LEGAL SECRETARY I/II - GENERAL LITIGATION DIVISION

About Us The Office of the Los Angeles City Attorney is one of the nation's largest municipal law offices. With over 1,000 legal professionals, including 500 attorneys, the Office provides the City of Los Angeles ("City") with the highest caliber of legal services, ranging from prosecuting criminal misdemeanors and playing a leading role in criminal justice reform to advising on homelessness initiatives, defending civil lawsuits and claims, and bringing civil enforcement actions in the name of the People of the State of California. Guided by an overarching commitment to integrity, service and accountability, we find great meaning in the work we do and the services we provide. We seek collaborative team players who understand that fulfilling our mission is key to making a positive impact. Description The General Litigation Division defends the City of Los Angeles and its employees in civil tort litigation, particularly in personal injury and property damage actions. Duties and Responsibilities The Legal Secretary performs a complete range of secretarial duties for one or more attorneys. Duties include: • Generating documents for federal and state court litigation; • Preparing and serve legal documents; • E-filing court documents with the court(s) and court reservations; • Processing reports for Board and City Council approval; • Processing settlement packages and record retention; • Uploading and updating CityLaw for case information, lodging, generating documents, calendaring, and closing out cases; • Google calendaring for assigned attorney(s) for hearings, meetings, deadlines and events; • Utilizing Microsoft Office and Google Sheets/Docs to lodge information and review updates; • Ordering records, videos, and transcripts; • Preparing general correspondence; • Scheduling meetings, depositions, appointments and preparing petty cash forms, if required; • Organizing case materials; • Preparing trial binders and exhibit notebooks, including daily jury fees; • Providing backup support to other staff/attorneys; • Heavy telephone contact and emails with the public, various City departments, and court personnel; and • Other related duties as assigned. Requirements • Applicants must be on the Legal Secretary I eligible list. Applicants who are not on the Legal Secretary eligible list will be contacted and scheduled to complete the spelling test and letter composition exercise. • The position requires a fast and accurate typist who portrays strong initiative skills, detail-oriented, and professional communication presence with the public and City departments, by phone and email. • Applicant must be responsible, reliable, punctual, and able to work well with others while under minimal supervision. • Strong ability to prioritize, multi-task, and organize tasks to meet deadlines. The applicant must also have strong ethics, be able to exercise discretion and maintain confidentiality. • Proficiency in the operation of personal computer equipment/programs • Applicants must be able to lift items up to 25 lbs., with or without reasonable accommodation. • The hours for this position are from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. Reliable attendance and punctuality are mandatory. • At least one year of clerical or secretarial experience is required. • Knowledge of legal procedures and terminology is desirable. How to apply Requirements for Application • Cover Letter • Resume Application and Deadline Interested candidates should go to: External applicants should be referred to our website to and apply for Legal Secretary I - Various Sections. Qualified applicants will be invited to interview. exempt employment If employment is said to be exempt, it is meant that the employment is exempted from the civil service provisions of the City Charter. In order to receive a regular civil service appointment, employees must have successfully participated in a civil service examination, received a high enough score on the examination to be placed on and receive an appointment from an eligible list, and they must serve a probationary period. Exempt employees do not compete in a civil service examination, they are not placed on an eligible list and receive an appointment from that list, nor do they serve a probationary period. As a result, exempt employees do not have what is referred to as a "property interest" in their job. Exempt employees serve at the will of the appointing authority and can be terminated at any time without cause. Employees with a property interest in their job, i.e. civil service employees, cannot be deprived of their employment(discharged or suspended) without due process. General Information About Exempt Employment Exempt employees serve at the will of the appointing authority, and as such, they may be discharged, suspended or otherwise disciplined without cause. Exempt employees have no property interest in their employment, and any procedural benefit or other prerogative extended to them by their appointing authority is not intended to create and does not create any such property interest. No officer or employee of the City may make to any other officer or employee any representation of a property interest in employment which does not correspond to Charter provisions unless the City Council, by ordinance, permits such representation. No unauthorized representation can serve as the basis of an employee's reliance on, or expectation of, a property interest. Employees Seeking To Become Civil Service Employees There is no protective leave for an exempt employee appointed to a civil service position. Upon receiving a civil service appointment and passing probation, the former exempt employee will be subject to the Civil Service provisions described in Article X of the City Charter. Upon appointment, the civil service employee will begin to accrue displacement and layoff seniority on the first day of his/her civil service appointment and may file for promotional examinations for which s/he qualifies. A full or half-time exempt employee appointed to a full or half-time civil service position continues to: contribute to the Retirement System; accrue vacation time; accrue sick time; receive anniversary date salary increases; and, receive health and dental benefits identical to those received in the civil service position.

Created: 2026-03-04