Legal Assistant 1, G-14 or Trainee 1/2, G-NS… at New York… · Albany

Summary: The New York State Office of Mental Health is seeking a Legal Assistant to manage the subpoena function of the office. The role involves processing subpoenas, communicating with various legal entities, and ensuring compliance with legal requirements.

Responsibilities:
- The Legal Assistant’s primary responsibility is the highly visible and critically time-sensitive role of managing the subpoena function of the office
- The Legal Assistant processes subpoenas, which are court-ordered demands for records or expert testimony from DMV representatives
- Communicating directly with District Attorneys’ Offices, Attorney’s offices, and other state, local and federal government agencies to clarify the requirements of subpoenas served on DMV
- Communicating directly with DMV managers and staff to explain subpoenas served on the Department as necessary and coordinating their provision of records or testimony within required timeframes
- Ordering or producing records to respond to subpoenas
- Maintaining careful oversight of compliance dates deadlines
- Ensuring that records are provided in a timely manner and in the requested format
- Contacting appropriate DMV subject matter experts to arrange for them to provide courtroom testimony as required
- Providing training, guidance and oversight for staff assisting in the performance of the tasks outlined in the bulleted items above
- The Legal Assistant also provides guidance to the FOIL Representative on matters of applicable laws and policies and provides oversight on the prioritization and timely completion of both subpoenas and FOIL requests

Required Qualifications:
- Legal Assistant 1, G-14: Two years of full-time experience as a Paralegal/Legal Assistant
- Legal Assistant Trainee 1, G-NS (Equated to G-11): High school or high school equivalency diploma and one year of clerical, administrative, or paraprofessional experience
- Legal Assistant Trainee 2, G-NS (Equated to G-13): High school or high school equivalency diploma and two years of clerical, administrative, or paraprofessional experience, and six courses in the areas of Intro to Law, and Legal Research and Writing (verification of required coursework is at the appointing agencies discretion)
- Legal Assistant 1, G -14: An associate degree (or higher) in paralegal/legal assistant/legal studies program or a certificate in a paralegal/legal assistant program where the degree was granted from a regionally accredited college or university, or one approved by the American Bar Association (ABA) AND one year of experience as a Paralegal/Legal Assistant
- An associate degree in any field where the degree was granted from a regionally accredited college or university, or one approved by the American Bar Association (ABA) AND two years of experience as a Paralegal/Legal Assistant
- Graduation from an accredited (ABA approved) law school with a degree required for NYS Bar AND two years of full-time experience as a Paralegal/Legal Assistant
- Eligible for appointment from the Legal Assistant Trainee 1, G-NS or Legal Assistant 1, G-14 eligible lists
- One year of permanent, contingent-permanent, or 55b/c service allocated to a G-9 or higher eligible for transfer under Section 70.1 of Civil Service Law, or currently serving in the title and eligible for reassignment
- If you previously served in this title or in a title otherwise transferable to this title, you may be considered for reinstatement pursuant to Civil Service Law, if it is in the best interest of the agency
- This position is eligible for 55b/c designation and candidates with 55b/c eligibility are encouraged to apply. Candidates must meet the minimum qualifications stated above and must submit their current 55b/c eligibility letter along with their application

Required Skills: Paralegal, Legal Assistant, Legal Research, Legal Writing, Subpoena Management, FOIL Requests, Courtroom Testimony Coordination, Legal Document Preparation, Compliance Management, American Bar Association (ABA) Accreditation

Benefits: Paid Leave, Paid Holidays, Pension, Health Insurance, Dental & Vision Coverage, Flex Spending, Voluntary 457B Retirement Saving Program, Health Care Spending Account, Tuition Assistance Programs, Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program, Transportation Savings Program, Employee Assistance Programs