Appellate Administrative Specialist

The Defender Association of Philadelphia seeks an Appellate Administrative Specialist to join our Appeals Unit to primarily format and copy edit appellate court briefs and other documents for filing and submission to various appellate courts. The Appeals Unit is responsible for handling all criminal, delinquency, and occasionally dependency appeals for the Defender Association. The unit combined, files hundreds of briefs and other documents with Pennsylvania’s appellate courts each year and those documents must be clean, error free, and formatted in compliance with the Pennsylvania Rules of Court. The successful candidate will be required to monitor and update the due dates for briefs and other filings that the unit’s attorneys are required to submit. The successful candidate may also be required to occasionally transcribe attorney work-product into briefing form as some employees require added technological support. Additionally, the Administrative Specialist may be called upon to perform other administrative duties outside the unit, as needed.

What You’ll Do

• Format, edit and finalize all Superior and Supreme Court Briefs, Allocaturs and Rearguments for all attorneys in the Appeals Unit.
• Create Cover Pages, Table of Contents, Table of Authorities, Praecipe For Appearances, Verified Statements and Compliances for all Superior and Supreme Court Briefs, Allocaturs and Rearguments.
• Transcribe, edit and create a final version for written documents drafted by Appeals attorneys who need technological assistance.
• Maintain and update both unit and individual attorney databases and electronic storage of drafts and filed documents.
• Basic copy editing of final submissions to the Superior and Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.
• Work with Microsoft Word and Adobe Pro to combine and file final submissions to the Superior and Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.
• Maintain and assist in managing the appellate due date calendar for the unit to assist the attorneys in ensuring that all submissions are timely filed.
• Data entry for immigration clients, including filling out basic information for freedom of information act requests.
• Other administrative tasks, as needed, such as digitization and scanning, or other long-term administrative projects, both in and outside the unit.

What You’ll Need

• High School Diploma required. Bachelor’s degree preferred.

• Expert mastery of US English grammar and punctuation rules
• Previous formatting or copy-editing experience, a plus
• Superior attention to detail and ability to follow directions and varying instructions
• Familiarity with legal terminology is preferred and the ability to strictly adhering to style guide
• Excellent typing skills with at least 50+ WPM speed
• Broad knowledge and experience in the Microsoft Office environment including above average skills in Microsoft Word and Adobe Acrobat Pro; ability to add & execute Macros in Word, preferred; familiarity with Microsoft Access, a plus
• Excellent writing and organizational skills

Benefits & Perks

• Generous and rich benefits plan with many employer paid benefits
• Substantial paid time off- over 35 paid time off days and all federal holidays off
• Six weeks of paid parental leave
• Participation in Septa Free All Access card
• 403 (b) Employer Match
• We are a Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) - eligible employer.
• Meaningful Work and growth
• Wellness benefits

Who is the Defender Association?

The Defender Association of Philadelphia is more than just a law firm. We’re the community’s lawyers. The Defender team – more than 500 attorneys, social workers, investigators, administrators, and other staff – make sure that everyone, regardless of income, has access to high-quality defense when facing criminal charges. Our mission-driven, client-centered model focuses on outcomes that support a system that is fundamentally fair and creates safer, stronger communities. Come join our team! For more information follow us @PhillyDefenders (Twitter, IG, Tiktok) and on LinkedIn.

The Defender Association provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability or genetics. In addition to federal law requirements, The Defender Association complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.