Research Attorney

Los Angeles Superior Court is the largest unified trial court in the United States with nearly 600 courtrooms, presided over by 550 bench officers and 4,500 full-time employees. The Court has 38 Court locations, serving 88 cities, and 118 law enforcement agencies countywide.

Research Attorney performs legal research, prepares motions and matters on calendar to expedite court calendars, and performs related duties as assigned. For detailed job description, please click here.


SELECTION REQUIREMENTS:
To qualify, you must meet one of the following options by the time you submit your application:

Option I:  Graduation from an accredited school of law -AND- A member of the California State Bar in good standing -AND- Currently employed as a Los Angeles Superior Court Law Clerk -AND- Notified in writing by the Managing Research Attorney of eligibility.  

Option II:  Graduation from  an accredited school of law -AND- A member of the California State Bar in good standing -AND- Must have served a total of two years as a Los Angeles Superior Court Law Clerk -AND- *Received two positive performance evaluations.

*If you did not receive two positive performance evaluations, Human Resources will verify with the Managing Research Attorney.

Licenses; Certificates; Special Requirements A valid California Class "C" driver's license or the ability to utilize an alternative method of transportation needed to carry out job-related essential functions. Licensed to practice law in the state of California and a member in good standing of the California State Bar.

The Court prohibits incumbents from practicing law on behalf of other parties.  This prohibition extends to receiving fees and appearing in any legal matter on behalf of another person or entity while employed by the Court.

Degree Verification: A legible copy of your diploma or official transcripts with the degree posted from the college or university must be submitted by the time you submit your application.

Documentation may be submitted as follows:
 

• As an attachment to your on-line application.  Attachment(s) must be in Microsoft word or PDF format and should not exceed 10MB; or,
• In person or by mail to the Human Resources Administration office located at 111 N. Hill Street, Room 203, Los Angeles, CA 90012 within two business days from the submission of your application otherwise your application materials will be deemed incomplete and rejected accordingly.

Please include your first and last name and the examination title on any documents attached to your application.  The Court will not accept documents submitted by facsimile transmission, emails, or by mail.

For a list of acceptable accredited institutions or international universities, please visit http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation, www.chea.org/search, or http://whed.net/home.php.

Foreign studies must be evaluated by an academic credential evaluation agency and deemed to be equivalent to degrees from the United States. For a list of acceptable evaluation agencies, please visit www.naces.org or http://aice.dharman.net.  Foreign studies submitted without acceptable evaluation will be rejected.
 

DESIRABLE QUALIFICATIONS:

• Excellent written and oral communication skills
• Proficiency using personal computers
• Strong research capability

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS:

Applicants are required and must submit the following documents as an online application attachment otherwise your application materials will be deemed incomplete and rejected accordingly:

• Resume
• Copy of bar card showing active status
• Three writing samples (e.g., bench memorandum, drafted pleading, legal publication, etc.)
• A copy of the applicant's last performance evaluation issued by the Court
• Judicial and/or other professional references.

HOW YOU WILL BE EVALUATED:
The Managing Research Attorney and the Research Attorney Committee will review completed applications. Selection will be made by this Committee. Placement will be determined based upon the needs of the Court.  If you have any question regarding this recruitment please e-mail lawclerk@lacourt.org.

APPLICATION and FILING INFORMATION:

Application may only be filed online. To learn how to apply online, please access the Online Employment Application Guide. Los Angeles Superior Court reserves the right to verify all submitted documentation at the time of appointment. The Court will only consider completed applications submitted, along with the required documents, and will reject incomplete applications.  A resume will not substitute for a fully completed employment application. To facilitate the full and proper consideration of your work experience, clearly specify what professional experience meets the required job qualifications. When listing your work experience, please specify the beginning and end dates for each job you held and describe your experience for each position.     
 
Please provide a current and accurate e-mail address for the Court to communicate with you about this job opportunity. At least 30 days after the closing date on this examination, Human Resources staff will notify all applicants of their application status via e-mail.  We recommend that you add info@governmentjobs.com to your e-mail address book to avoid the notification being filtered as spam mail.
  
Los Angeles Superior Court is an equal opportunity employer. Applicants with disabilities who require reasonable accommodations to participate in the recruitment process can contact the email address provided below.  For additional employment information, please click here.
 
Questions regarding this posting may be e-mailed to ldelaros@lacourt.org.

WHAT TO EXPECT NEXT:
We will notify you of the outcome after each step of the recruitment process has been completed.  Applicants who successfully pass each and all examination phase(s) will be placed on an eligibility list, good for one year and other vacancies may be filled using this list.

EXAM # R9737D
Research Attorney