NYS Court Officers

[Busstone]

I'm very interested in a career as a Court Officer or Court Assistant... So, do we just wait and hope for an exam?

[Snapper717]

Hey all...I've lurked for a while to try to find out how the list is moving because I have a relative on the C.O. list.
I am currently a clerk (promoted from Court Officer and then promoted up the clerk ranks). I just wanted to give you guys some info regarding the C.O. list versus the Court Assistant list.

The court assistant title starts at a higher pay rate (line 16) than court officer (line 14)...HOWEVER, the court officers automatically get a 4 line bump up to 18 after 2 yrs (I think it's 2 yrs). Either title is eligible to take a promotional exam to senior court clerk (line 21). In my opinion, the court officer route is far better. Court assistants really only have the clerk test to take. Officers can promote within the uniform ranks (Sgt, Lt, etc.) OR go the clerk route. Also, there a MANY more court officer jobs than court assistant spots. There are some court assistants in Nassau & Suffolk, and a few in each city borough, (I'm not sure about upstate)but not very many overall...so if you are # 4000 on the CO exam, you will have a better shot of being reached than if you are # 1000 on the CA exam. Additionally, the CO title is a more "necessary" cog in the system. No disrespect to court assistants, but there is a lot of overlap among various titles in their job duties...The courts need court officers, and there is no way to phase them out and operate without them. Even so, any way you can get into the system (C.O. or C.A.)is the way you should.

I really have no idea how the hiring will move along in light of the layoffs, etc. that occurred last year, but don't give up. A long time ago when I was hired it was about 1.5 yrs after the last round of layoffs (Mario Cuomo) & that year there were 3 academy classes that went through, and 2 or 3 classes went through the following year...so you never know.
I'll check the board occasionally & answer any questions that anyone may have if I can.
Good luck & hopefully you guys & my relative actually see this list start to move!!

[jontot]

Thank You Snapper 717 for the info. I hope they call us sometime in April of this year, my unemployment will run out this March.

[CivilServant14]

Hey all...I've lurked for a while to try to find out how the list is moving because I have a relative on the C.O. list.
I am currently a clerk (promoted from Court Officer and then promoted up the clerk ranks). I just wanted to give you guys some info regarding the C.O. list versus the Court Assistant list.

The court assistant title starts at a higher pay rate (line 16) than court officer (line 14)...HOWEVER, the court officers automatically get a 4 line bump up to 18 after 2 yrs (I think it's 2 yrs). Either title is eligible to take a promotional exam to senior court clerk (line 21). In my opinion, the court officer route is far better. Court assistants really only have the clerk test to take. Officers can promote within the uniform ranks (Sgt, Lt, etc.) OR go the clerk route. Also, there a MANY more court officer jobs than court assistant spots. There are some court assistants in Nassau & Suffolk, and a few in each city borough, (I'm not sure about upstate)but not very many overall...so if you are # 4000 on the CO exam, you will have a better shot of being reached than if you are # 1000 on the CA exam. Additionally, the CO title is a more "necessary" cog in the system. No disrespect to court assistants, but there is a lot of overlap among various titles in their job duties...The courts need court officers, and there is no way to phase them out and operate without them. Even so, any way you can get into the system (C.O. or C.A.)is the way you should.

I really have no idea how the hiring will move along in light of the layoffs, etc. that occurred last year, but don't give up. A long time ago when I was hired it was about 1.5 yrs after the last round of layoffs (Mario Cuomo) & that year there were 3 academy classes that went through, and 2 or 3 classes went through the following year...so you never know.
I'll check the board occasionally & answer any questions that anyone may have if I can.
Good luck & hopefully you guys & my relative actually see this list start to move!!

Thanks for the info!
I am on both lists and currently mid 5000s for CO and lower 1xx for CA. So I will see how it all plays out.

One question re: the CA position. I heard the next step after canvassing is the interview and skills test. If this is true, what kind of skills would the OCA be looking for in candidates? I would figure basic office skills, but just wondering if typing a certain wpm was required. Do CAs need to know how to type a certain amount of words per minute?

[Cravan]

Thank You Snapper 717 for the info. I hope they call us sometime in April of this year, my unemployment will run out this March.

Hey Jonot,

I am in the same boat as you. Do you think we can extend our unemployment?

[Cravan]

Hey all...I've lurked for a while to try to find out how the list is moving because I have a relative on the C.O. list.
I am currently a clerk (promoted from Court Officer and then promoted up the clerk ranks). I just wanted to give you guys some info regarding the C.O. list versus the Court Assistant list.

The court assistant title starts at a higher pay rate (line 16) than court officer (line 14)...HOWEVER, the court officers automatically get a 4 line bump up to 18 after 2 yrs (I think it's 2 yrs). Either title is eligible to take a promotional exam to senior court clerk (line 21). In my opinion, the court officer route is far better. Court assistants really only have the clerk test to take. Officers can promote within the uniform ranks (Sgt, Lt, etc.) OR go the clerk route. Also, there a MANY more court officer jobs than court assistant spots. There are some court assistants in Nassau & Suffolk, and a few in each city borough, (I'm not sure about upstate)but not very many overall...so if you are # 4000 on the CO exam, you will have a better shot of being reached than if you are # 1000 on the CA exam. Additionally, the CO title is a more "necessary" cog in the system. No disrespect to court assistants, but there is a lot of overlap among various titles in their job duties...The courts need court officers, and there is no way to phase them out and operate without them. Even so, any way you can get into the system (C.O. or C.A.)is the way you should.

I really have no idea how the hiring will move along in light of the layoffs, etc. that occurred last year, but don't give up. A long time ago when I was hired it was about 1.5 yrs after the last round of layoffs (Mario Cuomo) & that year there were 3 academy classes that went through, and 2 or 3 classes went through the following year...so you never know.
I'll check the board occasionally & answer any questions that anyone may have if I can.
Good luck & hopefully you guys & my relative actually see this list start to move!!

Hey,

Thanks for the info. I really appreciate it. I am curious to know why you went the court clerk route as opposed to moving up in rank as a court officer. Was money the motivating factor?

[Snapper717]

CivilServant14: I honestly can't imagine what "skills test" they would give for the court assistant. It is basically a clerical type job...filing, preparing the court calendars, etc. There isn't any words-per-minute typing requirement...it's not a "secretarial-type" job, so don't worry about that. They perform a lot of similar duties to court clerks...with the exception of calling the calendars in the courtroom (although I won't be surprised if they do this one day in an attempt by OCA to save $$).

Cravan: I guess money was the motivating factor in deciding to become a clerk. I'll explain my rationale. I would rather rely on myself to promote through testing that to rely on someone appointing me to a job. In the officer ranks you can test up to lieutenant (line 22). Everything after Lt. is by appointment. When I was in uniform, testing only went up to Sgt. Through clerk you can test up through 3 levels -Sr. Ct. Clerk (line 21), Associate Ct. Clerk (line 23) and Principal Ct. Clerk (line 26)-my current title. After this, promotions are by appointment. But line 26 is the highest civil service test line in the courts...therefore, it's the highest line you can achieve and keep your civil service job protection. With the recent layoffs it became apparent that civil service protection is VERY important (if you are in an appointed title, you don't have the same protection).
Additionally, there are also usually only a couple of Lt.'s in each building, and there are MANY clerks...so the odds were much better of promoting. There were individuals with a very good "hook"high up in the system that knew they would be appointed Captain or Major one day & that's fine...I didn't have that, so I preferred to rely on my test taking skills instead of my arse kissing skills
I loved my time in uniform & had a lot of fun and made a lot of great friends, but if you stay around in title because you enjoy the camaraderie you find everyone around you leaving eventually (promotions, transfers, becoming clerks, etc.) and you end up left behind. I was never a "buff" who always dreamed of being a cop or officer, so leaving the uniform didn't factor in my decision...it's a good job, but I felt that I should go the route that provided me with the best advancement opportunity, and that was the clerk route.

[soon2retire]

Everything Snapper 717 said is right on the money. I was a Principal Court Clerk also until I retired in 2010. Only difference was when I was in uniform, there was no test for Sergeant-in fact there were no Sergeants. It was an appointed position called "Part Captain"

[CivilServant14]

CivilServant14: I honestly can't imagine what "skills test" they would give for the court assistant. It is basically a clerical type job...filing, preparing the court calendars, etc. There isn't any words-per-minute typing requirement...it's not a "secretarial-type" job, so don't worry about that. They perform a lot of similar duties to court clerks...with the exception of calling the calendars in the courtroom (although I won't be surprised if they do this one day in an attempt by OCA to save $$).

Thank you for the info!
I feel better about the CA position now.

[Cravan]

CivilServant14: I honestly can't imagine what "skills test" they would give for the court assistant. It is basically a clerical type job...filing, preparing the court calendars, etc. There isn't any words-per-minute typing requirement...it's not a "secretarial-type" job, so don't worry about that. They perform a lot of similar duties to court clerks...with the exception of calling the calendars in the courtroom (although I won't be surprised if they do this one day in an attempt by OCA to save $$).

Cravan: I guess money was the motivating factor in deciding to become a clerk. I'll explain my rationale. I would rather rely on myself to promote through testing that to rely on someone appointing me to a job. In the officer ranks you can test up to lieutenant (line 22). Everything after Lt. is by appointment. When I was in uniform, testing only went up to Sgt. Through clerk you can test up through 3 levels -Sr. Ct. Clerk (line 21), Associate Ct. Clerk (line 23) and Principal Ct. Clerk (line 26)-my current title. After this, promotions are by appointment. But line 26 is the highest civil service test line in the courts...therefore, it's the highest line you can achieve and keep your civil service job protection. With the recent layoffs it became apparent that civil service protection is VERY important (if you are in an appointed title, you don't have the same protection).
Additionally, there are also usually only a couple of Lt.'s in each building, and there are MANY clerks...so the odds were much better of promoting. There were individuals with a very good "hook"high up in the system that knew they would be appointed Captain or Major one day & that's fine...I didn't have that, so I preferred to rely on my test taking skills instead of my arse kissing skills
I loved my time in uniform & had a lot of fun and made a lot of great friends, but if you stay around in title because you enjoy the camaraderie you find everyone around you leaving eventually (promotions, transfers, becoming clerks, etc.) and you end up left behind. I was never a "buff" who always dreamed of being a cop or officer, so leaving the uniform didn't factor in my decision...it's a good job, but I felt that I should go the route that provided me with the best advancement opportunity, and that was the clerk route.

Thanks for the information again. Are Principal Ct. Clerk's (line 26) making six figure salaries? Also, are Court Officer Lieutenants making six figure salaries?

[Cravan]

Thanks for the information again. Are Principal Ct. Clerk's (line 26) making six figure salaries? Also, are Court Officer Lieutenants making six figure salaries?

Hey Snapper,

I answered my own question.

http://img685.imageshack.us/img685/6...ryschedule.pdf

[soon2retire]

Only thing is there are not many Principal Court Clerk lines out there. Last I heard, there were only about 75 lines in all of NYC, very few in Nassau or Suffolk, and practically non-existent elsewhere. Here's a lint to an announcement from the last exam http://www.courts.state.ny.us/career...k%2055-743.pdf

[jontot]

Hey Jonot,

I am in the same boat as you. Do you think we can extend our unemployment?

Hey Cravan I wish we could extend it but I doubt it. I really hope OCA will call us back sometime this year. Thanks for all the active and retired CO and Court Clerk on this thread I'm able to learn more on what's going inside the OCA.

[Cravan]

Only thing is there are not many Principal Court Clerk lines out there. Last I heard, there were only about 75 lines in all of NYC, very few in Nassau or Suffolk, and practically non-existent elsewhere. Here's a lint to an announcement from the last exam http://www.courts.state.ny.us/career...k%2055-743.pdf

Thanks for the info, it is very informative.

[Cravan]

Hey Cravan I wish we could extend it but I doubt it. I really hope OCA will call us back sometime this year. Thanks for all the active and retired CO and Court Clerk on this thread I'm able to learn more on what's going inside the OCA.

It is mandatory for us to reapply after we receive 52 weeks of UI. Let's see what happens. Are you only eligible for 60 weeks like me? Furthermore, have you applied for some jobs?