Paralegal - Civil Litigation Section (Salem or Portland)

State of Oregon • Salem, OR

359d • $5,066 - $7,774 • Hybrid

About The Position

The Oregon Department of Justice, Trial Division, Civil Litigation Section is seeking to hire a seasoned Paralegal for the Salem or Portland Legal office. This position offers a hybrid schedule which requires a minimum of 1 day in office and up to 4 days remote work. Note: Training will require additional days in the office. If you are looking for a challenging opportunity with day-to-day variety, this may be the position for you. If selected, you will work closely with Assistant Attorney Generals in the Trial Division to investigate, analyze, and prepare cases. The Trial Division defends the State of Oregon and all its agencies, departments, boards, commissions, and district attorney's offices before the state and federal trial courts in Oregon. This position will work with the Civil Litigation Section, which handles most of the jury trials for the State, including employment, civil rights, contract, and tort litigation. In exchange, we'll ensure you are paid well, and we'll make work-life balance attainable, and we'll show you the door to professional development and job satisfaction.

Requirements

• Two-year Associate degree in Paralegal or Legal Assistant Studies.
• Eighteen months of Paralegal experience.
• Any combination of training and experience that demonstrates experience in legal work, independent judgment, legal terminology principles, concepts, systems, and processes. Experience must include discovery and trial methods and procedures, legal ethics, and skill in preparing legal documents, interviewing witnesses, and explaining legal issues.

Nice To Haves

• Experience working independently as a paralegal with a trial caseload.
• Experience reviewing, analyzing, and organizing large volumes of discovery documents, on paper and in databases such as Relativity, EDT, Summation, or Everlaw.
• Experience in trial.
• Experience in working independently to prepare a busy team of lawyers for trial.
• Experience in working with clients in either written or oral communication.

Responsibilities

• Assist in trial and trial preparation, including organizing exhibits, preparing factual portions of pretrial order, consulting with attorneys regarding witnesses' ability to effectively testify at trial, prepare trial notebooks and witness notebooks, tracking trial exhibits, taking notes during trial, coordinating trial witnesses, and suggesting questions or additional documents to be used in examination of witnesses.
• Conduct factual investigation of the section's cases, including arranging, preparing for, and assisting with, subpoenas and document collections from clients and third parties, and conducting interviews of witnesses.
• Independently manage proposed pleadings and correspondence relating to cases.
• Draft discovery requests and responses for your attorneys' review, including requests for production, interrogatories, and requests for admissions, and responses and objections to each of those forms.
• Read, organize, and analyze document production from our client agencies, third parties, and opposing parties.
• Assist in the process of preparing for depositions, including identifying potential exhibits, organizing, and preparing the exhibit sets, and assisting in depositions.
• Work with expert witnesses or consultants on cases and assist them by supplying information and documents necessary for their testimony and reports.

Benefits

• Job satisfaction as part of a team whose mission is to serve Oregon's public and government agencies.
• Permanent, full-time employment in Salem or Portland, Oregon.
• Vacation, sick leave, paid holidays, and special days off.
• Excellent medical, vision, and dental.
• Pension and retirement programs.
• Endless peer and management support, and representation by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU).
• Opportunity to expand your professional skills.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Industry: Executive, Legislative, and Other General Government Support
• Education Level: Associate degree
• Number of Employees: 501-1,000 employees