Civil Legal Secretary

THIS IS A NEW ASSEMBLED EXAMINATION. The eligible list resulting from this examination will cancel any existing list and may last approximately one year, but can be extended.

Applications must be in the possession of the Human Resource Services Department by 5:00 p.m. on the Last Day for Filing.

Supplemental Questionnaire: A properly completed Supplemental Questionnaire must be submitted with each application. Applications and Supplemental Questionnaires must be in the possession of the Human Resource Services Department by 5:00 p.m. on the Last Day for Filing. Postmarks are not accepted. Failure to submit the Supplemental Questionnaire will result in disqualification.

 Applications and Supplemental Questionnaires will only be accepted on-line.

SPECIAL REQUIREMENT: TYPING CERTIFICATE
If you have a typing certificate with a net typing speed of 50 words per minute from a temporary agency, employment agency, or community college, printed on letterhead with the address and phone number of the agency or college, please upload it to your online application (under the "Resume" tab) by 5:00 p.m. on the last day for filing: November 17, 2023. The typing certificate must be dated within six (6) months of the filing deadline.

To obtain a typing certificate, you may wish to contact East Bay Works - Career Centers. Click on the following link, and go to the "locations" tab to locate a center near you: www.eastbayworks.com/  

Additional typing test resource information is available HERE.  

THE AGENCY

The mission statement of the Office of the County Counsel is to provide competent, efficient and cost-effective legal representation and advice, thus advancing and protecting the programs and financial resources of the County, its officers, departments, boards, commissions, districts, and courts.

THE POSITION
Under general direction, to provide attorneys in the Office of the County Counsel the full range of civil law secretarial support services. Duties performed are of considerable variety and may be complex and require independent thought. They often involve preparing time sensitive civil legal documents to abstract information which may be confidential in nature; and performing other assigned duties as required.

For more detailed information about the job classification, visit: Civil Legal Secretary (#1240).

• Legal terminology, general legal forms and documents.
• Business English usage, grammar, spelling, vocabulary and punctuation.
• Filing, indexing, and cross-referencing methods.
• Proper telephone etiquette and procedures.
• Law office practice, work procedure and equipment practices.
• Word processing/computer applications and techniques.
• Applicable civil law practice terminology, statutes and court rules.
• Civil law court filing and calendar procedures.
• Law library arrangement.

• Prepare civil legal documents from general instructions.
• Apply specialized knowledge of complex civil legal procedures.
• Identify and correct basic English usage errors in documents.
• Organize and maintain legal files and records.
• Abstract pertinent information from files to prepare civil legal documents.
• Plan, organize and prioritize work.
• Make decisions and use good judgment.
• Analyze and problem solve.
• Work independently in the absence of specific instructions.
• Communicate effectively orally and in writing.
• Deal tactfully with members of the public, co-workers and clients under stressful conditions.

The examination will consist of the following steps:

Candidates must attain a qualifying rating on each portion of this recruitment.

WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO MAKE CHANGES TO THE ANNOUNCED EXAMINATION STEPS.

Alameda County utilizes a Civil Service Selection System founded on merit. Such a system is competitive and based on broad recruitment efforts and equal opportunity for qualified applicants to test in an examination process designed to determine the qualifications, fitness and ability of competitors to perform duties of the vacant position. Many of our recruitments are targeted and specific to the needs of a current vacant position, in which case, the eligible list may be exclusively used for that current vacant position. Other recruitments may be more broadly used for both current and future vacancies, or for other alternate jobs with comparable scopes of work.

To learn more about our recruitment and selection process, please visit the “What You Need to Know” section of our website, www.acgov.org/hrs.

Applicants will be informed via email with reasonable notice in advance of any examination process which will require their attendance. The following dates are tentative and subject to change based on the needs of the Agency.

WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO MAKE CHANGES TO THE ANNOUNCED RECRUITMENT & SELECTION PLAN

Alameda County and the Human Resource Services Department will make reasonable efforts in the examination and/or selection process to accommodate qualified individuals with disabilities and/or medical conditions in accordance/compliance with the State Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), Federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Alameda County’s Reasonable Accommodation Policy and applicable statutes. To request an accommodation due to a disability/medical condition during this or other phases of the examination/selection process, please contact the assigned Human Resources Representative listed on the job announcement before the last date of filing. Alameda County requires applicants to provide supporting documentation to substantiate a request for reasonable accommodation. In order to qualify for a reasonable accommodation, applicants must have a disability/medical condition pursuant to the ADA, FEHA and applicable statutes. 

For more information regarding our Reasonable Accommodation procedures, please visit our website:  www.acgov.org/hrs.

Alameda County offers a comprehensive and competitive benefits package that affords wide-ranging health care options to meet the different needs of a diverse workforce and their families. We also sponsor many different employee discount, fitness and health screening programs focused on overall well being.  These benefits include but are not limited to*:

For your Health & Well-Being

• Medical – HMO & PPO Plans
• Dental – HMO & PPO Plans
• Vision or Vision Reimbursement
• Share the Savings
• Basic Life Insurance 
• Supplemental Life Insurance (with optional dependent coverage for eligible employees) 
• County Allowance Credit
• Flexible Spending Accounts - Health FSA, Dependent Care and Adoption Assistance
• Short-Term Disability Insurance
• Long-Term Disability Insurance
• Voluntary Benefits - Accident Insurance, Critical Illness, Hospital Indemnity and Legal Services
• Employee Assistance Program

For your Financial Future

• Retirement Plan - (Defined Benefit Pension Plan)
• Deferred Compensation Plan (457 Plan or Roth Plan)

For your Work/Life Balance

• 12 paid holidays
• Floating Holidays
• Vacation and sick leave accrual
• Vacation purchase program
• Catastrophic Sick Leave
• Pet Insurance
• Commuter Benefits Program
• Guaranteed Ride Home
• Employee Wellness Program (e.g. At Work Fitness, Incentive Based Programs, Gym Membership Discounts)
• Employee Discount Program (e.g. theme parks, cell phone, etc.)
• Child Care Resources
• 1^st United Services Credit Union 

*Eligibility is determined by Alameda County and offerings may vary by collective bargaining agreement.  This provides a brief summary of the benefits offered and can be subject to change.

All notices related to County recruitments for which you have applied will be sent/delivered via email.  Please add @jobaps.com, @acgov.org, Noreplyalamedacountyhr@acgov.org and Noreply@jobaps.com as accepted addresses to any email blocking or spam filtering program you may use. If you do not do this, your email blocking or spam filtering program may block receipt of the notices regarding your application for recruitments. You are also strongly advised to regularly log into your County of Alameda online application account to check for notices that may have been sent to you. All email notices that will be sent to you will also be kept in your personal online application account. You will be able to view all of your notices in your online application account by clicking on the 'My applications' button on the Current Job Openings page.

Please take the steps recommended above to ensure you do not miss any notices about a recruitment for which you have applied. The County of Alameda is not responsible for notices that are not read, received or accessed by any applicant for a County recruitment.

NOTE: All notices are generated through an automated email notification system. Replies to the email box Noreply@jobaps.com and Noreplyalamedacountyhr@acgov.org are routed to an unmonitored mailbox. If you have questions please go to our website at www.acgov.org/hrs. You may also contact the Human Resources Analyst listed on the bulletin for the recruitment for which you have applied.

Tracy Gonzalez | Human Resources Analyst
Human Resource Services, County of Alameda
Phone: 510-272-5085 | Email: Tracy.Gonzalez@acgov.org
www.acgov.org/hrs

Disaster Service Worker

All Alameda County employees are designated Disaster Service Workers through state and local law.  Employment with the County requires the affirmation of a loyalty oath to this effect.  Employees are required to report to work as ordered in the event of an emergency.

Equal Employment Opportunity 

Alameda County has a diverse workforce, that is representative of the communities we serve, and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All aspects of employment are based on merit, competence, performance and business need. Alameda County does not discriminate in employment on the basis of, race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service, or other non-merit factors protected under federal, state and local law. Alameda County celebrates diversity and is committed to creating an inclusive, and welcoming workplace environment.