Public Defender Jobs in Georgia (NOW HIRING)

This position is responsible for providing in and out of court support for Superior & State Civil and Criminal proceedings for the three highest-level courts of Muscogee County.

This position is responsible for providing in and out of court support for Superior & State Civil and Criminal proceedings for the three highest-level courts of Muscogee County.

• Coordinates case intake activities; oversees the processing of all superior court criminal court cases, including the filing of court documents, issuance of required documents, and accurate recording of all relevant case information and history; reviews, evaluates, and accepts or rejects submission of court cases and documents based upon legal sufficiency of documents presented; ensures all required preliminary steps have been taken prior to accepting submission; monitors processing of cases to ensure timeliness and compliance with relevant laws; prepares case files for court proceedings.
• Coordinates all court case-related activities with judges, private attorneys, prosecutors, public defenders, state and local law enforcement agencies, local and state probation, state pardons and paroles, administrative office of the courts, Georgia Superior Court Clerks Authority, Georgia Court of Appeals, Supreme Court of Georgia, Department of Motor Vehicles, Department of Corrections, GCIC, lower courts of Muscogee County, general public and other court patrons, and all other appropriate agencies and individuals.
• Attends Superior & State Civil and Criminal hearings, arraignments, probation revocations, civil and criminal verdicts, coordinates courtroom activities with the judge, attorneys, and other participants.
• Strikes civil and criminal juries; records all jury, civil and criminal verdicts, motions, orders, and all other directives of the presiding judge. Receives, reviews, and corrects, when necessary, all lower court warrants and documents for proceeding into Superior & State Courts. Researches and responds to all written and verbal inquiries from and assists judges, attorneys, law enforcement, defendants, prosecutors, public defenders, state and local agencies, chic, and other court patrons about court policies, procedures, case status, scheduling of court proceedings, resolving complaints and addressing issues, fines, and costs due, retrieval and interpreting computerized case history information.
• Reviews legal documents and court files to determine readiness for hearings, trial, judgments, and other dispositions, checks for timeliness, fulfillment of all notice requirements, completeness of required documentation, compliance with state law, rules, regulations, and procedures.
• Prepares court orders for the review and signature of the presiding judge.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

• Knowledge of general legal terminology and required record-keeping procedures.
• Knowledge of modern office procedures. Skill in operating numerous complex computer systems, copiers, printers, facsimile machines, high-speed and flatbed scanners. Skill in dealing with the public.
• Knowledge of state and local court systems. Ability to analyze information and data and to resolve problems Ability to understand, interpret and explain to others Georgia laws, rules, policies, and procedures necessary to perform duties as mandated in manual of the council of superior court clerks of Georgia- four volumes of laws, rules that embody over 10,000 pages.
• Skill in Uniform Superior Court, Court of Appeals and Supreme Court rules, rules of the Administrative Office of the Courts, rules of GCIC and NCIC, rules and regulations of the Georgia Superior Court Clerks Authority, rules of the Department of Motor Vehicles, and others.
• Skill in resolving high-stress situations requiring the ability to make immediate decisions.
• Skill in meeting constant, critical, legally required deadlines. Knowledge of court and government computer applications.
• Skill in oral and written communication and coordination with the public, other court personnel, management, public officials, judges, state agencies, attorneys, pro se litigants (representing themselves), family members, crime victims, juveniles, and others.
• Analytical abilities.
• Ability to handle multi-tasking of variety of duties occurring simultaneously.
• Ability to organize, manage detailed work accurately.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective, trusted working relationships with judges, court personnel, attorneys, parties to actions, public, external agencies, other employees, and others.
• Ability to interact with persons charged with and/or convicted of serious misdemeanors and felonies.
• Ability to work after-hours on-call and out-of-town.
• Ability to understand, use and train others in the use of and retrieval of information from the court case management system, the Clerk's internet website for the Muscogee County Courts, and Microsoft Office.

Knowledge and level of competency commonly associated with the completion of specialized training in the occupational field, in addition to basic skills typically associated with a high school education. Sufficient experience to understand the basic principles relevant to the major duties of the position usually associated with the completion of an apprenticeship/internship or having had a similar position for one to two years.

The work is typically performed while sitting at a desk or table or while intermittently sitting, standing, bending, crouching, or stooping. The employee occasionally lifts light and heavy objects and climbs ladders. Additionally, the following physical abilities are required:

• Climbing – ascending, descending ladders, stairs, ramps, requires body agility.
• Crouching – bending body forward by bending leg, spine.
• Feeling – perceiving attributes of objects by touch with skin, fingertips.
• Grasping – applying pressure to object with fingers, palm.
• Handling – picking, holding, or working with whole hand.
• Hearing 1 – perceiving sounds at normal speaking levels, receive information.
• Kneeling – bending legs at knee to come to rest at knees.
• Lifting – raising objects from lower to higher position, moving objects side to side, using upper extremities, back.
• Manual Dexterity – picking, pinching, typing, working with fingers rather than hand.
• Mental Acuity – ability to make rational decisions through sound logic, deductive reasoning.
• Pulling - use upper extremities to exert force, haul or tug.
• Pushing – use upper extremities to press against objects with force, or thrust forward, downward, outward.
• Reaching – extending hands or arms in any direction.
• Repetitive Motion – substantial movements of wrists, hands, fingers.
• Speaking – expressing ideas with spoken word, convey detailed, important instructions accurately, concisely.
• Standing – for sustained periods of time.
• Stooping – bending body downward, forward at waist, with full motion of lower extremities and back.
• Talking 1- expressing ideas by spoken word.
• Visual Acuity 1 - prepare, analyze data, transcribing, computer terminal, extensive reading.
• Walking - on foot to accomplish tasks, long distances, or site to site.

The work is typically performed in an office or a courtroom.