Experienced Civil Litigation Paralegal - Personal Injury

Job Description

Job Description

Experienced Litigation Paralegal

Plaintiff-Side Catastrophic Injury & Wrongful Death

Employer: Confidential West Valley Trial Law Firm
Location: Calabasas / West San Fernando Valley, California
Schedule: Full-time, primarily in-office
Compensation: $43.27–$55.29 per hour , depending on directly relevant experience, equivalent to approximately $90,000–$115,000 annually before overtime

Confidential Search

The firm’s name has intentionally been withheld during the initial application process. The firm’s full identity and additional details will be disclosed to candidates selected to advance after the initial application review.

About the Practice

We are a plaintiff-side trial law firm representing individuals and families in wrongful death, catastrophic injury, and other serious personal injury matters.

We are not a high-volume settlement practice. Our cases involve serious injuries, substantial damages, complex facts, expert witnesses, extensive discovery, and meaningful trial preparation. We prepare cases with the expectation that they may be tried.

We are looking for an experienced litigation paralegal who understands that strong trial work is built long before the trial date.

About the Position

This position requires more than completing assignments as they are given. The right candidate will take ownership of litigation files, protect deadlines, identify what is missing, anticipate the next step, and raise potential problems before they become emergencies.

You must be able to work closely with trial attorneys while independently managing the organization, documentation, calendaring, and follow-through necessary to keep serious cases moving.

Because our clients have often suffered life-changing injuries or the loss of a family member, this position also requires patience, discretion, professionalism, and strong emotional judgment.

Primary Responsibilities

• Assist attorneys with California civil litigation matters from filing through trial or resolution.
• Calculate, calendar, monitor, and independently double-check litigation deadlines.
• Maintain accurate master calendars, case task lists, and deadline reports.
• Draft and prepare pleadings, notices, subpoenas, correspondence, discovery, discovery responses, deposition materials, and motion-related documents under attorney supervision.
• Manage written discovery, document productions, privilege issues, verifications, supplemental responses, and meet-and-confer materials.
• Organize and analyze medical records, medical billing, wage-loss materials, photographs, videos, liability evidence, expert materials, and other damages documentation.
• Prepare medical chronologies, factual timelines, deposition summaries, evidence indexes, and case-status reports.
• Coordinate depositions, medical examinations, inspections, mediations, hearings, experts, witnesses, court reporters, interpreters, process servers, and litigation vendors.
• Prepare and manage deposition exhibits, expert materials, trial subpoenas, exhibit lists, witness lists, trial notebooks, motions-in-limine materials, jury-instruction materials, verdict-form materials, and other pretrial filings.
• Electronically file and serve documents in California state and federal courts and confirm acceptance, service, and receipt of conformed copies.
• Communicate professionally and compassionately with clients, witnesses, experts, court personnel, opposing counsel, and vendors.
• Keep attorneys informed of approaching deadlines, incomplete assignments, evidentiary problems, discovery issues, and items requiring attorney decisions.
• Maintain confidentiality, attorney-client privilege, ethical boundaries, and complete and orderly electronic files.
• Assist attorneys during trial, including exhibit management, witness coordination, document retrieval, transcript review, and daily trial preparation.
• Work reasonable overtime or assist with trial-related travel when case deadlines require it. Overtime will be paid as required by law.

Required Qualifications

• Must qualify to work as a paralegal under California Business and Professions Code section 6450.
• At least three years of substantive California civil litigation experience; five or more years strongly preferred .
• Strong working knowledge of California civil procedure, written discovery, calendaring, electronic filing, service requirements, and litigation terminology.
• Demonstrated experience drafting or preparing discovery, pleadings, subpoenas, deposition materials, and court filings under attorney supervision.
• Ability to manage multiple active litigation matters and competing deadlines without losing accuracy.
• Excellent written English, grammar, proofreading, formatting, and professional communication skills.
• Ability to identify inconsistencies, missing evidence, incomplete responses, and procedural problems.
• Strong proficiency with Microsoft Word, Outlook, Adobe Acrobat, Excel, electronic filing systems, and legal case-management or document-management software.
• Ability to receive direction, ask focused questions, exercise sound judgment, and complete assignments without repeated reminders.
• Ability to handle sensitive client information with discretion and professionalism.
• Ability to work primarily in the Calabasas office.

Strongly Preferred

• Plaintiff-side personal injury litigation experience.
• Wrongful death or catastrophic injury experience.
• Experience supporting cases through expert discovery, final status conference, and jury trial.
• Experience preparing trial exhibits, witness materials, motions in limine, jury instructions, verdict forms, and trial notebooks.
• Experience working with medical experts, liability experts, economists, life-care planners, or similar experts.
• Legal research experience using Westlaw, Lexis, or a comparable platform.
• NALA Certified Paralegal designation or other advanced litigation training.

What Success Looks Like

A successful paralegal in this position:

• Knows the status of every assigned case.
• Does not allow deadlines to live only in an attorney’s calendar.
• Follows assignments through filing, service, acceptance, and completion.
• Raises problems early and includes a proposed next step.
• Produces organized work that an attorney can immediately understand and use.
• Remains calm and professional when priorities change.
• Treats seriously injured clients and grieving families with patience and respect.
• Understands the difference between supporting legal work and independently giving legal advice.
• Takes pride in being the person the trial team can rely upon.

How to Apply

Please submit a résumé and a brief introductory note addressing the following below to my email address:

1. The basis upon which you qualify as a California paralegal under Business and Professions Code section 6450.
2. Your years of California civil litigation experience.
3. Your plaintiff-side personal injury experience, if any.
4. The number of trials you have supported and what you personally handled during those trials.
5. The case-management, calendaring, research, electronic filing, and document-management programs you have used.
6. Your compensation expectations within the posted range.

Please do not include confidential client information in application materials.

Candidates selected to advance may be asked to provide a redacted writing sample and complete a short fictional litigation exercise. The exercise will not involve work on an actual firm matter.

The firm is an equal opportunity employer.

Join a growing, established West Valley professional services firm with a close-knit, team-oriented culture. We take pride in creating a supportive environment where employees are respected, cared for, and encouraged to grow. Our team is dedicated, hardworking, and collaborative, but we also value a relaxed, family-style atmosphere where people work together, communicate openly, and move in unison toward the same goals. This is a great opportunity for someone who wants to make a meaningful impact, help strengthen internal operations, and become an important part of a company that genuinely values its people.

Company Description

Join a growing, established West Valley professional services firm with a close-knit, team-oriented culture. We take pride in creating a supportive environment where employees are respected, cared for, and encouraged to grow. Our team is dedicated, hardworking, and collaborative, but we also value a relaxed, family-style atmosphere where people work together, communicate openly, and move in unison toward the same goals. This is a great opportunity for someone who wants to make a meaningful impact, help strengthen internal operations, and become an important part of a company that genuinely values its people.