MAGISTRATE JUDGE COURTROOM DEPUTY
Magistrate Judge Courtroom Deputy
ANNOUNCEMENT NUMBER: 20-WAW-01
ANNOUNCEMENT DATE: October 10, 2019
CLOSING DATE: Open until filled; preference given to resumes received by October 20, 2019
The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington is currently accepting applications for a qualified Magistrate Judge Courtroom Deputy. This position is located in the office of the Clerk of Court at the federal courthouse in Seattle, Washington. Some travel within the district may be required.
The Magistrate Judge Courtroom Deputy is responsible for scheduling hearings, managing in-court proceedings and trial schedules, and assists in managing a Magistrate Judge’s civil and criminal caseload. This position is a liaison between judicial chambers and attorneys, interpreters, the Clerk’s Office, and the U.S. Marshals Service for specific case related information.
The successful candidate will be self-motivated, articulate, and detail oriented. This position requires professionalism, discretion, excellent communication skills, flexibility, initiative, and commitment. The Magistrate Judge Courtroom Deputy is part of a self-directed team, works closely with chambers staff, and interacts with outside agencies and the public.
Representative Duties
- Manages their judge's cases by calendaring and regulating their movement; monitoring, posting, and maintaining pertinent documents; scheduling hearings, trials, and conferences.
- Manages court sessions and conferences by monitoring the orderly flow of proceedings, setting up the courtroom, assuring the presence of all necessary participants, managing exhibits for counsel and witnesses, taking notes of proceedings and rulings, digitally recording proceedings held before Magistrate Judges, and preparing and posting minute entries and/or orders.
- Acts as a liaison between other teams within the Clerk’s Office, the Bar, the U.S. Marshals Service, U.S. Probation and Pretrial Services, U.S. Attorney’s Office, the Federal Public Defender, and chambers to ensure cases proceed smoothly and efficiently. Serves as a primary contact for scheduling conferences, hearings, military calendars, trials, and other case processes.
- Organizes case material and researches the case history to produce a daily calendar for their judge. Reformats the judge’s daily calendar for public display online and for distribution to other agencies. Updates the daily calendar throughout the day as needed.
- Posts all minute entries of court proceedings, orders, and other necessary documents. Performs daily quality control checks on documents filed in cases pending before the Magistrate Judge.
- Opens cases upon receipt of initiating documents such as complaints, criminal information, indictments, and Probation and Pretrial Services petitions. Closes cases upon receipt of terminating documents, such as judgments and dispositive orders.
Qualifications:
A successful candidate will possess:
- Experience with technology such as electronic calendars and courtroom technology;
- Strong organizational and time management skills, including experience handling multiple concurrent workload demands;
- A collaborative and consensus-building work style with the ability to interact with a wide variety of people tactfully and courteously;
- Strong computer skills, including Microsoft Office and SharePoint;
- Strong verbal and written communication skills;
- A professional demeanor;
- The ability to maintain confidentiality, demonstrate sound judgment, and handle sensitive material.
- An attendance record that indicates reliability and commitment.
Preferred Skills
- Knowledge of criminal and civil docketing, court calendaring and in-court procedures;
- Knowledge of CM/ECF (case management/electronic case filing) system;
- Knowledge of federal and local rules.
Education
A high school diploma or equivalent and a minimum of two years progressively responsible administrative, technical, or professional experience is required. A bachelor’s degree and experience in a courtroom is preferred.
Salary Range
Court Personnel System Classification:
CL26, Step 1 – 61, $49,384 - $80,238
CL27, Step 1 – 61, $54,234 - $88,189
Depending on experience and qualifications; additional promotional potential without further recruitment.
Information for Applicants
Qualified applicants should submit the following:
- Cover letter
- Resume
- Narrative statement of no more than one page answering the following question: This position is located in an office with self-directed work teams (no direct supervisors). Please describe the characteristics that you believe make a successful team member. Provide an example of when you have effectively worked as part of a team.
Via e-mail (Word or Acrobat .pdf format) to:
seattle_personnel@wawd.uscourts.gov
Or to:
Human Resources (#20WAW-01),
U. S. District Court,
700 Stewart Street, Suite 2218
Seattle, WA 98101
Only qualified applicants will be considered for this position. Applicants must be United States citizens or eligible to work in the United States. Applicants selected for interviews must travel at their own expense. Qualified applicants selected for interviews will be tested.
The United States District Court requires employees to follow a code of conduct which is available upon request. Reference checks with current and former employers will be conducted on top candidates. A background investigation with law enforcement agencies, including fingerprint and criminal record checks, will be conducted as a condition of employment. Any applicant selected for a position will be hired provisionally pending successful completion of the investigation. Unsatisfactory results may result in termination of employment.
The Federal Financial Management Reform Act requires direct deposit of federal wages.
The Court provides reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation, please notify Human Resources. The decision on granting reasonable accommodations will be made on a case by case basis.
The Court reserves the right to modify the conditions of this job announcement, to withdraw the announcement, or to fill the position sooner than the closing date, any of which may occur without prior written or other notice. In the event that a position becomes vacant in a similar classification, within a reasonable time from the original announcement, management may elect to select a candidate from the applicants who responded to the original announcement without posting the position. More than one position may be filled from this announcement.
BENEFITS
Employees of the United States District Court are considered “at will” employees. Judiciary employees participate in the Federal Employees Retirement System, Thrift Savings Plan (similar to a 401K), health and life insurance benefits, long term disability and long term care options, annual and sick leave accrual, and ten paid holidays per year. Judiciary employees are not covered by the Office of Personnel Management’s civil service classification system or regulations. For additional information on employment with the federal courts, please visit www.uscourts.gov.