Senior Paralegal

Leidos•Washington DC, DC

9d•$32•Onsite

About The Position

Leidos is seeking a Senior Paralegal to provide onsite support to the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice. This role involves assisting attorneys with various aspects of investigations and litigation, including information gathering, document review, legal research, and trial preparation. The ideal candidate will be proficient in legal research tools, case management software, and Microsoft Office Suite, with a strong understanding of federal and state court systems and eDiscovery procedures. This position requires a US Citizen able to obtain a Public Trust clearance.

Requirements

Requires paralegal certificate, or Juris Doctorate, or currently attending an ABA-accredited law school, having completed at least one year of study, or an equivalent level of legal training or experience.
2+ years of litigation paralegal experience or project experience (as related to the task order).
At least one year of experience in automated litigation support.
Requires sound working knowledge of federal and state court system, legal research procedures, and legal research resources.
Requires thorough knowledge of legal research tools such as LEXIS and Westlaw.
Must have hands-on familiarity with a variety of computer applications, including word processing, databases (such as document review and file management systems), spreadsheets, imaging, and hardware systems.
Hands-on familiarity with ESI tools and knowledge of eDiscovery procedures and resources.
Must be a US Citizen and able to obtain and maintain a Public Trust clearance.
Capable of working with large data sets using Microsoft Excel, utilizing key functions such as SUM, IF, VLOOKUP/XLOOKUP, and pivot tables.

Nice To Haves

Experience working in a Government and/or Litigation Support environment in conjunction with basic qualifications, valued.
Trial experience very helpful.
Current or active clearance.

Responsibilities

Seeks and locates information required by Criminal Division attorneys to support investigations and litigation through communications with law enforcement, government officials, witnesses, and counsel.
Independently (or with limited guidance) collects, reviews and organizes incoming material for reference and use in preparing a variety of legal documents, e.g., complaints, motions, orders, answers, pleadings, and subpoenas.
Reviews, annotates and summarizes transcripts, reports, files and other evidence.
Assists attorneys in all phases of pre-litigation investigation, including witness interviews and complex research (e.g., analyzing relevant claims data).
Assists with document review and maintains case files using Relativity, Everlaw, and similar ESI/eDiscovery platforms.
Drafts correspondence, pleadings, discovery requests, applications, and affidavits from templates for AUSA review, ensuring conformance with specific rules for style and format.
Provides litigation and trial support by performing duties such as independently compiling case summary binders, trial notebooks, witness/exhibit lists, and jury instructions.
Coordinates with the victim/witness specialist to ensure adherence to current Departmental guidelines relating to victims’ rights and services responsibilities.
Develops tables of contents and indices for briefs; lists cited cases and miscellaneous references in accordance with established formats.
Writes preliminary drafts of administrative letters (e.g., transmittals or extension requests) that require knowledge of legal procedures but not legal interpretation.
Performs moderately complex legal research using Westlaw, LexisNexis, PACER, CLEAR, and Accurint; verifies all citations and statutory references for accuracy.
Provides a variety of direct clerical and administrative support assistance services to Criminal Division staff.
Establishes and maintains physical and digital files, including searching reference files for interviews and preparing material for disposition or transfer to records depositories.
Performs docketing duties such as opening, updating and closing cases through use of the automated case tracking system.
Maintains calendars, tracking filing deadlines, hearings, conferences, and court appearances through a suspense system.
Provides automated litigation support by utilizing scanners, plotters, and graphics software to create charts, visual materials, and enlarged exhibits for depositions and courtroom presentations.