Job Description
Description Duties Description The Legal Assistant 2, Grade 17, will work in the Office of General Counsel (OGC) and will perform duties include, but are not limited to:
- Drafting legal documents such as affidavits and correspondence to be reviewed by OGC attorneys and reviewing correspondence, captions, and docket entries for accuracy.
- Assisting in the final preparation of legal documents for State and federal litigation (ensuring documents are properly formatted, preparing tables of authorities/contents for briefs or reports, bookmarking, preparing certifications of compliance with procedural requirements, monitoring word count limitations, etc.).
- Preparing and filing/uploading legal documents in court dockets, requiring familiarity with New York State Courts Electronic Filing (NSYCEF), Federal Court Case Management/Electronic Case Files (CM/ECF), and Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) electronic filing systems, and applying knowledge of where to find relevant State and federal procedural and filing rules.
- Preparing and filing electronic legal documents or electronic documents used by other administrative agencies, such as the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission or Department of Energy.
- Organizing and preparing large administrative records for court filings, preparing indexes or table of contents for administrative or litigation records, and responding to subpoenas and other discovery requests; filing and serving “paper” documents when required.
- Assisting in the review of records or document production in various cases and investigatory matters.
- Assisting OGC attorneys in customer complaint appeal cases.
- Performing legal research, requiring familiarity with Westlaw, online, and hardcopy sources.
- Obtaining documents from other publicly available dockets, platforms, and data sources.
- Interacting with NYS Archives and NYS Library staff and resources.
- Applying redaction software functions to protect information in particular contexts.
- Tracking relevant court dates and maintaining litigation calendar, which requires the ability to search and track case information in NYSCEF and the PACER service system for litigation filings.
- Working independently and as part of a diverse, interdisciplinary team; prioritizing and managing different work streams and schedules.
- Supervising, guiding, or reviewing work of lower-level support/legal assistant staff, as appropriate.
Qualifications Minimum Qualifications General Public
Non-Competitive (NY HELPS)*:
Three years of full-time experience** as a Paralegal or Legal Assistant, where you were responsible for applying knowledge of the law and legal procedures in rendering direct assistance to lawyers, clients, and courts; preparing and interpreting legal documents and forms; researching, compiling, and using information from legal materials to provide both written and verbal comments on their findings; and/or analyzing and handling routine procedural problems independently with minimal attorney oversight.
Either 1. An associate degree (or higher) in paralegal/legal assistant/legal studies program or a certificate in a paralegal/legal assistant/legal studies 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 OR
- 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 OR
- Graduation from an accredited (ABA approved) law school with a degree required for NYS Bar will be accepted AND two years of full-time experience as a Paralegal/Legal Assistant.
55-b/c Candidates who are currently eligible, who meet the qualifications listed in the “Non-Competitive (NY HELPS)” section above are encouraged to apply. If interested in this position and applying using your 55-b/c status, please provide a copy of your current 55-b/c eligibility letter.
Civil Service List
Candidates on the Legal Assistant 2 list have been canvassed and do not need to apply to this posting.
Transfer
Current New York State employee with one year or more of permanent, competitive service, or 55-b/c service as a Legal Assistant 2, Grade 17; OR current New York State employee with one year or more of permanent, contingent permanent, or 55-b/c service in a qualifying title and eligible for transfer* under section 70.1 of the Civil Service Law.
If you are a current New York State employee on the eligible list and not reachable, you may be eligible for transfer. Candidates are encouraged to access GOT-IT on the Civil Service website ( to determine transfer eligibility.
About The Department Additional Comments The New York State Department of Public Service (DPS or Department) works to: ensure safe, affordable, and reliable access to electric, gas, steam, water, and telecommunications services at just and reasonable rates for New York State customers, protect the natural environment, reduce greenhouse gas emissions via transmission and siting of renewable energy resources, and augment the resiliency of utility infrastructure. Learn more about DPS and how you can make a difference by checking out our video and more at:
Additional Comments - This title is part of the New York Hiring for Emergency Limited Placement Statewide Program (NY HELPS). For the duration of the NY HELPS Program, this title may be filled via a non-competitive appointment, which means no examination is required but all candidates must meet the minimum qualifications of the title for which they apply.
At a future date, it is expected employees hired under NY HELPS will have their non-competitive employment status converted to competitive status, without having to compete in an examination. Employees will then be afforded with all of the same rights and privileges of competitive class employees of New York State. While serving permanently in an NY HELPS title, employees may take part in any promotion examination for which they are qualified.
Equal Opportunity Employer The Department of Public Service is committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity, or Veteran status. We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with legal requirements. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know by contacting the Designee for Reasonable Accommodations (DRA) and Americans with Disabilities Act Coordinator which can be found under the Accessibility Link on the Department’s webpage at
Job Tags
Permanent employment, Full time, Work at office,