Court Staff Attorney II – Superior Court of California (Open & Promotional)

The Superior Court of California, County of San Mateo is seeking qualified and experienced candidates for the position of Court Staff Attorney II – Superior Court of California. The incumbent will perform a wide variety of legal research duties, primarily for the Civil Law and Motion Calendar.

Court Staff Attorney II ($98,488.00 – $122,720.00 Annually) is the experienced level attorney position for the court.

The ideal candidate will be a member of the California State Bar (required) and will possess extensive working knowledge of California civil law and procedure, as well the functions of a California Superior Court. In addition, the ideal candidate will possess:

• Proven experience performing legal research in civil matters;
• Superior analytical skills and writing ability;
• The ability to work independently and with minimal supervision;
• The ability to coordinate multiple projects and consistently meet deadlines;
• A strong understanding of the importance of and the ability to maintain confidentiality;
• Excellent problem-solving skills; and
• Exemplary verbal and written communication skills.

Please visit https://www.sanmateocourt.org/ for more information on our organization.

NOTE: The eligible list generated from this recruitment may be used to fill future extra-help, term, unclassified, and regular classified vacancies.

Essential duties may include, but are not limited to the following:

• Provide independent legal research to the judges and commissioners of the County of San Mateo Superior Court bench;
• Research matters and provide written memoranda for those motions set on the Civil Direct Calendar Judges’ Law and Motion calendars;
• Review and make recommendations on any civil ex parte motions presented to the court on the daily ex parte calendar(s);
• Research, prepare memoranda, draft orders and meet with the designated judge on specially set matters;
• Perform legal research; analyze and apply legal principles, facts, and precedents to legal problems;
• Prepare statements of fact, law, and argument;
• Prepare clear, concise, and accurate reports, documents, correspondence, procedures, and other written materials.

Education and Experience:
Any combination of education and experience that would likely provide the required knowledge, skills, and abilities is qualifying for Court Staff Attorney II.

Required Knowledge of:

• General legal principles and application to civil law.
• General knowledge of the Civil Code, the Code of Civil Procedure, Evidence Code, California Rules of Court, and local rules.
• Evidentiary principles, pre-trial, hearing, and trial procedures.
• Legal research techniques, including the use of case law, statutory law, secondary sources, and legal indices and digests.
• Office practices and procedures, including filing and operation of standard office equipment.
• Business data processing principles and the use of automation tools for retrieval and analysis.
• Business letter and legal document formatting, and related office applications such as Word.
• Correct use of English, including grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
• Computerized legal research and related applications such as LexisNexis and Westlaw.

Other Requirements: Membership in the California State Bar Association, County of San Mateo Bar Association, and specialty section memberships as determined by the Court Executive Officer.

Required Skill/Ability to:

• Interpret, evaluate, make decisions in accordance with, and explain complex laws, regulations, policies, and procedures.
• Make sound, independent decisions within established legal, policy, and procedural guidelines.
• Communicate effectively, both orally and in writing.
• Establish and maintain effective working relationships with those contacted in the course of the work.

Open and Promotional. Anyone may apply. Current County of San Mateo and County of San Mateo Superior Court employees with at least six months (1040 hours) of continuous service in a classified regular, probationary, SEIU or AFSCME represented extra-help/term position prior to the final filing date will receive five points added to their final passing score on this examination. This recruitment is open to an attorney with the minimum qualifications, who is a member in good standing with the California State Bar.

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Responses to the supplemental questions must be submitted in addition to our regular employment application form. A resume will not be accepted as a substitute for the required employment application and supplemental questionnaire.

The examination process will consist of an application screening (pass/fail) based on the candidate’s application and responses to the supplemental questions. Candidates who pass the application screening will be invited to a panel interview (weight: 100%). Depending on the number of applicants, an application appraisal of education and experience may be used in place of other examinations, or further evaluation of work experience may be conducted to group applicants by level of qualification. Applicants who meet the minimum qualifications are not guaranteed advancement through any subsequent phase of the examination. All examinations will be given in the County of San Mateo, California, and applicants must participate at their own expense.

IMPORTANT: Applications for this position will only be accepted online. If you are currently on the County’s website, you may click the “Apply” button. If you are not on the County’s website, please go to https://jobs.smcgov.org/ to apply. Online applications must be received by the Human Resources Department before midnight on the final filing date.

Online application packets will consist of:

• A completed standard Court/County of San Mateo online application form.
• Responses to the supplemental questions that are part of the online application form.
• A resume is attached to the online application form.
• A writing sample specific to a civil motion or probate petition you have briefed and argued, no longer than five (5) pages, is also attached to the application form.

PLEASE NOTE: Incomplete application packets will not be reviewed. In case of a high volume of applications, the court reserves the right to limit the number of candidates interviewed to the most highly qualified.

County of San Mateo Human Resources Department
Attn: Sedrick Dixon
455 County Center – 1st Floor
Redwood City, CA 94063
Telephone: 650-363-4303
Email: sdixon@smcgov.org

TENTATIVE RECRUITMENT SCHEDULE:
Final Filing Date: Monday, April 11, 2022, 11:59 PM PST
Application Screening: Week of April 18, 2022
Panel Interview: May 3 and/or 4, 2022

The County of San Mateo requires that all employees provide proof of COVID-19 vaccine or comply with weekly COVID-19 testing. Employees hired into specified health care facilities and other high-risk settings where there is potential for frequent COVID-19 exposure to staff and highly vulnerable patients are required to provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination. For more specific information, please refer to the County’s COVID-19 Vaccine and Testing Policy
The Superior Court of California, County of San Mateo is an Equal Opportunity Employer, and we encourage applications from candidates who will contribute to our diversity.

Note: Although the County is conducting the recruitment with the Superior Court, this position is not a County position.

Analyst: Sedrick Dixon (03282022) (Court Staff Attorney I/II – X434/X435)