Human Resources

Job Location

County of Chelan District Court 316 Washington Steet Wenatchee, WA 98801

Description

Salary: NB15 Steps 2-4 at $5,394.87- $5,902.51; Longevity Steps 5-8 $6,175.52 – $7,079.23

FLSA Status:  Non-Exempt Steps 2 – 6; Exempt Steps 7 -8

The position includes a state retirement system, with a deferred comp program available. Health insurance package includes Medical, Dental, and county contributions to a HRA. Includes up to 11 paid holidays and additional floating holidays per collective bargaining agreement. Along with monthly accrued vacation and sick leave. 

SUMMARY

Assists the Court Administrator in representing the District Court and directing staff in overall administration, management and daily operations; coordinates and directs activities relating to the clerk's office and varied court services in accordance with the court's policies and applicable laws.  Responsibilities include but are not limited to, performing non-manual supervisory work directly related to management or general business operations such as training employees; planning, assigning, and directing work; appraising performance; rewarding and disciplining employees; addressing complaints and resolving problems; developing, interpreting, and implementing policies, and program decisions. Exercises independent judgment and discretion on significant matters.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

(This class specification reflects the general concept and intent of the classification; listing may not include all of the duties nor do the listed examples include all tasks which may be required in this position.)

• Under the direction of the Court Administrator this position assumes responsibility for directing daily courtroom staff and operations, performing all functions and duties as necessary to maintain the integrity of the courtroom and record.
• Performs supervisory responsibilities in accordance with the court's policies, procedures, and applicable laws.  Supervisory responsibilities include but are not limited to assisting in interviews, making recommendations to hire and train employees; planning, assigning, directing and evaluating work; appraising performance; recommend promotion and disciplinary actions; assist when needed with customers, attorneys, and law enforcement, addressing complaints and resolving miscellaneous personnel issues.
• Assists the Administrator in budget preparation, planning, office procedures and policies, analyzing fiscal reports or other documents of specialized nature.  Liaison to attorneys, probation officers, law enforcement personnel, bonding agencies and other persons or agencies such as the Dept. of Licensing, Administrative Office of the Courts and PAC Security. 
• Oversee the timely and accurate administration of court services and functions relating to the operation of the District courts; track and maintain court forms, records and related documentation; resolve questions and complaints raised by court personnel, attorneys, members of law enforcement and the public.  Responds to and diffuses potentially violent situations.
• Provides strategic planning in case flow management and coordinates training and education for maintaining optimum employee morale, interdepartmental teamwork and employee development for all courtroom responsibilities, including creating and accurately preparing legal  documents for the court's signature such as judgment and sentences, domestic violence no contact orders, probation violation disposition forms, conditions of release, referrals to probation, orders of commitment, firearms restrictions, bench warrants and bench warrant cancellations and all forms associated with the appeal process.
• Evaluate and document court operational procedures and make recommendations for changes, as necessary.  Review legislative and statewide judicial system updates for required changes to procedures and manuals relating to case filings, bail, bonds, warrants, judgments, collections, receipt of fines & costs, and conditions of sentences.  Instruct and oversee staff on processing complex legal documents submitted for filing, execution and processing based on application of RCW's, WAC's and court rules. 
• Provides coordination in the jury trial process; arrange for jury panels from Superior court; arranges for interpreter services at hearings/trials; schedule judges pro tempore or visiting judges; submit interpreter, pro tempore judges and witness vouchers for payment.  Contact Eastern State Hospital or other mental health professionals to coordinate orders for evaluation, coordinating with jail, and other schedules and information as required.
• Monitor and understand the status of cases in review for timeliness and compliance with court ordered sentence conditions such as FTA's, deferrals, stipulated orders of continuance, pay or sit fines, jail time to be served, no contact order compliance, partial payments and pending appeals.
• Manage staff assignments; compile and maintain daily schedule of courtroom clerk assignments and calendars to assure all court hearings are staffed; review leave requests for courtroom and counter staff.  Oversee daily procedures, audit clerk's daily work for accuracy in data entry of cases, entering criminal & infraction ticket information, processing correspondence for and after judge review, receipting money, filling out proper forms and setting future court dates.
• Responsible for monitoring electronic recordings of court sessions, retention, erasure and recycling, and maintenance for long term storage.
• Responsible for monitoring exhibit retention and its return to law enforcement or respective parties on criminal and traffic cases.
• Responsible for preparing, calendaring and issuing bench warrants for the court's signature, calendar warrant cases for review and disburse signed warrants to law enforcement agencies and defendant. Correctly issue/adjudicate FTA’s and notify the Department of Licensing. Process returned warrants received from local and other jurisdiction law enforcement agencies; track cases to ensure defendant is transported on warrants served out of county; timely prepare, fax and disburse warrant cancellations to correct law enforcement agency; enter expired warrants into JIS, calendar for review and disburse re-issued warrants to law enforcement and defendants.
• Accurately post bail bond or cash bail to cases, exonerating current bail posted and sending notification to bail bondsman. Process bail forfeitures when defendant fails to appear for hearing; prepare and send bail forfeitures to bondsman or payer of cash bail. Reinstate all bonds when approved by the court after receiving bond reinstatement from bail bondsman.
• Scan documents into imaging system for maintaining case files and perform data entry into JIS case management system. Examples of documents are judgment and sentences, no contact orders, citation and reports, warrants/warrant cancellations, bail bonds, order of dismissals, order of commitment, probation documents, correspondence from defendants and judge and notice of appearance from attorney.
• Troubleshooting computer issues, problems with in court recording systems and signing in pro tem judges to effectively utilize the statewide management and imaging systems.
• Handle multiple priorities and duties requiring a high level of accuracy and attention to detail. Work in a fast paced, multi-task environment with constant interruption and reprioritizing while maintaining a calm disposition in potentially very stressful situations.
• Stay current on all job duties and responsibilities of the courtroom clerks and have the ability to perform assigned duties when needed, keeping detailed records of proceedings, processing orders of the court, marking exhibits, monitoring an electronic recorder and maintaining a recording log.  Perform all essential functions of Bailiff when needed.
• Assume responsibilities of assistant administrator in her absence. Duties to include balancing and processing daily deposit, verify correct monies receipted by all clerks, research any discrepancies and make adjustments according to AOC and State Auditor guidelines; prepare required month end audit reports and remittance to the County Treasurer; monitor the Court's trust account and determine bail/bond disposition in compliance with court policy; enter payments received from contracted collection agencies; process case payments received online; reset clerk passwords; warrant procedures; collection procedures such as assigning and removing cases from contracted collection agencies; obtain title history and registered owner information from Dept. of Licensing websites; develop and maintain office policies and procedures; verify sufficient office coverage during absences; and provide assistance to clerks.
• Other duties as assigned.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES

This position reports directly to the Court Administrator, supervises all employees in the department and carries out responsibilities in accordance with the organization's policies and applicable laws.  Supervisory responsibilities include but are not limited to assisting in interviews, making recommendations to hire and train employees; planning, assigning, directing and evaluating work; appraising performance; recommend promotion and disciplinary actions; assist when needed with customers, attorneys, and law enforcement addressing complaints and resolving miscellaneous personnel issues. Exercises independent judgment in program administration and policy implementation. Develops and recommends operational procedures. Has authority to make decisions that impact departmental operations and budget.

QUALIFICATIONS

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily.  The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required.  Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Establish and maintain cooperative, effective, and productive working relationships using tact, patience and courtesy.  Coordinate and schedule administrative work and staff.  Understand and follow State Statutes and State and Local Court Rules governing District Court’s clerk's office and courtroom operations.  Maintain confidentially in all work matters.  Handle multiple priorities and duties requiring a high level of accuracy and attention to detail, without regular direction.  Compose clear, effective written explanations of procedures.  Understand and carry out oral and written instructions, apply available guidelines to varied operational requirements, and disseminate this information to staff.  Work in a fast paced, multi-task environment with constant re-prioritizing while remaining calm in potentially very stressful situations.  Work effectively as a team member in a customer service atmosphere.  Maintain composure and communicate effectively with people who may be upset, confrontational, angry, or abusive.  Meet stringent deadlines.  Proficiently utilize a computer and various software programs to input and retrieve computer information, prepare reports and correspondence, and perform repetitive tasks for extended periods of time.  Proficient in software applications utilized in this position including:  Excel, Word, JIS, OnBase, Outlook, Designated Internet Sites, BRIO, E-filing, and Adobe.  Effectively lead others.  Appear for scheduled work with regular, reliable and punctual attendance.  Effectively plan and organize work and complete tasks within prescribed timeframes.  May be required to work over 40 hours in a work week. 

EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE

Any combination of education, experience and training which would include graduation from high school or equivalent, college education in public or business administration or a related field together with at at least three years experience in court operations or closely related field or a combination of management or legal experience and training determined by the Court Administrator to provide the necessary competencies to perform the job. 

This includes education or experience which provides the following knowledge and skills: knowledge of office practices, the operation of the court and case processing activity; ability to work independently and in a high-pressure work environment; ability to make responsible decisions in accordance with laws, court policies and procedures; ability to express ideas clearly and concisely, orally and in writing; ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with co-workers, public officials and the general public; and skill in operating standard office machines and equipment, including computers.

LANGUAGE SKILLS

Must have ability to read and interpret legal documents such as court orders, write operating and maintenance instructions and procedure manuals, ability to prepare complex reports, correspondence, ability to effectively respond to common inquiries or complaints from public, state agencies or members of the business community.  Ability to effectively present information to management, public groups, Judges, customers and employees.

REASONING ABILITY

Must have ability to problem-solve and be able to reach a critical evaluation of a situation, while maintaining professionalism and remaining unbiased.

Ability to solve practical problems with the flexibility to adapt and respond to changing and sometimes stressful situations; understand and carry out detailed, involved written or oral instructions using common sense.  Ability to deal with problems involving a variety of variables in situations where limited standardization exists; to interpret State Laws, WAC’s and Court Rules; ability to evaluate and understand technical instructions and instructional manuals

CERTIFICATES, LICENSES, REGISTRATIONS

• Successful completion of a pre-employment background and criminal history check.
• May be required to complete FEMA (NIMS) courses on Emergency Management

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit, talk, hear, stand, walk; use hands to finger, handle, or feel; reach with hands and arms; stoop, or kneel, and perform repetitive motions for computer use.  Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision - vision sufficient to read source materials and computer screen data. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds occasionally and/or 10 pounds on a regular basis to lift/carry/move objects, files and other material.

WORK ENVIRONMENT

The work environment characteristics are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job in a professional office environment, providing service to the public.  The employee has daily direct contact with people who may exhibit emotional and/or hostile behaviors, such as profanity, verbal abuse, and angry outbursts.  The work environment is often hectic, fast paced, and stressful.  Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate. Requires clear speaking and adequate hearing sufficient to communicate effectively and respond appropriately both in-person and on the telephone.  Potentially hazardous conditions may be present when exposed to violent or hostile individuals.

Additional Information

PDF application available here.