Paralegal - Public Defender

Under general supervision of an attorney, to perform a variety of paraprofessional legal duties: to assist in preparation of cases for trial, prepare legal documents, interview clients, and perform legal research and writing. The senior level performs the most complex and/or difficult of the paraprofessional legal duties.

Paralegals may be subject to rotation to any assignment at the department head's discretion and according to organization, staffing, and workload requirements.    



Typical Tasks For Paralegal:

• Gathers and compiles evidence for attorneys by interviewing witnesses and collecting materials, documents, and reports;
   
• Prepares trial notebooks, organizes evidence, and prepares exhibits;
   
• Interviews clients, witnesses, and others, and serves as a liaison between clients and attorneys;
   
• Determines eligibility for client assistance from the Public Defender's office, and may evaluate and arrange for client to enter rehabilitative programs;
   
• Acts as a liaison with public and private agencies, law enforcement agencies, state agencies, attorneys, clients, relatives of clients, and witnesses;
   
• Logs and tracks cases to ensure that timelines are met;
   
• Arranges for the presence of witnesses, prepares witnesses for testimony and deposition and reviews and summarizes witness statements and depositions;
   
• Drafts and prepares a variety of legal documents, correspondence, and reports that are standard legal documents or that require a minimal amount of original writing;
   
• Performs basic legal research in which issues are readily identifiable, or performs cite checking;
   
• Files legal documents in court, and delivers materials regarding ongoing cases;
   
• May assist attorney in court by taking notes; distributing cases, and coordinating witnesses;
   
• Maintains a law library containing law books and other reference material;
   
• Performs related duties as required.

Typical Tasks For Senior Paralegal:

The Senior Paralegal may perform the above tasks in addition to the following:

• Drafts and prepares a variety of legal documents, correspondence, and reports that are complex and require a great amount of original writing;
   
• May have responsibility for a highly specialized and complex assignments requiring a high level of independence including the organization of documents used in civil litigation or in the prosecution or defense of major crimes;
   
• Negotiates and resolves administrative issues with representatives of opposing counsel or client;
   
• Performs complex legal research in which issues are not readily defined and a substantial amount of research is required from a variety of references;
   
• May represent the County or be called upon to provide information at administrative hearings;
   
• Establishes procedures for organizing and processing work;
   
• May assist attorney in extensive preparation of Penalty Phase;
   
• May provide lead direction and training to Paralegals and intern paralegals;
   
• Tracks and monitors criminal databases, information on grant proposals, claims filed against the County, gang related activities, DNA testing;
   
• Provides training to County agency personnel for statutory compliance and on law enforcement databases;
   
• Performs related duties as required.

Possession of one of the following:

(1) A paralegal certificate from an American Bar Association (ABA) approved paralegal program;

(2) A paralegal certificate or a degree from a nationally or regionally accredited, or Bureau for Private Post-secondary and Vocational Education-approved post-secondary institution that requires successful completion of a minimum of 24 semester (or equivalent) units in law related courses;

(3) A baccalaureate degree or advanced degree in any subject; plus a minimum of one year of law related attorney supervised* experience; and a written declaration from that attorney* stating that the person is qualified to perform paralegal tasks;

(4) A high school diploma or GED, plus a minimum of three years of law-related attorney supervised* experience; and a written declaration from that attorney* stating that the person is qualified to perform paralegal tasks. This experience and training shall be completed no later than December 31, 2003.

*The supervising and declaring attorney must be an active member of the California Bar for at least the preceding three (3) years, or have practiced in the federal courts of California for at least the preceding three (3) years.

Special Requirement

MCLE Post Employment Standards – Paralegals/Senior Paralegals are required to certify completion of Mandatory Continuing Legal Education (MCLE) credits every two (2) years. These credits consist of four (4) hours of general law or a specialized area of law, and four (4) hours of legal ethics.

Senior Paralegal

Experience Note: In addition to the above, the required knowledge and abilities to perform this function are typically attained through one (1) year of experience as a paralegal.

Knowledge of:

• Methods and techniques of legal research and available legal resource material, discovery, and fact investigation;
   
• Principles of legal writing;
   
• Legal terminology;
   
• Basic communication skills including questioning and investigative interviewing techniques;
   
• Ethics of law practice;
   
• Civil and/or criminal legal processes and judicial structure;
   
• Skills necessary to perform issue identification.

Ability to:

• Prepare effective legal papers;
   
• Perform basic legal research and writing;
   
• Speak and write logically and effectively;
   
• Analyze and interpret applicable codes, laws, ordinances and statutes;
   
• Prepare and organize evidence;
   
• Establish and maintain effective working relationships with public and coworkers.

The Senior Paralegal requires the following additional abilities to:

• Prepare complex legal papers requiring a great amount of original writing;
   
• Perform advanced legal research;
   
• Negotiate and resolve administrative issues.

Salary : $82,757 - $100,142