Paralegal/Legal Assistant: ADMINISTRATIVE SPECIALIST

Please note that an ABA Paralegal Certificate is required for this position. Please do not apply unless your certificate is ABA approved.

DISTINGUISHING FEATURES OF THE CLASS: This position involves responsibility for specialized work and office management involving the frequent exercise of independent judgment in actively participating in the development and revision of contracts, providing administrative support for departmental programs, committees and Boards, providing support for informal and public hearings, and drafting of Policy and Procedures, and providing administrative support for the processing of legal documents and procedures as needed. A significant portion of the work involves typing, organizing, and corresponding. Work is performed under general supervision with wide leeway allowed for independent decision. Supervision may be exercised over subordinate employees. Does related work as required.

TYPICAL WORK ACTIVITIES: The typical work activities listed below, while providing representative examples of the variety of work assignments in the title, do not describe any individual position. Incumbents in this title may perform some or all of the following, as well as other related activities not described.

Prepares and routes contracts for the Department, including Schedule A and B utilizing appropriate language;

Assists with managing and triaging phone calls from the community seeking information about the Department’s services;

Corresponds, both written and verbally, with County departments such as Contract Management and outside entities such as vendors, regarding ordering supplies needed for division services;

Maintains knowledge of Ulster County Charter, and New York State and County Laws as each pertains to the department;

Maintains Board and Committee member lists, processes appointments and resignations, prepares and sends appointment letters;

Attends and takes meeting minutes of monthly Board and Committee meetings and submits approved meeting minutes to the Ulster County Executive’s Office and the Ulster County Legislature’s Office;

Assists with the receipt and processing of legal documents, with the assistance of the County Attorney’s office;

Participates as a member of the departmental policy and procedure committee;

Drafts policy and procedures for committee review and reviews policy and procedures written by committee members;

Prepares appropriate hearing documents for formal and informal hearings, such as: Notice of Hearings, Agreements and Stipulations, Notice of Charges, Specifications and Consent Orders;

Works closely with the Ulster County Attorney’s Office to properly execute the scheduling of a public hearing when necessary, including obtaining appropriate Board approvals, creation of public hearing notices and distribution to county, town, city and village clerk’s offices as well as coordination of publication in designated newspapers and maintains the records affiliated with the hearing;

Assists with the review of records retention utilizing the Records Retention and Disposition Schedule manual;

Creates and maintains statistical reports, databases, records and files as necessary;

May provide administrative support for court ordered evaluations as needed.

FULL PERFORMANCE KNOWLEDGES, SKILLS, ABILITIES AND PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS: Thorough knowledge of office terminology, procedures and methods; thorough knowledge of Business Arithmetic and English; good knowledge of the functions of local government and the relationship among departments, and the interaction between public and private agencies; ability to understand and interpret the Ulster County Charter and New York State Laws applicable to the Department; ability to interpret and act on legal documents per agency policy, procedure and County Standard Operation Procedure; ability to understand and apply complex oral and written directions; ability to create and prepare correspondence and reports; ability to type accurately at an acceptable rate of speed; ability to secure the cooperation of others and to deal effectively with the public; ability to readily acquire familiarity with departmental organization, functions, laws, policies and regulations; ability to use automated office equipment; good judgment in solving complex clerical and administrative problems; initiative and resourcefulness; tact, courtesy, integrity.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS: Either:

A. Possession of a Bachelor's or higher level degree and one (1) year of full-time paid, or its part-time equivalent, work experience in an administrative professional position which involved responsibility for administrative details; OR

B. Possession of an Associate's degree and three (3) years of full-time paid, or its part-time equivalent, work experience as defined by the limits of A above; OR

C. Graduation from high school or possession of a high school equivalency diploma and five (5) years of full-time paid, or its part-time equivalent, work experience as defined by the limits of A above; OR

D. An equivalent combination of training and experience as defined by the limits of A, B and C above.

SPECIAL REQUIREMENT: Possession of a Paralegal certificate, as approved by the American Bar Association.

Note: Your degree or college credits must have been awarded or earned 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.

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: $34.66 per hour

Expected hours: 35.0 per week

Benefits:

• Dental insurance
• Employee assistance program
• Flexible spending account
• Health insurance
• Paid time off
• Professional development assistance
• Tuition reimbursement
• Vision insurance

People with a criminal record are encouraged to apply

License/Certification:

• ABA Paralegal Certificate (Required)

Work Location: In person

Salary : $35