a
productive, collaborative, and compliant work environment that prioritizes the needs of our clients and the residents of Indianapolis and Marion County.

Job Summary
Litigation paralegals are responsible for working with and providing legal support services for attorneys in the
litigation division of the Office of Corporation Counsel. Position holders perform administrative work, as well as
more substantive legal support work under the supervision of practicing attorneys. This position will allow for
independent organization and prioritizing of responsibilities and duties along with moderate supervision
according to standard operating policies and procedures.

Position Responsibilities

The City-County is involved in a diverse array of litigation matters, including federal civil rights suits, tort claims, contract disputes, prisoner litigation, appeals at the state and federal level, and administrative and regulatory matters. The primary responsibility of litigation paralegals is to assist litigation attorneys with all stages of the litigation process.

Significant responsibilities include:

• Creating and maintaining comprehensive case management files for each litigation matter for which they have primary responsibility.
• Exercising independent responsibility for creating and submitting more routine court filings under the overall direction of a litigation attorney.
• For more complex court filings (such as dispositive motions and briefs) providing active assistance to a litigation attorney with certain elements of research and drafting.
• Handling communications with court staff and support staff for opposing counsel.
• Ensuring that case management schedules are kept up to date and important litigation deadlines are not missed.
• Assisting with the discovery process, including the management and preparation of evidence.
• Performing editing, proofreading, and cite-checking.
• Assisting attorneys at trial and other court hearings, including by compiling evidence, creating visual aids and exhibits, creating and running slide presentations, and by assisting in all facets of pre-trial preparation.
• Assisting with office-wide needs, including staffing the reception desk, answering and forwarding telephone calls, greeting visitors and accepting deliveries

In addition to the responsibilities listed above, litigation paralegals may perform special research or other assignments on behalf of office leadership and are encouraged to develop areas of expertise that enhance the efficiency of the office overall.

Litigation paralegals may also assist with the tort claim investigation and response process and may assist the office’s attorneys with administrative and other matters that take place outside the civil litigation setting.

This list of duties and responsibilities is not intended to be all-inclusive and may be expanded to include other duties or responsibilities that management may deem necessary from time to time.

Skills Required

Strong independent judgment. Guidance from litigation attorneys will be available, but successful litigation paralegals must have the good judgment to take responsibility for what they can handle themselves, and seek assistance when doing so is in the client’s best interests.

Organizational Skills. This position requires managing a high volume of documents and ensuring that lawsuits proceed on schedule and that no deadlines are missed. To be successful in this position, a litigation paralegal will be required to master the office’s case management software, to develop a comprehensive organizational plan for himself or herself, and to assist busy litigation attorneys in handling and organizing their case files.

Technical proficiency. The office’s litigation paralegals are expected to be able to navigate the electronic filing systems used by state and federal courts. This requires not only proficiency in individual use, but the ability to explain and communicate to attorneys who will rely on the paralegal to handle most aspects of electronic filing and to be able to assist with aspects of online legal research and cite-checking.

Communications skills. Litigation paralegals engage in frequent independent communication – with our clients’ employees, with opposing counsel and opposing counsel’s support staff, and with court staff. A high level of professionalism and skill at concise, persuasive communication is required. Writing skills are also essential to allow paralegals to operate independently in drafting some court filings, and to assist attorneys in drafting or editing others.

Ethics and professionalism. Holders of this position are public servants, and so are their clients. All employees of the Office of Corporation Counsel are expected to uphold the highest standards of ethics and professional conduct at all times.

Qualifications

Minimum Job Requirements and Qualifications

• High school diploma or GED.
• At least three (3) years’ working experience with appropriate references, OR any amount of prior professional experience working as a paralegal or in a legal support staff capacity.
• Proficiency with the Microsoft Office suite of platforms, and some familiarity with electronic records management systems.

Preferred Job Requirements and Qualifications

• Professional experience in a litigation setting, whether as a paralegal or a member of support staff.
• Bachelor’s or associate’s degree.
• Familiarity with online court filing systems and with the “Blue Book” citation manual.
• Paralegal certificate from an institutionally accredited paralegal program.
• Status as an Indiana Registered Paralegal (IRP) through the Indiana Bar Association, or a similar form of certification or specialized training in paralegal work.