Bilingual Roster Management Officer

The Roster Management (RM) department is responsible for working with the District Offices to oversee Legal Aid Ontario's (LAO's) roster of approximately 4,100 third-party independent service providers. This oversight includes reviewing applications to join the roster, providing legal opinions and recommending courses of action to internal LAO staff to resolve issues.

The Bilingual RM Officer will play a key role in ensuring effective communication and oversight for roster members, particularly those who speak French. They will primarily be responsible for reviewing and processing roster applications from private bar lawyers across the province, administering LAO's Conditional Authorization and Duty Counsel Renewal Processes, and managing LAO's Roster Resignation process. The RM department is currently centralizing the administrative processing of roster applications, with District Offices retaining decision-making authority over the local roster composition. The Bilingual RM Officer will assist in monitoring and onboarding roster members, contributing to the delivery of high-quality, cost-effective, and efficient legal aid services across all areas of law.

In addition to reviewing and processing roster applications, the Bilingual RM Officer will provide support and direction to District Offices, including recommending appropriate conditions for roster membership. This position will also provide support to staff lawyers and assist in monitoring conditions of roster membership, while administratively processing removals and resignations. Additionally, they will support the implementation of key departmental initiatives and assist with reporting and file management.

Fluency in French is essential for this position, as the Bilingual RM Officer will play a vital role in ensuring effective engagement with LAO's French-speaking roster members and stakeholders.

Reports to: Manager, Roster Membership Services.

Role Designation: This is a flexible hybrid position open to staff across the province.

The current requirement is for staff to attend the office one (1) day per week or four (4) times a month.

• Reviewing, processing and packaging roster applications for the Directors General.
• Conducting background verification, documentary checks, and reviewing applications for completeness.
• Processing roster removals and resignations. Working with roster members to close out their legal aid practice.
• Monitoring general inboxes for the RM department and triaging the emails appropriately.
• Assisting the District Offices with monitoring conditions of roster membership.
• Supporting the rollout of the Conditional Status and DC Renewal processes.
• Assisting with the development of onboarding policies, procedures, standardized precedent responses and best practices.
• Developing and maintaining a list of mentors for all areas of law.
• Assisting with monitoring LSO Status changes and LSO Tribunal Proceedings.
• Assisting with processing Lawyer Self Report (LSR) data and monitoring the LSR worklist.
• Helping to develop new data management, automation and data analysis tools.
• Collaborating with other departments, external service providers, external counsel and stakeholders to improve service needs and reporting requirements.
• Assisting with identifying roster member irritants and helping to improve LAO's relationship with the private bar.
• Acting as a liaison between Roster Management and other LAO departments.
• Other duties as determined.

• Undergraduate degree or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Advanced proficiency in both written and spoken French
• Knowledge and experience in LAO's Roster Management process or prior Panel Management processes.
• Experience drafting correspondence to external parties in the context of roster management.
• Ability to determine roster eligibility based on the Legal Aid Services Act, 2020, its rules and the new Minimum Experience Requirements.
• Significant combination of experience and knowledge of LAO and its operations as they relate to criminal, family, refugee/immigration and civil law.
• Knowledge of the LSO's Conduct Proceeding Process and ability to gather and synthesize information from diverse sources.
• Ability to work independently with limited supervision, in a fast-paced environment.
• Ability to manage competing deadlines and to prioritize matters, including the ability to remain flexible and work under pressure to meet timelines.
• Ability to develop and manage working relationships within LAO and with external stakeholders
• Attention to detail, excellent organizational abilities, as well as excellent written and verbal skills.
• Sound judgment and problem solving skills.
• Ability to work in a team with other Roster Officers, Staff Lawyers, Business Analyst and Manager.
• Advanced level skills in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, SharePoint, Teams and other Microsoft applications. Experience with PeopleSoft is an asset.

To apply submit a cover letter & résumé.

Only those candidates selected for an interview will be notified by email.

This position is collectively represented by the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) and the successful incumbent will be governed by the provisions of a collective agreement and subject to union dues.

Please note that all applicants are encouraged to provide a valid email address for communication purposes. Applicants may receive written correspondence regarding this job posting directly to the email address provided on their resume or to the one used to set up their Candidate Profile if applying on Njoyn. As an applicant, it is your responsibility to ensure that you check your email regularly.

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Trouble applying? For telephone support please call 1-877-427-7717 or email support: candidate.njoynhelp@cgi.com