Legal Practice Support & Operations Specialist

Legal Practice Support & Operations Specialist

Johnson Pope Bokor Ruppel & Burns, LLP is seeking an experienced full-time Legal Practice Support & Operations Specialist to join its team. The candidate must have a minimum of eight (8) years of progressively responsible experience as a legal assistant, senior legal assistant, paralegal, or similar legal support position.

At Johnson Pope, we pride ourselves on fostering a collaborative, inclusive, and professional environment where your skills are valued, and your contributions make a difference. As one of Florida's leading regional law firms, we offer our team members the opportunity to work alongside some of the most respected attorneys in the state, in a firm that supports a strong team environment and actively builds community within the organization.

The Legal Practice Support & Operations Specialist will play a firmwide role in strengthening how legal support staff are trained, onboarded, and equipped to perform at the highest level. Working across the firm's practice groups including Litigation, Real Estate, Corporate, Trusts & Estates, Healthcare, Employment, and Bankruptcy this individual will develop structured training programs, maintain up-to-date knowledge resources, and drive process improvements that support consistent, high-quality legal support services. The role requires broad familiarity with law firm operations, strong project management skills, and the ability to work independently while collaborating across departments.

Key Responsibilities:

• Coordinate onboarding and training for all legal assistants and paralegals across the firm's practice groups, including structured onboarding plans tailored to each practice area.
• Conduct 30-, 60-, and 90-day follow-up meetings with new legal support employees, identifying training gaps and recommending improvements.
• Coordinate continuing education and refresher training for legal support staff.
• Develop and maintain written Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), workflow guides, checklists, and instructional videos or practice guides.
• Partner with attorneys and experienced legal support professionals to document best practices and maintain a centralized knowledge library.
• Ensure training materials remain current as procedures, technology, and court requirements evolve.
• Coordinate conflict check workflows and assist with matter intake and matter opening procedures.
• Monitor engagement letter workflow and follow up on outstanding documentation.
• Serve as a resource on legal support workflows and administrative procedures.
• Evaluate legal support workflows, recommend process improvements, and standardize procedures across offices and practice groups where appropriate.
• Identify opportunities to leverage technology, automation, and artificial intelligence to improve efficiency, and participate in the implementation and testing of new legal technologies.
• Develop cross-training initiatives to improve operational flexibility and business continuity.
• Coordinate subject matter experts to help build practice-specific training and promote consistency in legal support practices firmwide.
• Serve as a liaison between Human Resources, Accounting, Information Technology, Marketing, attorneys, and legal support staff.
• Participate in firmwide administrative initiatives and special projects designed to improve legal support services and client experience.

Essential Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Broad understanding of law firm operations across multiple practice areas.
• Demonstrated experience training, mentoring, or onboarding legal support staff.
• Strong organizational and project management skills.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• High level of discretion and professionalism.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities and work independently under deadline pressure.
• Familiarity with legal technology, document management systems, billing systems, and workflow automation is a plus.
• Interest in process improvement and knowledge management.

Educational/Job Experience Requirements:

• High school diploma from an accredited institution; Bachelor's degree preferred.
• A minimum of eight (8) years of progressively responsible experience as a legal assistant, senior legal assistant, paralegal, or similar legal support position.
• Experience supporting multiple practice areas preferred.
• Experience developing training programs, instructional materials, or knowledge management resources preferred.
• Experience with conflict checking and matter intake procedures preferred.

Office Location: Tampa | St. Petersburg | Clearwater, FL

Note: This job description is not intended to be all-inclusive. Employees may perform other related duties as required to meet the ongoing needs of the Firm.

Equal Opportunity Employment:

Johnson Pope Bokor Ruppel & Burns, LLP is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive work environment and do not discriminate on the basis of an applicant's or employee's race, color, religion, national origin, sex, gender identity/expression, sexual orientation, age, disability, veteran status, marital status, citizenship, ancestry, pregnancy, familial status, actual or perceived status as a victim of domestic violence, dating violence, or stalking, or any other legally protected status entitled to protection under federal, state, or local anti-discrimination laws, including applicable laws in Florida. We also provide reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

Johnson, Pope, Bokor, Ruppel & Burns, LLP