Lawrence Custer Grasmick Jones & Donovan, LLP is a small, independent, and thriving law firm looking to grow its practice. We specialize in water rights law and litigation, representation of special districts, real estate and property law, and trusts and estate planning. We pride ourselves on our more than 50 years of collective experience and our expertise to provide our clients quality and cost-effective representation. We work hard to create an environment which promotes mutual respect, integrity, transparency and teamwork.
To apply for any of the open positions please send cover letter, resume, and writing sample to:
Shawnna Earnest
Earnest HR Consulting
info@earnesthrc.com
The following positions are currently available:
Law Firm Office Manager
We are currently seeking an Office Manager to join our team. The Office Manager is the inhouse point person for client billing, firm billing, budgeting, bookkeeping, accounts payable, payroll, employee health and retirement benefits, facilities management, with significant interaction with the firm’s retained consultants in specific areas. This role also includes identifying potential areas for improvement in firm administration, including areas of potential costs savings, and proposing steps to implement the same. In addition, the Office Manager will assist the partners with staff workload, which may vary based on pending cases set for trial, unexpected absences, vacations, and similar circumstances.
Specific tasks include but are not limited to communicating with landowner and contractors, assisting with staffing needs, reconciling bank accounts, onboarding of new hires, payroll and benefits enrollment, bookkeeping, invoicing accounts payable, and vendor management. This role also includes identifying potential areas for improvement in firm administration, including identifying areas of potential costs savings, and proposing steps to implement the same. In addition, the office manager role includes assisting partners in the firm with staff workload, which is expected to vary based on pending cases set for trial, unexpected absences, and similar situations.
Essential Responsibilities:
- Communicating with landowner and contractors for specific needs.
- Tracking and invoicing clients, follow up as needed for payment.
- Basic bookkeeping, including but not limited to client billing, tracking and paying vendor bills and accounts payable, reconcile bank statements, and provide any financial reports as needed and requested by the partners.
- Assist firm’s outside accountant as needed.
- Responsible for processing bi-weekly payroll, ensure payroll taxes are set up correctly and employee benefit deductions are accurate.
- Communicate with vendors and firm service providers regarding payments and other issues as needed.
- Coordinate interviews, and assist and coordinate necessary information to onboardi new hires.
- Oversee all benefit plan invoices, payroll deductions, manage employee changes, and assist with open enrollment and coordinating employee meetings.
- Oversee office supplies, equipment and facility needs.
Education, Skills & Experience:
- Minimum 3 years’ experience bookkeeping experience in a law or professional service firm environment.
- Minimum 3 years’ experience processing payroll.
- Strong understanding of the day-to-day operations of a law firm, client billing, and vendor management.
- Experience with the following platforms is strongly preferred: QuickBooks (bookkeeping), Gusto (payroll), and Timeslips (client billing).
- Excellent MS Office skills.
- Outstanding organizational and time management skills.
- Excellent verbal and written communications skills.
- High degree of discretion and confidentiality.
- Detail oriented.
- Self-motivated with demonstrated experience exercising sound business judgment.
The Firm offers a competitive salary and benefits package, including a compensation range of $30 to $38 per hour, depending on experience. We also offer medical including company contribution to an HSA, dental, vision, disability, 401(k) with company match. This position is located in the Johnstown office and is not a remote or hybrid position.
Mid-level Associate
The ideal candidate is a self-motivated professional with a minimum of 4 years of experience in real property transactions and litigation and/or trusts and estate planning and is looking to join our team and create a long-term career with our Firm. In this role, you will be working primarily on real estate matters while also building experience in matters related to Colorado water law. Additionally, if the successful candidate has experience with wills and trusts, you may assist in meeting the increasing and developing demand the firm has seen for will and estate related legal matters. Many of our clients have been with our firm for years, if not decades, and include special districts, special corporations, ditch companies, water users’ associations, farmers, ranchers, municipalities, and individual water users and landowners. In this role, you will be positioned to have a significant impact while also gaining valuable experience and benefit from working with colleagues. Our successful team members all desire responsibility, communicate directly with clients, value mutual respect, collegiality, responsiveness, ambition, hard work, take pride in seeing matters through completion and believe in having lives outside work. Must be licensed to practice law in Colorado.
Specifically, the position involves a client-centered practice that includes:
- Providing real estate counsel to clients regarding acquisition or sale of real property, easements and/or water rights;
- Representing clients in real property disputes and litigation, including disputes involving ditch easements;
- Drafting purchase and sale agreements, leases, deeds, and other instruments;
- Performing detailed review of title documents;
- Quieting title to real property and water rights;
- Meeting with clients to understand their estate planning goals and advising them on achieving those goals;
- Handling trust and estate matters with minimal supervision, including drafting wills, trusts, powers of attorney;
- Supporting the firm’s water rights law and litigation practice;
- Experience in entity formation and general business matters a plus;
- Supervising or providing day to day direction for a legal assistant, or delegating work and projects to support staff.
Requirements:
- Law degree from an accredited law school; and Admission to practice in the State of Colorado.
- Must have 4+ years of relevant experience in real estate and/or estate planning with an interest in learning about Colorado water law.
- Real estate transaction and litigation experience strongly preferred.
- Commitment to helping manage the relationships and legal needs of clients.
- Skilled in legal research and writing.
- Strong analytical skills and the ability to problem-solve and participate in team problem-solving.
- Promptly respond to common inquiries from colleagues, staff, and clients.
- Effectively present complex information to judges, administrative agencies, colleagues, public groups, and boards and commissions.
- Ability to grasp the big picture and have the confidence and temperament to jump in and run with a project while keeping team members in the loop.
- Thrive in a dynamic, collaborative and fast-paced work environment.
- Demonstrated commitment to the practice of law and professional growth.
- Located in or wanting to relocate to Northern Colorado.
The Firm offers a competitive salary and benefits package, including a base salary range starting at $110,000-$130,000. depending on experience, plus quarterly bonuses based on billables and collections. If you are intrigued by our Firm and this position, and your experience calls for a base salary outside our range, we are happy to discuss. We also offer medical including company contribution to an HSA, dental, vision, disability, 401(k) with company match. The firm will pay for your Colorado Bar Association dues, Colorado attorney registration fees, and required Continuing Legal Education (CLE) tuition.
Lawrence, Custer, Grasmick, Jones and Donovan, LLP provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local laws. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.
Please note that the 2019 Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act requires employers to disclose in each job posting, the job duties and responsibilities the hourly or salary compensation for the position, or a range of hourly or salary compensation, and a general description of all benefits and other compensation offered with the position.