Bernadette Smith is a legal assistant with the General Counsel’s Office, which includes 36 lawyers and their staff members who handle the City’s legal affairs. She has held the job since March.
WHAT IS HER JOB?
“I am one of the initial persons you see as you come into the office. When someone comes in and asks for a certain person, I locate them. I answer questions, direct people to meetings and fill in for other legal assistants or paralegals when they’re out. I’m also the retriever of cases that are in storage boxes. I close them, open them or send them out.”
WHAT LEGAL FUNCTIONS DOES SHE HANDLE?
“I have assisted with contracts, workers compensation and government operations. In government ops, I assist in the preparation of documents, meaning that I would handle the typing or whatever needs to be done for the attorney. With contracts, I would send them out, receive them back from the contractors and send them through the chain to get them signed and issued, executed is the word.”
WHAT WORK DOES SHE DO WITH WORKERS COMPENSATION CASES?
“Subpoenas, preparing the actual file, entering the attorney’s time (billable hours).”
WHAT CASES DO THE LAWYERS HANDLE?
“They execute contracts that the City has with every vendor. They do land use and governmental operations and legislative services, meaning they work hand-in-hand with City Council on legal issues. They also work with bankruptcy courts. They handle all aspects. The only thing they don’t do, as far as I’ve seen, is wills and those sorts of things.”
HOW LONG HAS SHE BEEN A CITY EMPLOYEE?
“I’m old City. I was with the City for 16 years, left for two and just came back. They offer benefits and great pay.” To try something different, Smith took a job in the private sector as the office manager for a trucking company. She returned to the City after the company downsized.
HER CAREER WITH THE CITY?
“My first job was with the City. When I started, I was the clerk typist at the library. I left there and went to the courthouse, working in misdemeanors. Then I was at the sheriff’s office 10 or 11 years. I left as the executive secretary for the chief of human resources at JSO.”
EDUCATION
“I’ve completed business school. Also, I did Job Corps for two years and have a computer operations certificate from FCCJ.”
WHAT DOES SHE LIKE ABOUT HER JOB?
“Meeting people, believe it or not, because you meet so many varieties from all walks of life. I get to meet the ‘big cheeses’ and the regular folks. Here, you see the mayor and City Council members and regular people.”
WHO DOES SHE DEAL WITH MOST?
“We deal with all walks. It’s a constant change of pace. You have private people suing the City, some acting on their own behalf. We have professionals and other attorneys. It’s a mixed bag.”
ANY UNUSUAL HAPPENINGS?
“We had someone involved in a case that was hostile. If they came in, I was to call security because they were upset they didn’t win or whatever. That’s not really that unusual though, because I’m used to the sheriff’s office.”
WHAT’S MOST CHALLENGING?
“Learning different things. Like with contracts, it’s learning how they operate, what you have to do to get them signed by the different departments. I’m also learning a new computer system. It’s a whole new technology.”
HOMETOWN
Lansing, Mich. She now calls the Northside her home.
WHEN SHE’S OFF-THE-CLOCK
Smith enjoys dining on seafood, road trips to Orlando and reading any non-fiction book she can get her hands on. “Devil’s Advocate” is her favorite movie. Her greatest delight is tooling through town in her leather jacket with her friends from Dimples’ Women’s Motorcycle Club.
— by Monica Tsai