Telephone Intake Paralegal
Maryland Legal Aid (MLA) advocates for Marylanders experiencing poverty through free civil legal services. The Telephone Intake Paralegal position involves conducting initial client interviews, managing intake processes, and providing legal and administrative support in a remote capacity after training.
Responsibilities
- Conduct initial interviews with clients and follow-up communications with clients
- Screen clients for eligibility for MLA services
- Complete intakes and transfer calls to intakes to staff attorneys using MLA’s case management system and client contact service center software
- Obtain and verify client information and supporting documentation
- Make referrals, as appropriate
- Conduct legal issue spotting and factual analysis
- Maintain familiarity with legal services programs and community resources
- Prepare affidavit and other email correspondence
- Manage high-volume inbound and outbound calls while maintaining service standards
- Transfer calls and cases accurately based on legal issue, jurisdiction, and capacity
- Adhere to quality assurance and performance metrics
- Assist with training or onboarding of new team members
- Participate in team meetings and process improvement discussions
- Support and collaborate with a team of 35 + staff to ensure effective operations
- Ensure compliance with intake protocols, eligibility guidelines, and confidentiality requirements
- Maintain client confidentiality and comply with ethical standards
- Participate in required training and continuing education
- Perform other duties as assigned
Skills
- Basic written and oral communication skills
- Computer proficiency
- Strong reading comprehension
- Capacity to perform paralegal duties with appropriate training and supervision
- Strong client/customer service skills, including the ability to empathize and assist people who are distressed
- Experience with Microsoft Office Suite (e.g., Word, Excel, Outlook, Teams, SharePoint)
- Paralegal certification or equivalent experience desired
- Experience working in a law firm or legal services
- Ability to work independently, prioritize, and multitask
- Ability to learn specialized software of the firm
- Responsible, reliable, honest, and ethical
- Participates in required training and continuing education
- Maintains client confidentiality and complies with ethical standards
- Spanish language proficiency is strongly preferred
Benefits
- Health
- Dental
- Vision
- Life insurance
- A 401(k)-retirement plan
- 3 weeks paid time off
- Sick leave
- 14 annual paid holidays
- A standard 35-hour work week
- A hybrid work arrangement
Company Overview