LEGAL ASSISTANT - 70254

Executive Service

The Legal Assistant located at MTMHI is expected to work in the office.

Background Check:

This position requires a criminal background check. Therefore, you may be required to provide information about your criminal history in order to be considered for this position.

Who we are and what we do:

The Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (TDMHSAS) is Tennessee's state mental health and substance abuse authority which provides an assortment of community-based services including prevention, early intervention, treatment, crisis intervention, and recovery support. TDMHSAS mission is creating collaborative pathways to resiliency, recovery, and independence for Tennesseans living with mental illness and substance use disorders. Our vision is a state of resiliency, recovery, and independence in which Tennesseans living with mental illness and substance use disorders thrive. Our Values: Customer Focused: An unwavering commitment to keep patients and those who serve them at the forefront of every decision. Integrity: Honesty and truth in all that we do. Inspired Purpose: The call to action in service of a cause greater than oneself. Excellence: The highest standards for services, efficiency, and conduct. Compassionate and Effective Leadership: The ability to make effective decisions and inspire others through active listening and empathy. Solutions and Outcomes-Oriented: The commitment to positive outcomes and meaningful changes in response to the critical needs of the Tennesseans we serve. Partnership: Beyond teamwork, collaboration based on mutual success to the benefit of the Tennesseans we are blessed to serve.

Job Overview:

Under direct supervision, the Legal Assistant for the Division of General Council supports the Senior Associate Counsel and legal operations within Middle Tennessee Mental Health Institute (MTMHI).

Specific duties include, but are not limited to:

1. Researching information using databases, the internet, books and case files in order to prepare files for litigation.
2. Requesting information from internal and external sources in writing or verbally to ensure all relevant information is obtained.
3. Working with the hospital treatment team to prepare for judicial hearings.
4. Reading and summarizing in writing relevant laws, court decisions and Attorney General opinions.
5. Preparing recommendations for supervising attorney on the application of law.
6. Reviewing documents to ensure compliance with laws, regulations or standards.
7. Utilizing individual knowledge and judgment to determine if additional action is needed for case or task completion.
8. Utilizing active listening with internal customers to determine appropriate course of action.
9. Incorporating last minute or unscheduled tasks into current workload to ensure timely and accurate completion of work.
10. Filing orders, petitions, legal publications, supplements, updates, federal registers, court reports, Attorney General opinions and other legal documents according to established system.
11. Establishing a filing system that allows easy utilization of case files, legal reference sources, and other documentation.
12. Compiling all supporting information and documents for trial notebooks.
13. Preparing and submitting invoices and supporting documentation to fiscal for payment.
14. The Legal Assistant located at MTMHI will report directly to the Senior Associate Counsel at MTMHI and is expected to work in the office.

Minimum Qualifications:

Education and Experience:

Education equivalent to graduation from an accredited college, university, or professional school with one of the following:

1. An associate's degree in paralegal or legal assistant studies.
2. A bachelor's degree in paralegal or legal assistant studies.
3. A Paralegal Certificate.

OR

One year (28 semester hours) of graduate level law school.

OR

Education equivalent to graduation from a standard high school and two years of full-time experience in researching legal issues and documenting findings to assist in building case files, settling legal disputes, and/or providing legal counsel to clients.

Applicants should also be a notary or be eligible to become a notary upon accepting the position.

Pursuant to the State of Tennessee's Workplace Discrimination and Harassment policy, the State is firmly committed to the principle of fair and equal employment opportunities for its citizens and strives to protect the rights and opportunities of all people to seek, obtain, and hold employment without being subjected to illegal discrimination and harassment in the workplace. It is the State's policy to provide an environment free of discrimination and harassment of an individual because of that person's race, color, national origin, age (40 and over), sex, pregnancy, religion, creed, disability, veteran's status or any other category protected by state and/or federal civil rights laws.