Associate Director of Calendar Court Services
About Kirkland & Ellis
At Kirkland & Ellis, we are united in our ambition and drive to move forward. We share core values that help us achieve excellence: collaboration, talent empowerment, service, inclusion, respect and gratitude. Our people are our greatest asset, and we invest in the brightest talent and encourage a diversity of perspectives and strengths to create dynamic teams that operate at the pinnacle of their field. Our talented professionals show up every day knowing they will engage in meaningful work, continuous learning and professional development.
As one of the world’s leading law firms, we serve a broad range of clients with market-leading practices in private equity, M&A and other complex corporate transactions; investment fund formation and management; restructurings; high-stakes litigation and trials; and government, regulatory and internal investigations. We handle the most complicated and sophisticated legal matters because we don’t just meet industry standards, we create them. We bring innovation and entrepreneurialism to every engagement and, as a result, have long-standing client relationships with leading global corporations and financial sponsors. With 6,500 employees (including 3,500+ lawyers) operating from 19 offices across the United States, Europe and Asia, we are one of the largest law firms in the world and a top financial performer.
Essential Job Functions
The CCS team must provide exceptional court related services to the attorneys and paralegals and ensure the accuracy and integrity of the docketing and calendaring database. To that end, the Associate Director of CCS must maintain a cohesive, collaborative team that consistently meets Firm standards for service.
The Associate Director of CCS is expected to have expert-level knowledge of, and ability to implement, leading practices and procedures to ensure minimal risk of missed deadlines or rejected court filings. This role also requires the ability to advise on and execute the strategic vision for a centralized firm-wide docketing and calendaring system.
Essential Job Functions:
- Oversee electronic and manual court filings in Federal and State courts to ensure that all documentation complies with procedural filing rules and Firm best practices and policies. Provide substantive procedural guidance to attorneys and paralegals to ensure suitability of documents for filing and for conformance with applicable rules. Assist with filings when appropriate.
- Maintain and oversee a centralized case docketing and calendaring system and related process with a team of professional staff across offices. Manage the preparation and distribution of calendared events to the attorneys and paralegals to ensure the Firm follows relevant calendaring requirements and policies.
- Conduct research and analysis related to prospective and active litigation including procedural requirements and parties involved (including judges, potential arbitrators, opposing counsel, etc.). Advise on civil and criminal procedural questions posed by attorneys and paralegals, as needed.
- Assist attorneys and staff with appropriate research tools used to identify and comply with court rules and procedures.
- Lead and manage a team of professionals to include coaching, mentoring, and professional development. Responsible for providing performance feedback on a regular basis. Focus on developing and managing a team in a positive environment while delivering subject matter expertise with an enhanced level of discernment and exceptional service.
- Be available for urgent and confidential situations, including evenings and weekends. Be available 24/7 via mobile device.
- Other duties as assigned by the General Counsel’s Office and Risk Management leadership.
Other Functions:
- Lead efforts to retrieve pleadings and other related filings, set up party/litigant alerts and docket tracks, and compile judge and case information from court-related vendor databases (PACER, Westlaw Court Express, Bloomberg Law, Access Plus and Jura Law) and other online sources. Research and complete customer service requests to acquire national, global, and archived court documents using available court-related vendor databases.
- Perform on-going review of the automated court rule sets as provided by our vendor to ensure that they reflect accurate date calculations so that filing deadlines and critical dates are not missed. Inform stakeholders of changes to court rules that impact their cases.
- Demonstrate knowledge of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure, and State rules for the courts where the Firm is actively engaged. Ability to research and locate current rules pertaining to other jurisdictions on an as needed basis.
- Possess strong understanding of e-filing requirements and procedures for all courts serviced by the Firm. Advise attorneys and paralegals on electronic case filing issues. Monitor daily receipts of all Case Management/Electronic Case Filing to ensure that events are timely posted on Firm calendars. Demonstrate expertise of Federal and State electronic filing systems (ECF, I2File, Odyssey, File & Serve and other local electronic filing systems).
- Provide staff ongoing and regular feedback on performance, including annual performance reviews. Develop and maintain training programs for new and existing staff, including documentation, and development plans for staff members. Interact and communicate with subordinates, provide instruction/direction/training, determine work priorities, and coordinate the activities of a work team.
- Guide and assist with the collection and verification of Federal bar registration information. Advise attorneys and paralegals on the process of applying for pro hac vice admission to Federal and State courts.
- Provide and advise on court rules, legal procedures, practices, and guidance on litigation service of process on litigation matters.
Qualifications & Requirements
The Associate Director of CCS will possess:
- A minimum of 7 years of prior management experience in a Calendar Court Services, Docketing, or Managing Clerk Department of a national law firm setting. A four-year degree is required, a J.D. strongly preferred.
- In-depth knowledge of all Federal, and State court rules, including expertise in case management/electronic case filing procedures and all other electronic filing databases.
- Working knowledge and understanding of Docket applications (i.e., CompuLaw, CourtAlert), Bloomberg Law, Internet Explorer, Outlook, and MS Word is expected; Working knowledge of PACER for electronic filing and research is required.
- Mastery of applicable docketing/calendaring procedures and the ability to learn and utilize specific internal or third-party docketing/calendaring department software.
- Analytical and technical skills with an aptitude for detail, precision, and logic; Ability to interpret and process large volumes of complex data quickly and accurately.
- Comprehensive knowledge of docket/court rules and procedures to manage the day-to-day operations and staff, accurately calculate court deadline dates, and assure the accuracy and integrity of the database.
- Organizational awareness to ensure work is completed within strict deadlines and inquiries relating to docket procedures are timely handled.
- Commitment to continual performance improvement and ongoing professional development needed to develop new expertise in filing requirements, docketing/calendaring procedures, and court services as legal and business demands change.
Work Environment:
- This job operates in a professional office environment. This role routinely uses standard office equipment such as computers, phones, photocopiers, and filing cabinets.
How to Apply
Thank you for your interest in Kirkland & Ellis LLP. To complete an application and submit your resume, please click "Apply Now."
Equal Employment Opportunity
All employment decisions, including the recruiting, hiring, placement, training availability, promotion, compensation, evaluation, disciplinary actions, and termination of employment (if necessary) are made without regard to the employee’s race, color, creed, religion, sex, pregnancy or childbirth, personal appearance, family responsibilities, sexual orientation or preference, gender identity, political affiliation, source of income, place of residence, national or ethnic origin, ancestry, age, marital status, military veteran status, unfavorable discharge from military service, physical or mental disability, or on any other basis prohibited by applicable law.
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