Categories: CAREER IN LAWCriminal Justice Career Guides

What Is A Court Clerk? – How To Become Court Clerk Full Career Guide

Court clerk is a person who is meant to administrate the court matters such as maintaining records of court, administering oaths to witnesses, jurors and grand jurors and adjudicating legal disputes between parties.

Duties of the court clerk:

Prepares documents related to court cases i.e record court orders and ensure their implementation.
He is held accountable for the payment of court fees.
He manages and is answerable to general public for judicial processes, court appearances, trail dates, adjournments, outstanding warrants, summonses, subpeona, witness fees and all sort of payments.
A court clerk is actually a relay between court and general public. In other words he manages all clerical functions of the court.

Do You Know How Much Court Clerks Make ? And Are You Interested In Becoming A Court Clerk?

How To Become A Court Clerk:

Qualification requirement:

Many court clerk positions do not require specific degrees but having one makes you more marketable and hireable, especially in a tepid market with few jobs available with the tough competition. In order to become a court clerk one needs to get a high school degree with good grades and CGPA specially satisfactory scores in English and Mathematics. The he/she will be eligible to apply for the job but as an entry level court clerk position. For higher positions an associate’s or bachelor's degree in
business management, criminal studies, or a similar degree will help one to excel in this field. Federal courts requires a law degree or a master's degree.

These courses for court clerks includes subjects and topics such as:-
1. Criminal studies
2. Probate processes
3. Documentation and record keeping.
4. Report writing.
5. Civil court processes
6. Business management

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Best universities offering court clerk courses:

New York University in New York offering masters degree and doctorate degrees
University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania offering masters and doctorate
degrees.
Duke University in Durham, North Carolina offering masters and doctorate degrees.
University of California in Berkeley, California offering masters and doctorate degrees.

Skills:

If one is really passionate and dedicated to excel in this field then one should also focus on the
skills required for this job are:-

I. Writing skill
II. Typing skill
III. Good communication skills
IV. Legal vocabulary and legal system know how
V. Computer know how
VI. Reading
VII. Command on grammar and spelling
VIII. Language proficiency
IX. Team work
X. Attention and focus

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Simple Step By Step Guide :

Firstly, you need to apply for open as a court clerk.
Then you need to undergo background check
Pass a drug test.
Selected and hired

Training

Possible Titles for this career:
A. Clerk of the court
B. Clerk of court
C. Deputy Clerk
D. Judicial assistant
E. Court clerk
F. Court specialist
G. Clerk of peace
H. Clerk of Police court
I. Case manager
J. Court specialist

Salary of court clerk:

The Bureau of labor Statistics reports that the average salary for the court clerks was $41,000 as of 2017. But salary varies with their positions and for hours they are working.
Clerks in state government earns higher salaries, with a national average of around $44,550.

Working hours of court clerk:
A court clerk works in an office setting. He sits or stands for long period of time so hardworking and persistent man is required for this job . He usually needs to work 5 days
or 40 hours a week. Mostly court timings are 8:00 am to 4:00 pm. Schedule may vary depending on the work load and orders from the judge. But more time spend in the
court enhances one's skills and increases his chances of promotion.

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Types of court clerk

Entry level clerk:

They are at the basic level and deals with the simple data entry job at the court. They work with documentations and record. They also deal with the general public to provide basic information.

Municipal court clerk:

They are responsible for documentations and records regarding fines, penalties and other issues related to municipal treasurer.

Law court clerk:

They deal with the research and legal writings under the supervision of an attorney. They cannot give legal advice.

Judicial court clerk:

These are clerks who manage documents and records to provide administrative support for judicial proceedings in state courts. This detail-oriented job is related to court offices and includes answering questions to the parties and their clients.

Federal court clerk:

They are responsible for maintenance of exhibits of the court, the custody and the administration of the funds received by and dispersed from the court, the oversight of non-judicial personnel, and the provision of services to the judges of the court.

Top careers after court clerkship:

Administrative assistant = 15.1%
Legal assistant = 10.5%
Customer Service Representation = 10.4%
Cashier =7.3%
Office manager = 6.5%
Office Assistant = 5.1%
Sales Associate =4.8%
Paralegal =4.7%
Receptionist = 4.5%

States with highest employment level in this occupation:

States:	California:
Employment	1660
Employment per Thousand Jobs	0.11
Location Quotient	1.26
Hourly Mean Wage	18.13
Annual Mean Wage	373,720

States:	Florida:
Employment	1130
Employment per Thousand Jobs	0.14
Location Quotient	1.68
Hourly Mean Wage	17.97
Annual Mean Wage	37,370

States:	Illinois:
Employment	960
Employment per Thousand Jobs	0.16
Location Quotient	1.92
Hourly Mean Wage	17.9
Annual Mean Wage	37,240

States:	Texas:
Employment	760
Employment per Thousand Jobs	0.07
Location Quotient	0.78
Hourly Mean Wage	16.62
Annual Mean Wage	34,570

States:	New York:
Employment	650
Employment per Thousand Jobs	0.07
Location Quotient	0.85
Hourly Mean Wage	20.12
Annual Mean Wage	41,480

Research on court clerks showed that 74% of them were satisfied with their jobs with 56% considering it a “meaningful and honorable profession” Other Observations about the Job were Noted:

Do they have to use telephone daily?: 66%
Email usage: 65%
Importance of team work: 43%
Importance of group discussions: 76%

Dealing with customers: 54%
Dealing with angry customers: 30%
Do they have to make decisions: 49%
Meeting strict deadline: 69%

States with the highest employment level for judicial law clerks:- California is the state with highest employment level with about 1800 , Pennsylvania with 1190, Maryland with 960, New York with 750, Illinois with 520, New Jersey with 510, Ohio with 420, Minnesota with 380, Texas with 370 and Utah with 360.