What a legal receptionist does
The legal receptionist is the first person most clients meet or speak to at your firm. They answer and direct calls, greet visitors, book appointments and boardrooms, receive couriers and court documents, manage the reception area and often handle general administrative tasks for the office. Clients contacting a law firm are frequently anxious or under pressure, so a calm, courteous and discreet receptionist sets the tone for their whole experience.
A law office front desk has particular demands. Receptionists must take accurate messages, recognize urgent matters, follow procedures for receiving documents and never discuss a matter with the wrong person. Finch screens candidates for professional communication, organization and confidentiality, and gives weight to previous law office or professional services experience. For many firms the role is also a path into legal assistant work, so we can look for candidates interested in growing with you.
Typical responsibilities
- Answer, screen and direct incoming calls and take detailed messages
- Greet clients and visitors and manage the reception area
- Book appointments, meetings and boardrooms for lawyers and staff
- Receive, log and distribute mail, couriers and documents served on the firm
- Perform general administrative tasks such as scanning, filing and data entry
- Gather basic information from new callers for conflict searches
Qualifications and credentials
- Previous reception experience, ideally in a law office or professional services setting
- A clear, professional phone manner and strong spoken and written English
- Organization and accuracy when handling messages, schedules and documents
- Proficiency with phone systems, email and Microsoft Office
- Additional languages are an asset in firms with diverse client bases
Who hires a legal receptionist
- Law firms of every size
- Paralegal practices
- Real estate, immigration and family law offices
- Shared professional offices housing several practices
Where we recruit legal receptionist candidates
We fill legal receptionist roles for employers across Toronto and the GTA, including North York, Scarborough, Etobicoke, Vaughan, Markham, Richmond Hill, Mississauga, Brampton, Oakville, Burlington, Oshawa and Pickering, and for employers across Canada. GTA employers can meet us at our North York office by appointment.
What Finch checks before you meet a candidate
- Phone manner and professional presence, assessed in our screening conversation
- Experience handling confidential information and sensitive callers
- Accuracy with messages, scheduling and document intake
- Reliability and attendance, confirmed with references
Interview questions to ask
- A caller insists on speaking to a lawyer who is in court. How do you handle it?
- Someone arrives at reception to serve documents on the firm. What do you do?
- How do you keep the front desk organized when phones, visitors and couriers all arrive at once?