Probate Paralegal 

 

Black McCuskey has a current opening for an experienced paralegal to provide support to the estate planning, and estate and trust administration practice areas. A viable candidate will be good with numbers and have experience in the preparation of Probate Court filings, client contact, maintaining court accounting records, reviewing brokerage reports and other financial reports. Experience in estate planning and an understanding of trust administration, estate tax and fiduciary income tax is a plus.  Solid understanding of legal procedures and terminology within practice area is required: additional experience in corporate, contracts and real estate practice areas is preferred, but not required. Successful candidate will possess effective communication skills and a strong work ethic. Attention to detail and adherence to deadlines are very important. 

 

Responsibilities 

 

• Manage incoming phone calls for assigned attorneys 

• Complete and process required forms for opening of new client files or matters 

• Interact professionally with clients, court personnel and other counsel 

• Attend client meetings as needed to witness and notarize estate planning and estate and trust administration documents 

• Maintain confidentiality of client information 

• Process attorney mail in a proper and timely manner 

• Calendaring and scheduling appointments, critical deadlines and managing contacts 

• Maintain file organization both electronically and paper copies 

• Review and organize legal documents based on subject matter 

• Transcribe from dictation 

• Draft estate planning and other legal documents under the direction of the assigned attorney 

• Review, revise and format estate planning documents, correspondence, contracts, and other legal documents 

• Review legal documents for completeness, validity, format, grammar and typographical errors 

• Prepare various court filings both electronically and paper copies 

• Prepare expense reports for assigned attorneys 

 

Required Skills & Experience  

 

• Associate degree in Paralegal Studies or Certificated Paralegal required 

• Understands the basic concepts of wills, trusts, powers of attorney, estate and trust administration, beneficiary designations, and probate and non-probate assets 

• Proficient in Microsoft Office and Adobe Acrobat 

• Willingness to learn and be trained to utilize the firm’s document management, billing, fiduciary accounting and tax software

• Familiarity with local, state, and federal filing rules 

• Organized and deadline driven 

• Positive attitude and willingness to be part of a team 

• Detail oriented with excellent grammar and proofreading skills 

• Ability to handle multiple tasks simultaneously through completion 

• Ability to effectively prioritize and execute tasks within set deadlines 

• Must be a licensed notary in the state of Ohio (or willing to become a notary)