Legal Secretary - Child Support

Dunn County is hiring for a Legal Secretary! Join a team dedicated to supporting families and serving the public. 

The job duties of the Legal Secretary include but are not limited to providing technical legal and clerical support for the Child Support Agency staff and Assistant Corporation Counsel; and to provide responsive, courteous and efficient service to Dunn County residents and the general public.

Primary Responsibilities

The following duties are primarily performed and which are essential for this position.  Employees are expected to be able to perform each of these job duties satisfactorily and successfully to be qualified for the position.  Other duties may be required and assigned.

• From written dictation or verbal instructions, prepares various legal documents for both Circuit and Family Court actions regarding paternity, support, revisions, or the enforcement of existing orders including summons and petitions, orders to show cause, and notices of motion. Obtains signatures for documents as required.
• Maintains e-filing queue; distributes documents to caseworker, provides copies to case participants, enters case events in Kids Information Data System (KIDS).
• Maintains files including those of a highly sensitive and confidential nature. 
• Coordinates and schedules appointments, pre-hearing conferences, and court hearings with caseworkers, attorneys, and judges.
• Determines service of process requirements based on type of legal action, timeframe for court actions, and location of party(s) requiring services. Notify process service vendor, forward documents and coordinates pre-payment if applicable. Personally serves parties in the Agency or county jail. 
• Prepares weekly court calendar and notices Corporation Counsel, Child Support, Clerk of Courts, Family Court Commissioner and Circuit Court Judges regarding scheduled hearings.
• Works with Emergency Management Service (EMS) to quash child support warrants. Annually reconciles the EMS list of warrants with KIDS to ensure continuity.
• Reconciles the court calendars of the judiciary with the Agency’s calendar, adds or removes hearings as necessary, pulls files and generates payment records; confers with Assistance Corporation Counsel to accurately reflect the state’s appearance at all upcoming hearings.
• Coordinates with jail and prison staff to facilitate transports and set-up video conferencing or phone appearances as needed.  
• Enters participant protection in KIDS based on Injunction Orders issued involving case participants.
• Assists in establishing paternity for non-marital children either administratively or judicially; prepares summons, petitions, notices to parties, Guardian Ad Litem petition/order/consent documents.
• Schedules genetic testing appointments and prepares required documentation for the testing lab. Obtains DNA specimens, assures chain of custody of the genetic material is maintained and schedules express pick-up. Orders and maintains inventory of genetic testing supplies. 
• Prepares Voluntary Paternity Acknowledgment forms.  Prepares other required Vital Records forms to update birth records subsequent to a paternity adjudication.
• Provides applications for IVD services. Creates physical file folders for new cases.
• Processes in-coming agency mail & faxes; date stamps, enters in KIDS system, routes to appropriate staff. Prepares and processes out-going agency and interoffice mail. 
• Answers calls and greets walk-in customers; determines case number and/or service needed, provides general information and/or transfers to appropriate agency staff or takes messages as appropriate. 
• Provides general Child Support program information, explains court actions, penalties, costs, and provides resources for legal counsel, and assistance programs. 
• Performs records management duties within the office; prepares retention, destruction, and preservation schedules and coordinates arrangements for the proper treatment of records.  
• Prepares Income Withholding Orders   and Income Withholding Terminations for employers.
• Enters, retrieves and updates data using Microsoft word and Excel software and the statewide child support system.
• Sets up and provides assistance with audio/visual equipment.
• Provides office reception and performs general clerical duties including, but not limited to typing, data entry, copying, filing, scanning, faxing, preparing correspondence and charts. 
• Orders and maintains inventory of office supplies, Agency resource materials, program literature,  forms, and ‘new case participant’ folders.  
• Reviews and cross-references the daily jail roster with KIDS; documents jail bookings and notifies the assigned caseworker. 
• Tracks vendor services, reconciles vendor invoices, and enters vendor invoices in SAP as back-up to the Program Assistant.
• Maintains knowledge of and proficiency in multiple data systems, policies, and procedures. Maintains reference manuals, bulletins, policies and procedures as needed to keep current with various legal document wording and program changes. Participates in staff meetings and attends training sessions as scheduled. 
• Maintains accurate documentation on all client contacts in the Kids Information Data System (KIDS).
• Performs other duties of a comparable level/type, as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

MINIMUM EDUCATION QUALIFICATIONS:
EDUCATION AND/OR EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS

• Associate’s Degree in Paralegal, Business Management or other related field. 
• Minimum of two (2) years previous legal secretary experience.

• Prior to hire, a Department of Justice (DOJ) criminal background check and fingerprinting will be conducted. Information from the background check will not necessarily preclude employment but will be considered in determining the applicant’s suitability and competence to perform in the position.

• Knowledge of Kids Information Data System (KIDS) preferred 
• Keyboarding skills of 65+ wpm
• Notary Public eligible

• Thorough knowledge of related industry, organization and department policies, practices and procedures; legal guide, best practices, ordinance and laws.
• Thorough knowledge of standard office equipment and standard office software.
• Knowledge of Wisconsin statutes pertaining to child support.
• Ability to manage time effectively handling multiple projects while adapting to constant changes in priority.
• Produce a high volume of work within established deadlines with minimal direction and supervision.
• Ability to prepare court documents timely and accurately.
• Ability to maintain confidentiality of office files and records, use discretion with clients, possess a non-judgmental attitude and maintain a professional demeanor.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective and professional working relationships with co-workers and the general public.
• Ability to follow Dunn County policies and procedures.
• Ability to work the allocated hours of the position.

• Ability to communicate effectively with other members of the staff, supervisor, and customers. 
• Ability to communicate clearly and concisely in both written and verbal form. 

• English skills (oral, written and comprehension) sufficient to effectively communicate with all internal and external customers.

• Ability to understand and effectively carry out verbal and written instructions.
• Must have ability to work accurately with attention to detail.
• Ability to prepare and maintain accurate and concise records and reports.

• Moderate math skills; add, subtract, multiply and divide in all units of measure, using whole numbers, common fractions and decimals; locate routine mathematical errors; compute rate, ratio and percent.

Physical and Work Environment

PHYSICAL AND WORK ENVIRONMENT:
The physical and work environments described are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform these functions. 
 
PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS

• Physical effort will typically require infrequent exertion of objects weighing up to 10 pounds.
• Continuous speaking or hearing and using hands to key, handle or feel; frequent sitting; and occasional standing, walking, and reaching with hands and arms.
• Work has standard vision requirements.
• Vocal communication is required for expressing or exchanging ideas by means of the spoken word.
• Hearing is required to perceive information at normal spoken word levels.

• Work is generally in a moderately noisy location (e.g. business office, light traffic). 
• Work has no exposure to environmental conditions.

Equal Opportunity Employer

Dunn County is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status.

By applying for this position, you acknowledge that you have read our job posting in its entirety and meet the basic requirements outlined above. Dunn County looks forward to reviewing your application.