Paralegal / Office Administrator
Whetzel Law, PLLC is seeking an experienced, organized, and self-directed Paralegal / Office Administrator to join our practice. This position combines substantive paralegal and case-management responsibilities with administrative and operational support in a busy law-office environment.
The ideal candidate is someone who can manage competing priorities, maintain awareness of deadlines and outstanding matters, communicate professionally with clients and other legal professionals, and take ownership of assignments from initiation through completion. This position requires strong judgment, attention to detail, and the ability to identify what needs to be done without requiring constant direction.
Paralegal & Case Management Responsibilities
- Assist with management of active cases from intake through resolution.
- Maintain and monitor court dates, discovery deadlines, filing deadlines, hearings, trials, and other case-related deadlines.
- Draft pleadings, motions, notices, proposed orders, correspondence, agreements, and other legal documents for attorney review.
- Prepare and coordinate court filings and maintain filed copies and related documentation.
- Draft and assist with interrogatories, requests for production, discovery responses, and other discovery matters.
- Coordinate with clients to obtain documents, information, discovery responses, and signatures.
- Organize and review client records, discovery materials, evidence, and exhibits.
- Conduct legal and procedural research as directed.
- Assist with preparation for hearings, trials, settlement negotiations, and other proceedings.
- Communicate professionally with clients, opposing counsel, court personnel, and other professionals.
- Regularly review active matters to identify outstanding tasks and approaching deadlines.
- Identify matters requiring attorney review, signature, decision, or follow-up and ensure they are brought to the attorney's attention.
- Proofread and review legal documents for accuracy, consistency, and completeness.
The firm's practice includes family law, protective-order matters, and other civil litigation. Experience in Virginia family law is strongly preferred.
Administrative Responsibilities
- Assist with prospective-client intake and consultation scheduling.
- Coordinate new-client onboarding, including engagement documentation and client questionnaires.
- Open and organize new client and matter files.
- Maintain accurate electronic client and matter records.
- Process incoming and outgoing correspondence and legal documents.
- Coordinate signatures, notarizations, service, and document delivery as necessary.
- Maintain organized electronic and physical files.
- Assist with calendar management and scheduling.
- Follow up on outstanding client documents, forms, and other administrative requirements.
Office Management & Operations
- Assist with management of firm software subscriptions, licenses, user accounts, and access permissions.
- Coordinate employee technology and software setup as necessary.
- Monitor office-supply inventory and coordinate supply orders.
- Assist with management of office equipment, vendors, and recurring services.
- Maintain standardized firm forms, templates, internal reference materials, and electronic filing systems.
- Assist with development and maintenance of efficient office procedures and workflows.
- Help identify operational or workflow issues and recommend practical solutions.
- Assist with training and onboarding of administrative personnel as needed.
Qualifications
- Prior law-office experience required; prior paralegal experience strongly preferred.
- Experience with Virginia litigation and court procedures preferred.
- Family-law experience strongly preferred.
- Strong legal drafting, writing, proofreading, and organizational skills.
- Excellent attention to detail.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills.
- Ability to independently prioritize multiple matters and deadlines.
- Ability to exercise sound judgment and maintain confidentiality.
- Comfortable learning and using legal technology, case-management software, Microsoft Office, Adobe/PDF software, and cloud-based document systems.
- Ability to work effectively in a small-office environment where responsibilities may overlap.
- Paralegal degree, certificate, or equivalent combination of education and law-office experience preferred.
- Virginia Notary Public commission preferred, but not required.
The Ideal Candidate
The successful candidate will be proactive rather than purely task-driven. We are looking for someone who takes ownership of their work, follows matters through to completion, recognizes when something requires follow-up, and is comfortable bringing potential issues to the attorney's attention before they become problems.
This position is particularly well suited for someone who enjoys both substantive legal work and the organizational side of running an efficient law practice.
Position Details
- Position: Full-time
- Schedule: Monday through Friday
- Location: Harrisonburg, Virginia
- Work Setting: In person
- Compensation: Based on experience
Pay: $21.63 - $24.04 per hour
Benefits:
- Flexible schedule
- Free parking
- Paid sick time
- Paid time off
- Travel reimbursement
Work Location: In person
