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Paralegal Page 1 I 2 Jurisdiction: Cortland County Jurisdictional Class: Competitive Adopted: 10/20/05 Amended: 05/14/07; 06/08/07; 01/03/08; 5/10/12; 6/1/12; 2/25/13; 10/4/24 PARALEGAL DISTINGUISHING FEATURES OF THE CLASS: The work involves responsibility for performing paralegal duties and a variety of tasks that while not requiring the skills of an attorney, nevertheless, entail the application of limited legal procedures and research techniques to facilitate the preparation of legal documents and matters for litigation. Depending upon the Department involved, the incumbent’s specific duties will vary within the broad framework of paralegal skills. The work is performed under the general supervision of the department’s attorneys with considerable leeway allowed for the exercise of independent judgement. Does related work as required. TYPICAL WORK ACTIVITIES: (Illustrative only) Organizes material and information for pleadings, orders, petitions, motion papers, demands for discovery, bills for particular contracts, resolutions and other legal documents; Conducts routine correspondence on matters where policies and procedures have been defined; Processes, indexes, and sorts records and maintains correspondence files necessary for the operation of the Attorney’s office; Conduct interviews with witnesses and when appropriate, prepares and takes sworn statements or depositions; Subpoenas witnesses, officers and others to obtain statements or testimony at trials; Prepares petitions, court orders, and other legal documents required for Court calendar and arranges for scheduling of cases; Obtains legal reference material and conducts research regarding questions of law or regulation under supervision of an attorney; Answers telephone, schedule appointments, receive callers and refer them to the proper persons, and answers requests for various information; May appear in court with the department’s attorneys and/or on behalf of the Public Defender’s Office*; May meet with staff to obtain information regarding matters before the Court to determine what evidence, witness or materials would be required to continue processing of the case; May review client applications to determine eligibility for legal services; May assist in labor contract negotiations. FULL PERFORMANCE KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, ABILITIES AND PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS: Good knowledge of general legal principles, practices and procedures; Good knowledge of modern office terminology, procedures, equipment and business English; Working knowledge of the functions and procedures of Courts; Working knowledge of the laws pertaining to legal proceeding; Skill in investigative and interviewing techniques and report preparation as applied to legal proceedings; Ability to understand and carry out complex oral and written directions; ---PAGE BREAK--- Paralegal Page 2 I 2 Ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing; Ability to efficiently gather facts through investigation and interviews; Ability to operate a personal computer and utilize common office software programs including word processing, spreadsheet and databases at an acceptable rate of accuracy and speed; Physical condition commensurate with the demands of the position. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS: Either: Possession of a Bachelor’s degree or higher and one year of work experience as a Paralegal or legal secretary; OR Possession of an Associate’s degree or higher and two years of work experience as a Paralegal or legal secretary; OR Possession of a high school diploma or equivalency diploma and four years of work experience as a Paralegal or legal secretary; OR An equivalent combination of training and experience as defined by the limits of and NOTE: Possession of a Paralegal certificate may be substituted for one year of work experience as described above. *Provided that the incumbent is an attorney. NOTE: Your degree must have been awarded by a college or university accredited by a regional, national, or specialized agency recognized as an accrediting agency by the U.S. Department of Education/U.S. Secretary of Education. If your degree was awarded by an educational institution outside the United States and its territories, you must provide independent verification of equivalency. A list of acceptable companies who provide this service can be found on the Internet at http://www.cs.ny.gov/jobseeker/degrees.cfm. You must pay the required evaluation fee.