Human Resources Manager

West Valley Law Firm — Confidential Search
Location: Calabasas, California
Schedule: Full-time, on-site, Monday through Friday
Typical Hours: 9:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m.
Compensation: $100,000–$130,000 annually, depending on directly relevant experience, California HR expertise, professional credentials, law-firm or professional-services experience, and the final scope of responsibilities.

Confidential Search

“West Valley Law Firm” is a placeholder name being used for this confidential search. The actual law firm’s identity will remain private during the initial application-review process for privacy and operational reasons.

Candidates selected to advance further in the selection process will be provided with the firm’s full name and additional information before participating in a substantive interview.

About the Firm

West Valley Law Firm is a growing, plaintiff-side trial law firm handling serious wrongful-death and catastrophic-injury matters.

The firm began as a close, family-operated practice and has grown into a larger professional organization. As we continue to expand, we are seeking an experienced Human Resources Manager who can help preserve the firm’s values while bringing greater consistency, organization, communication, and accountability to the workplace.

The firm already has an employee handbook and access to remote and outside HR resources. We are now looking for a strong, hands-on HR professional who will be physically present in the office, develop meaningful relationships with employees and management, identify concerns early, and ensure that the firm’s policies and expectations are consistently put into practice.

This is not a payroll-only, recruiting-only, or administrative HR position. It is also not a role for someone who views HR only as enforcement or discipline. The successful candidate will be fair, steady, approachable, discreet, organized, and capable of respectfully holding every level of the firm accountable.

Position Overview

The Human Resources Manager will serve as the firm’s primary on-site HR and employee-relations resource.

This individual will work directly with firm leadership, attorneys, paralegals, legal assistants, administrative staff, remote HR resources, payroll and benefits providers, and outside employment counsel when appropriate.

The right candidate must be able to earn employees’ trust while still addressing attendance, communication, professionalism, performance, policy, and workplace-conduct concerns directly.

This person must also be comfortable advising partners and senior attorneys, including respectfully explaining when a proposed employment action is inconsistent with firm policy, has not been adequately documented, or creates unnecessary risk.

Primary Responsibilities

• Serve as the firm’s primary on-site HR and employee-relations resource.
• Develop professional relationships with attorneys, paralegals, legal assistants, and administrative staff.
• Conduct regular employee check-ins and identify concerns before they become larger workplace problems.
• Help create a professional environment built on communication, accountability, respect, and consistent expectations.
• Apply the employee handbook and workplace policies fairly and consistently.
• Help supervisors establish clear responsibilities, performance expectations, and measurable standards.
• Coach managers on communication, documentation, feedback, performance management, and corrective action.
• Address attendance, punctuality, professionalism, communication, productivity, and workplace-conduct concerns.
• Handle employee complaints and employee-relations matters from the initial report through appropriate resolution.
• Conduct or coordinate fair, prompt, neutral, and well-documented workplace investigations.
• Recognize when a complaint should be referred to outside employment counsel or an independent investigator.
• Manage employee coaching, written warnings, performance-improvement plans, corrective action, and termination processes.
• Ensure employment decisions are supported by accurate, consistent, and objective documentation.
• Review timekeeping practices and address overtime, meal-period, rest-period, and off-the-clock-work concerns.
• Coordinate employee leaves, disability accommodations, pregnancy-related accommodations, and return-to-work matters.
• Coordinate workers’ compensation, unemployment, payroll, and benefits matters with the appropriate outside providers.
• Manage new-hire o