Legal Intern

Tennessee Department of State

Administrative Procedures Division

Mission: The mission of the Office of the Secretary of State is to exceed the expectations of our customers, the taxpayers, by operating at the highest levels of accuracy, cost-effectiveness, and accountability in a customer-centered environment.

The Administrative Procedures Division (APD) within the Office of the Secretary of State aims to serve our clients, customers, and associates – government agencies, citizens of Tennessee, and judicial partners – by providing impartial, efficient, and sound contested case hearings and mediations. More than 70 state and local government agencies open an average of 6000 cases with APD each year on issues ranging from property taxes to professional licensure, civil forfeiture and seizure of assets to the provision of special education services. APD offers an important platform for citizens to contest administrative rulings from government.

Supervisor: Director of Administrative Procedures

Summary: Assist support staff, administrative law judges, and the director with daily functions of the office and special projects.

The scope of APD’s portfolio of cases makes working for APD unique and exciting. In the course of a week, the legal intern may answer inquiries from parties on cases dealing with anything from a citizen’s appeal of the denial of medical coverage to a business’s appeal of a fine for alleged environmental contamination. The legal intern’s ability to provide excellent customer service is critical to ensuring APD achieves its mission.

Duties/Responsibilities

• Answer main APD phoneline, primarily responding to inquiries from parties to a case.
• Monitor APD’s generic email inboxes for filings and inquiries, responding accordingly and uploading filings into APD’s electronic case management system.
• Receive, scan, and process mail.
• Assist with the issuance of outgoing orders and initiating case letters.
• Open cases in APD’s electronic case management system.
• Schedule Chief Judge and Director calls with ALJs; schedule peer, staff, and leadership observations of hearings.
• Maintain inventory of office equipment and supplies, proactively keeping supplies in stock.
• Maintain a clean and orderly office environment for APD’s office footprint.
• Make room reservations for hearings and meetings as needed in the Tennessee Tower, Tennessee State Library and Archives, and other buildings.
• Learn the functions other support staff perform and serve as backup for other staff members as needed.
• Perform other duties as assigned.
  
  

Minimum Qualifications

Education and Experience

• Currently attending higher or professional education, including college, university, or law school.
• Prior experience in the legal profession and with legal case management systems is preferred.
  
  

Knowledge and Abilities

• Strong oral communication skills. Clear talent for active listening to and speaking with customers, maintaining friendly, helpful, and professional communication even with challenging callers.
• Demonstrated desire and ability to synthesize and explain what is an important legal process for customers.
• Service-oriented attitude, both to customers and to colleagues.
• Understanding of legal documents and legal terminology with genuine interest in legal work.
• Willingness and ability to learn quickly, absorbing important information as to the legal meaning of documents throughout the litigation process
• High attention to detail and accuracy
• Strong clerical and organizational skills, managing and maintaining files and records.
• Ability to daily manage multiple high-volume tasks and correctly prioritize their timely completion in a fast-paced environment
• Ability to seamlessly handle multiple tasks, such as answering the phone while simultaneously working on a project that requires attention to detail, accuracy, and thoughtful reasoning.
• Adept at quickly pivoting tasks while maintaining accuracy of work product, especially when workflow is interrupted.
• Strong written communication skills. Ability to compose professional, concise, and tactful emails using proper grammar, spelling, and punctuation
• Demonstrated solid computer skills. Comfortable and confident with learning a new case management system.
• High competency with Adobe Pro, Excel, Outlook, and Word (required); PowerPoint (preferred).
• Ability to use or quickly learn virtual meeting platforms: Webex and MS Teams.
  
  

Salary: $15 per hour

Location: In-person at the Tennessee Tower in downtown Nashville, TN.

Timeframe: Preferably starting at the beginning of August (or late July) and working through December 2024.

Hours: APD’s office hours are 8:00 am – 4:30 pm Central Time, Monday through Friday. A part-time schedule, with a minimum of 15 hours per week, may be discussed during the interview process.