Paralegal or Senior Legal Assistant - Criminal Defense & Personal Injury Pre-Litigation
HFFR Injury Attorneys is a growing Mississippi Gulf Coast law firm handling plaintiff personal injury and criminal defense matters. We are hiring a full-time Paralegal or Senior Legal Assistant to work directly with attorney Todd Farrar on criminal defense cases and personal injury pre-litigation files.
This is a client-facing, detail-heavy position for someone who is organized, dependable, professional, and comfortable keeping cases moving in a busy law firm. The right person will help open files, communicate with clients, set up Clio matters, open insurance claims, request records, track medical treatment, calendar court dates, organize discovery, and make sure important tasks are completed.
The right candidate must be able to manage multiple active files, document work clearly, communicate professionally with clients, and identify urgent issues before they become problems.
Primary Responsibilities
Criminal Defense Case Support
- Open and organize criminal defense files
- Create and maintain electronic and physical file folders
- Draft letters of representation, entries of appearance, and routine motions for continuance
- Calendar arraignments, hearings, plea dates, trial dates, deadlines, and other court settings
- Send client reminders about court dates, required documents, and next steps
- Request, receive, save, and organize criminal discovery
- Organize police reports, tickets, videos, indictments, charging documents, court notices, and related materials
- Communicate with criminal defense clients about case status, court dates, discovery status, and required information
- Track missing discovery and follow up with courts, prosecutors, law enforcement agencies, and other offices when appropriate
- Escalate urgent court issues, missing discovery, client concerns, and deadline problems to the attorney
Personal Injury Pre-Litigation Support
- Set up new personal injury matters in Clio
- Enter client, defendant, insurance, adjuster, provider, employer, and claim information
- Send letters of representation to insurance companies and other parties
- Open insurance claims
- Request police reports, crash reports, incident reports, photographs, and related documents
- Send preservation letters and routine case correspondence
- Request medical records and itemized medical bills
- Follow up with medical providers regarding missing records and bills
- Organize medical records, bills, photographs, crash reports, insurance documents, wage documents, and other case materials
- Track client medical treatment status
- Contact personal injury clients at least every 30 days with case updates
- Prepare basic medical bill summaries and treatment summaries
- Assist with pre-litigation settlement demand packages
- Track missing insurance information, MedPay information, lien information, and subrogation issues
- Maintain accurate notes, tasks, deadlines, and documents in Clio
- Escalate urgent client concerns, treatment issues, missing documents, and case problems to the attorney
Preferred Experience
- Prior law firm experience preferred
- Criminal defense experience preferred
- Plaintiff personal injury experience preferred
- Experience with Clio or other case management software preferred
- Experience requesting and organizing medical records and bills preferred
- Experience communicating with clients, courts, prosecutors, insurance adjusters, medical providers, and other offices preferred
- Experience tracking deadlines, court dates, and case tasks preferred
Required Qualities
- Strong organization and follow-through
- Excellent written and verbal communication
- Professional and compassionate client service
- Ability to handle multiple cases, tasks, and deadlines
- Comfort using technology and learning new systems
- Attention to detail
- Reliability and good judgment
- Ability to follow checklists and firm procedures
- Ability to identify urgent issues and escalate them quickly
- Ability to work independently while also functioning as part of a team
Compensation
$17.00-20.00 per hour, depending on experience. (Based on historical data, people in this position at the firm, tend to make in the range of $42,000 to $48,000 per year, after bonuses and benefits.)
Base pay depends on experience and demonstrated ability. The firm also offers benefits and performance/profit-based bonus opportunities. Total annual compensation may exceed base hourly pay depending on performance, hours, benefits eligibility, and firm bonus results.
Benefits
- Full-time position
- Health insurance
- Paid time off
- Paid sick time
- 401(k)
- 401(k) Safe Harbor matching
- Quarterly performance/profit bonus opportunities
- Yearly evaluations for raises
- Professional office environment
- Opportunity to grow with a busy Mississippi Gulf Coast law firm
Schedule
Full-time, Monday through Friday.
In-person preferred. Local hybrid may be considered for highly qualified candidates. Remote will only be considered for the most highly experienced, paralegal candidates.
How to Apply
Please submit your resume and a short message explaining:
- Your law firm experience;
- Your criminal defense experience, if any;
- Your personal injury experience, if any;
- Your experience with Clio or other case management software;
- Your experience requesting medical records and bills, opening insurance claims, or managing case files; and
- Why you would be a good fit for a busy law firm handling criminal defense and plaintiff personal injury cases.
Qualified applicants may be asked to complete a short paid skills exercise using a mock file before a final interview.
Pay: $17.00 - $20.00 per hour
Benefits:
- 401(k)
- 401(k) matching
- Dental insurance
- Flexible schedule
- Health insurance
- Paid sick time
- Paid time off
- Retirement plan
- Work from home
Work Location: Hybrid remote in Ocean Springs, MS 39564
