What is a Legal Assistant?
The role of a legal assistant is to support and assist the work of an attorney, and to help with client services for the law firm where he or she works.
If you are in a family law court system, for instance, you will likely be providing administrative support to the attorney, as well as acting as a liaison between the client and the attorney. You will take phone calls, pass along messages, schedule appointments, bill for services and perform many other administrative and legal support tasks .
Your duties may include preparing legal documents and forms in accordance with established law documents, visiting government agencies and offices to obtain information and other records, index and file documents, explaining and interpreting laws to clients, and meeting with clients to discuss their legal matters and the progress of their cases.
As more and more law firms begin switching to cloud-based systems that allow case management and document management from anywhere in the world using a networked computer or mobile device, your role may also include implementing that new technology, setting up systems in the office, performing training for attorneys and other staff, and helping to migrate old files into the new system while setting up new cases.
Attributes of a Good Legal Assistant
The next important item they are going to look for is your attention to detail. Legal assistant duties tend to be meticulous, and any small error on a document, filing, or even a word in a letter, can lead to the loss of a case for a client or a great deal of confusion for those that have to perform work that you have done. Organization is another skill that they look for. You are going to be holding a lot of information in your mind and have multiple cases coming in and out of your system on a daily basis. Being able to keep track of all of this is essential to your success – and to the success of the law office. Communication skills both mannered and informational, are also vital to your duties as a legal assistant. Representation of the law firm to the clients, the court, and other legal referral partners is extremely important to the success of the law firm. Your communication skills with your attorneys, associates, and other legal assistants, will determine how well you fit in with the team.
Legal assistant interviewers will be looking for these and other skills to assess if you are going to be a valuable asset to their law firm.
Common Legal Assistant Interview Questions
When Preparing for an Interview, You Will Most Likely Be Asked at Least Some of the Following Questions Regarding Your Background and/or Work Experience:
Have you ever worked for a law firm? Tell me about your relevant work experience.
Have you had the opportunity to become very familiar with the filing requirements of local and/or state courts? What office systems do you use to ensure consistency in your filings?
Can you tell me about a case that you were involved in that required you to become especially organized/methodical?
How would you describe your knowledge of the family law codes or other areas of law?
Some client communication goes to the adversary. Are you comfortable with this? How do you ensure that this is handled properly?
Are you familiar with taking a deposition? Do you have experience preparing an attorney for a deposition?
Describe for me why confidentiality and privilege are important in a law firm setting and how you’ve maintained both in your last position(s)?
Share with me an example of how you’ve been able to multi-task within a law firm (or similar professional environment).
Responding to Behavioral Interview Questions
Legal assistant candidates typically will be asked behavioral interview questions, which are intended to assess how you reacted in the past to work-related situations. These questions can start with "Tell me about a time when…" or "Describe a situation in which…" The good news is you don’t have to panic if you don’t have specific experience to answer the question. All you have to do is apply the STAR method to your response.
STAR is an acronym for Situation, Task, Action, Result. In answering behavioral interview questions, you’ll want to paint a complete picture of what transpired by first addressing the situation or challenge you faced, what your specific task was, what action you took to address the situation or task, and what was the result of your action. To help you understand, here are some examples:
Tell me about a time when…
…you had a tight deadline but your team was short-staffed:
Explain that your supervisor assigned you an important project and included a deadline. Although the deadline was tight, the project work was highly confidential, meaning that it had to be reviewed by all members of your team. Help the interviewer understand that you coordinated the project between members of your team to meet the deadline, even though two of your teammates were out of the office.
…there was lack of communication among team members:
Explain that you had recently started a new job and had not yet met the team members who you would be working with for an upcoming project. You took the initiative to pull the team together to get a full scope of the project and each team member’s key role in the outcome. Then you shared that you kept a calendar updated that listed project milestones and made sure everyone had a personal deadline by which his or her piece of the project was completed so that the overall project deadline was met.
…you had a co-worker who was not a team player:
Explain this is how you addressed the issue: You instituted weekly team meetings that required the entire team to participate. You let the team know that weekly attendance was part of the regular culture and not a bonus to consider. You documented the meeting times and shared them in the shared outlook calendar for your department. After a month, this person’s behavior had improved and he was addressing things without having to be prompted by others.
Technical Questions for a Legal Assistant
Candidates for paralegal and legal assistant jobs can expect a number of questions regarding their specific legal knowledge for the position applied for. Common questions include:
Which court system has jurisdiction (hears cases) for xxx type of case?
What are the filing fees and requirements for filing a xxx lawsuit in that court system?
What is the difference between a and b motion?
Questions require more specific legal knowledge include:
What is the statute of limitations for a type of xxx case in (specific state)?
What are the procedures for discovery in xxx type of case?
Which court district handles xxx and what is their filing requirements?
Which court rules apply to discovery in xxx action?
What is the difference between a responsive pleading and a general denial?
What are the filing fees for filing a xxx action in (state)?
What are the procedures for filing a xxx action in (state)?
How is a court summons sent?
What are the forms needed for filing a xxx lawsuit?
What are the requirements to serve an xxx complaint on a person?
What is the difference between a/n:
Motion?
Restriction?
Judgment?
What is the difference between voir dire and a jury trial?
What is the process for a judge to give a summary judgment?
What is a proof of service?
Which rule of civil procedure covers discovery?
Which court conducts the preliminary § 302A hearing?
What happens if an employer does not file a Board of Claims?
Which section of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act regulates filing of reimbursement requests?
How many jurors are on a civil case?
What cases are tried by a federal court?
What is required for a trial court to hear evidence under the Federal Rules of Evidence?
Confidentiality Questions
Next to technical skill, the most important quality for a legal assistant is discretion. An employer wants legal assistants that they know will maintain client confidentiality at all times. It is no secret that more than a few law firm partners got in trouble for taking too much advantage of existing client relationships. That concern is also at the back of the mind of every hiring manager who understands the damaging effects of a breach of confidentiality. Discretion and confidentiality are paramount in a law firm because a law firm’s reputation is everything. A perfect legal assistant candidate understands the need for confidentiality in a law office and has protected sensitive information in every job he or she has ever held.
This means, by the way, that discussing some of your job responsibilities at a job interview is a no-no. I know that these questions happen in interviews all the time, and lawyers apologize for asking them in interviews, but they happen anyway. Be very, very careful. You do not want to potentially open yourself up to any type of invasion of privacy claim or violation of your employment contract.
Preparing for a Legal Assistant Interview
When attending an interview for the Legal Assistant position, employers often look to see if the candidate has done their research on the firm. You should research their website and online resources to understand the mission of the firm, and its values and top cases. You can also research the personnel and assess which of their backgrounds are in alignment with your professional and academic achievements. When doing your research, be sure to pay attention to the types of clients the firm represents and the industries in which they exist. This will help you to determine what specific practice groups you may be working with and who you may be assisting depending on their calendar and needs.
Candidates should have some knowledge about the law firm where they are interviewing, but they should also have an understanding of what is required to perform the job they are applying for. Legal assistant candidates should be familiar with the tools used by the position and be prepared to demonstrate their proficiency with these tools. They should also be able to demonstrate how they used these tools in their previous positions or in school to help them succeed.
You should spend a little time analyzing and preparing some questions that you can ask the interviewer. Candidates can ask areas of concern that they seen in the job description or what they have seen on public interface about the firm and its work. Many candidates also ask what tasks they will perform on a regular basis and what training/continuing education programs are offered to their employees.
Questions to Ask When You Are the Candidate
It is important to remember that an interview is a two-way street. It is just as imperative that you find out if this job is right for you as it is for the interviewer. Asking questions during your interview is crucial because it will help you determine if this is the right position for you. There is no need to ask all these questions—pick and choose from each category to show you are really interested in the position and firm.
Basic Questions: These are your basic questions that most interviewers will ask:
- What will I be able to accomplish in my first two weeks of employment?
- What is the next step in the interview process?
- When should I expect to hear from you?
- When will I be able to start my first case/assignment?
The Firm: These questions will show that you have an interest in the firm and that you have done some due diligence:
- How long has the firm been in business?
- How many offices does the firm have?
- How many employees in each office (and/or in my home office , if applicable)?
- What benefits do you offer (i.e., insurance, bonuses, stock options, etc.)?
Job Duties: These questions will help you understand what your daily duties and responsibilities will be:
9) Can you describe a typical work day?
10) Can you describe your training and orientation process?
These questions will help you determine if the firm is right for you and if they fit your needs.