The Court Service Center Manager uses professional legal experience and knowledge of social service agencies and organizations to provide self-represented litigants with the resources they need to navigate the court system and best address their issues. This position is responsible for providing assistance on an array of court information, forms, resources, and referrals, as well as supervising a staff that supports the Manager serving the self-represented litigants seeking assistance at the Court Service Center.

The Manager’s responsibilities will also include an educational component and other outreach activities in areas of family law, housing law, small claims, record sealing, and a variety of other court related matters.

Supervision Received

Receives general direction Senior Manager of Court Service Centers in performing duties in accordance with established guidelines.

Essential Functions and Responsibilities

Oversight and management of the daily operations of a Court Service Center including:

• Supporting existing Court Service Center Managers with coverage in Trial Court’s Regions I and II, including the creation of off-sight CSC operations in other court locations and communities;
• Answers questions, reviews documents, and directs self-represented litigants and members of the public to the proper court office for additional assistance as appropriate;
• Collaborates with local legal service providers and other social services for litigants seeking assistance at the Court Service Center who are put in contact with the proper resources external to the court by the Manager and staff, achieving the goal of improving the lives of the public being served;
• Participates in regular meetings with the staff of the Court Service Center, as well as court officials from local area court divisions representing all Trial Court Departments in an effort to improve coordination and effectiveness;
• Supporting existing Virtual Court Service Center Manager with coverage via video conferencing software;
• Assisting self-represented litigants to gain access to Trial Court services by providing legal and procedural information;
• Providing information and explanations about a variety of court processes, court rules, official documents, and forms;
• Reviewing completed court forms and papers being submitted to court divisions for adherence to court rules and protocols;
• Providing information and instructions on how to proceed with a small claim or other civil proceedings in Housing or Probate and Family Court;
• Contributing to the development of service related, user-friendly informational materials and online content to supplement the court assisted support provided at the Court Service Center;
• Ensuring access for limited English proficient litigants and members of the public;
• Evaluates, initiates and develops data driven best practices to improve efficiencies and meet metric related benchmarks and goals;
• Serving as a liaison with academic, legal aid, social services, and community organizations to increase Court Service Center resources for court users;
• Assists with preparation of annual statistics and reports; and
• Performs other related duties as required.

Job Competencies

All applicants must be able, through the interview process, to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the following areas:

• Ethics and Values: Communicates and demonstrates the ethics and values of the Massachusetts Trial Court.
• Mission: Understands, upholds, and communicates the Court Services and Law Libraries Department mission.
• Applied Knowledge: Ability to provide accurate legal information and court assistance for self-represented litigants and other members of the public for improving access to justice.
• Problem Solving: Accurately can assess operational and administrative problems in the Court Service Center and develop feasible solutions.
• Customer Service: Conducts oneself in a courteous and professional manner to users of the Court Service Center. Responsive to the needs of self-represented litigants.
• Collaboration: Works with others cooperatively, accepts feedback, demonstrates a willingness to be a team player, and contributes to a work environment that focuses on shared departmental goals.
• Communications: Excellent oral and written communication skills to maximize the effectiveness of the Court Service Center; Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with court officials, judges, and community resources is critical.
• Continuous Learning: Demonstrates a commitment to continuously improving himself or herself through professional development.

Minimum Requirements

These are the minimum requirements necessary to apply for the position of Court Service Center Circuit Manager:

• A Law Degree and skills and abilities acquired through Four (4) years of relevant work experience such as experience within a Trial Court division, and/or experience with legal service providers, social service agencies, and related allied service resources; or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience; Admission to the Massachusetts Bar is preferred.
• Bilingual skills are preferred.
• Supervisory experience and ability to plan and supervise the work of direct reports as appropriate.
• Considerable knowledge of relevant state statues, court rules and case law that prescribe the authority of the court and an ability to interpret and apply them to the cases before the court.
• Considerable knowledge of court procedures, legal documents, and laws pertaining to the court.
• Considerable knowledge of the organization, functions, jurisdiction and authority of the court.
• Considerable knowledge of the work and role of legal service providers, social service state agencies, and related community resources.
• Ability to maintain effective working relationships with Judges, court officials, attorneys, court employees and the general public.
• Demonstrate ability to remain responsive to local court departments and ensure multilingual access to court related services.
• Ability to identify and resolve customer service and queuing issues experienced at the Court Service Centers and Virtual Court Service Center.
• Ability to utilize data to monitor trends operational efficiency of a customer service operation.
• Demonstrated ability to independently initiate action, complete assignments and to handle multiple assignments simultaneously.
• Exceptional skills in using multimedia techniques: social media, web-based initiatives and digital resources to access and use local resources for referrals; Ability to identify and pursue grant opportunities in the position.
• Considerable knowledge of local state agency and community resources.