Career Opportunity

Senior Legal Process Clerk (8108) – Citywide – (C00257)

Recruitment: REF36783I

Published: February 06, 2024

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About:

San Francisco is a vibrant and dynamic city, on the forefront of economic growth & innovation, urban development, arts & entertainment, as well as social issues & change. This rich tapestry of culture and ideas is sustained by our City's commitment to heighten the quality of life for the diverse population of San Franciscans and residents of the greater Bay Area. Our employees play an important role not only in making our City what it is today, but also in shaping the future of San Francisco.

THIS IS A CITYWIDE EXAM

Application Opening: January 15, 2024
Application Deadline: January 26, 2024 (11:59 PM PT)
Recruitment ID: CBT-8108-C00257

***02/6/2024 NOTE: Job ad reopened to accept additional applications.  If you already applied, there is no need to submit another application. If you have not applied, please do so as soon as possible. The application filing deadline is February 13, 2024 at 11:59 PM.

• Application Reopened: February 6, 2024
• New Application Filing Deadline: February 13, 2024 at 11:59 PM

Role description

Under supervision, the Senior Legal Process Clerk performs specialized clerical duties requiring thorough knowledge of procedures and requirements relating to the department concerned; processes legal actions for court disposition; examines documents submitted for filing and recording; and performs related duties as required.

The Senior Legal Process Clerk is responsible for processing and examining complex legal actions and documents, and for interpreting and explaining complex regulations and procedures. It is distinguished from Legal Process Clerk in that the latter is responsible for carrying out and explaining procedures which are more routine in nature and performing duties under closer supervision.

According to Civil Service Commission Rule 109, the duties specified below are representative of the range of duties assigned to this job code/class and are not intended to be an inclusive list.

1. Receives and screens all processes issued by court for action and collects fees for prescribed services; accepts bonds to release property levied upon the Sheriff; signs releases on real property and salary attachments; and accounts for monies received by Sheriff from defendants and attorneys.
2. Responds to inquires made in person or by phone from the public, attorneys, litigants, witnesses, victims and other law enforcement agencies regarding legal attachments, evictions, writs of execution and funds in process of transmission.
3. Assists Attorneys in the process of cases by interviewing witnesses and recording their statements; prepares formal complaints and related reports; maintains calendar and dockets of court hearing on criminal cases; and prepares writs or warrants of attachment and execution to ensure proper completion.
4. Processes lawsuits filed against the City; files legal papers in Superior and Municipal Courts; maintains daily and weekly diary and notifies City Attorney’s deputies of pleadings, appearances, depositions, and other pertinent legal actions.
5. Processes and reviews legal documents and records such as hold orders, indictments, writs, certifications, marriage licenses and fictitious name statements; retrieves legal documents using alphabetical, chronological, and numerical filing systems; indexes ordering of prior convictions for felonies using criminal identification and investigation records; performs data entry and checks files/computer records to locate requested information.
6. Examines and reviews a wide variety of legal documents, applying relevant laws, codes and procedures, to determine whether they meet the prerequisites for recording; calculates fees for recordable documents, accepts payment, writes receipts and makes change; balances daily total of monies received; and explains provisions and regulations regarding recording of documents to title company representatives, realtors, attorneys and the public.

How to qualify

Minimum Qualifications

1. Two (2) years (equivalent to 4,000 hours) of verifiable full-time experience processing and/or researching documents in accordance with laws, codes and/or regulations in a legal, governmental, real estate or financial services environment; OR
2. 30 semester/ 45 quarter units of coursework from an accredited college or university with a minimum of 12 semester/18 quarter units in business and/or law; AND one (1) year (equivalent to 2,000 hours) of verifiable full-time experience processing and/or researching documents in accordance with laws, codes and/or regulations in a legal, governmental, real estate or financial services environment.

Every application is reviewed to ensure that you meet the minimum qualifications as listed in the job ad. Please review our articles on Employment Application and Minimum Qualifications and Verification of Experience and/or Education for considerations taken when reviewing applications. 

What else should I know?

SELECTION PROCEDURES: After application submission, candidates deemed qualified must complete all subsequent steps to advance in this selection process, which includes the following:

Minimum Qualification Supplemental Questionnaire (MQSQ): Candidates will be required to complete an MQSQ as part of the employment application. This MQSQ is designed to obtain specific information regarding an applicant's experience in relation to the Minimum Qualifications (MQ) for this position. The MQSQ will be used to evaluate if the applicant possesses the required minimum qualifications.

Legal Process Clerk Series - Written Examination (Weight:100%): Candidates who meet the minimum qualifications will be provided the opportunity to participate in a written multiple-choice exam to determine their relative knowledge, skill and ability level in one or more of the following job-related areas. These areas may include, but are not limited to: Knowledge of criminal justice; Knowledge of legal terminology; Knowledge of procedures used to process legal documents and forms; Knowledge of court procedures and practices; Ability to establish and maintain effective and cooperative relationships; Ability to communicate written information effectively; and Ability to organize, file, and maintain records.

Candidates must achieve a passing score on the Examination in order to be ranked on the resulting eligible list/score report. The Examination is a standardized examination and, therefore, test questions and answers are not available for public inspection or review.

The score that you achieve on the Examination shall be valid and "banked" for three years, starting from the date of the examination. This means that, during this three-year time period, you will not be required to take this test again should you apply and be found eligible for a future announcement for which this particular test is used. If the test for this future announcement is held within 12 months of the date of this examination, your score will be automatically applied to that announcement. However, after twelve months, you have the option to either (a) apply your test score to the other announcement or (b) re-take the test. Re-testing is permitted no sooner than twelve months from the date of the examination and only in association with your eligibility for another announcement for which this test is used. Please note that, should you re-test, your re-test score would become your official score going forward since it is the most recent (even if it turns out to be lower than your original score).

Eligible List/Score Report: A confidential eligible list of applicant names that have passed the civil service examination process will be created, and used for certification purposes only. An examination score report will be established, so applicants can view the ranks, final scores and number of eligible candidates. Applicant information, including names of applicants on the eligible list, shall not be made public unless required by law. However, an eligible list shall be made available for public inspection, upon request, once the eligible list is exhausted or expired and referrals resolved. The eligible list/score report resulting from this civil service examination process is subject to change after adoption (e.g., as a result of appeals), as directed by the Human Resources Director or the Civil Service Commission.

The duration of the eligible list resulting from this examination process will be 24 months and may be extended with the approval of the Human Resources Director.

Terms of Announcement and Appeal Rights: Applicants must be guided solely by the provisions of this announcement, including requirements, time periods and other particulars, except when superseded by federal, state or local laws, rules or regulations. [Note: The correction of clerical errors in an announcement may be posted on the Department of Human Resources website at https://careers.sf.gov/ .] The terms of this announcement may be appealed under Civil Service Rule 110.4. Such appeals must be submitted in writing to the Department of Human Resources, 1 S Van Ness Avenue, 4th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94103-5413 by close of business on the 5th business day following the issuance date of this examination announcement. Information concerning other Civil Service Commission Rules involving announcements, applications and examination policies, including applicant appeal rights, can be found on the Civil Service Commission website at http://sfgov.org/civilservice/rules.

Additional Information Regarding Employment with the City and County of San Francisco:

• Information About the Hiring Process
• Conviction History
• Employee Benefits Overview
• Equal Employment Opportunity
• Disaster Service Worker
• ADA Accommodation
• Veterans Preference
• Seniority Credit in Promotional Exams
• Right to Work
• Copies of Application Documents
• Diversity Statement

HOW TO APPLY

Submit your application through this job ad. Applicants will receive a confirmation email from notification@careers.sf.gov that their online application has been received in response to every announcement for which they file. Applicants should retain this confirmation email for their records. Failure to receive this email means that the online application was not submitted or received.

Exam Analyst Information: If you have any questions regarding this recruitment or application process, please contact the exam analyst, Jennifer Bushman at Jennifer.Bushman@sfgov.org.

The City and County of San Francisco encourages women, minorities and persons with disabilities to apply. Applicants will be considered regardless of their sex, race, age, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition (associated with cancer, a history of cancer, or genetic characteristics), HIV/AIDS status, genetic information, marital status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, military and veteran status, or other protected category under the law.