Paralegal 1

Law; Palmer (AK); On-site; USD 40,000 - 60,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

12 paid holidays

Personal leave accrual (about 21 days)

Flex to Paralegal 2 (Range 16)

Job summary

The State of Alaska in Palmer is seeking a Paralegal 1 to support the prosecution team, assist crime-impacted community members, and help navigate the criminal justice system. You will provide case updates and connect people with resources as cases progress.

This flex substitute position includes benefits, a 37.5-hour work week, and potential advancement to Paralegal 2 after completing core competencies. Primary hours are 8:00AM–4:30PM with some flexibility.

Qualifications

• Attention to detail and thoroughness in performing work.
• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to work with diverse individuals.
• Reading comprehension of technical material and legal documents.
• Written communication: clear, concise, organized writing.
• Post-secondary or vocational education in legal or legal support area or related experience handling legal documents.

Responsibilities

• Assist community members impacted by crime and explain rights within the criminal justice system.
• Provide updates throughout a case and inform about resources.
• Support the prosecution team and coordinate with law enforcement, court personnel, and victim advocates.

Skills

Attention to Detail

Interpersonal Skills

Reading

Written Communication

Education

Post-secondary and/or vocational education in a legal or legal support area

Job description

Job Description

Come join the State of Alaska!

This job class uses Competency Based minimum qualifications (MQs). Please read the Competency Based MQ instructions below to learn more

The Department of Law, Division of Criminal is recruiting for a Paralegal 1

in

Palmer

!

This position is open to Alaska Residents only. Please check our

residency definition

to determine if you qualify.

The person hired into this position will be substituting for the permanent employee while they are on extended leave, which is expected to be until 9/30/2027. This position receives all benefits, including retirement (PERS). In the event the permanent employee returns to work, the incumbent of this substitute position will be place in layoff status with full layoff rights to the Paralegal job class.

What You Will Be Doing:

In your role as a Paralegal, you will help members in your community who are directly impacted by crime and help victims and witnesses understand their rights and navigate them through the criminal justice system. This includes providing them updates throughout the life of a case as well as informing them of resources available to them. You will also play an important role of the prosecution team working through the criminal justice system to resolve legal issues, including building relationships with other agencies such as law enforcement, court personnel and victim advocates.

Mission and Values/Culture:

Our mission is to seek justice, promote public safety and public respect for government through prompt, effective, and compassionate prosecution of cases in a matter that advocates for the interests of the victims, respects the law enforcement agencies, responsibly stewards public resources, and holds offenders accountable while at the same time protecting the constitutional and legal rights of the accused.

Benefits of Joining Our Team:

You will have an opportunity to learn about the legal system, engage with the court, prepare for hearings and trials, and provide vital support to everyone involved.

You can make a difference in someone’s life and take pride in knowing that you have assisted members of your community. The work you will be part of will have a direct impact on promoting safe and secure communities throughout Alaska.

This position is considered a flex position. After successfully demonstrating the core competencies outlined in the flex agreement, the incumbent will become eligible to flex to a Paralegal 2 position (Range 16).

• You can expect a 37.5 hour work week
• 12 paid holidays
• personal leave accrual starting at 6 hours per pay period (about 21 days annually) and increasing with years of service.

The general office hours are 8:00AM to 4:30PM but there is flexibility in establishing your regular hours around core business hours.

The Working Environment You Can Expect:

The Palmer District Attorney's Office is located at 515 E. Dahlia Ave; Suite 150, Palmer, AK. The office environment is friendly, fast-paced, and never boring.

In our office, you can become a leader, work as part of a team; work in one or more areas of law and build your office and computer skills.

Who We Are Looking For:

We are interested in candidates who possess some or all of the following position specific competencies:

• Decision Making: Makes sound, well-informed, and objective decisions; perceives the impact and implications of decisions; commits to action, even in uncertain situations, to accomplish organizational goals; causes change.
• Information Management: Identifies a need for and knows where or how to gather information; organizes and maintains information or information management systems.

To view the general description and example of duties for the position please go to the following link:

https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/Alaska/classspecs

Minimum Qualifications

Paralegal 1

Any combination of education and/or experience that provides the applicant with competencies in:

• Attention to Detail: Is thorough when performing work and conscientious about attending to detail.
• Interpersonal Skills: Shows understanding, friendliness, courtesy, tact, empathy, concern, and politeness to others; develops and maintains effective relationships with others; may include effectively dealing with individuals who are difficult, hostile, or distressed; relates well to people from varied backgrounds and different situations; is sensitive to cultural diversity, race, gender, disabilities, and other individual differences.
• Reading: Understands and interprets written material, including technical material, rules, regulations, instructions, reports, charts, graphs, or tables; applies what is learned from written material to specific situations.
• Written Communication: Writes in a clear, concise, organized, and convincing manner for the intended audience.

Equivalent to those typically gained by:

Post-secondary and/or vocational education in a legal or legal support area and/or experience preparing, reviewing, or processing legal documents such as affidavits, court reports, demand letters, discovery requests or responses, hearing transcripts, memoranda of advice/instruction/understanding, letters of agreement, motions, legal opinions, subpoenas, and/or writs.

Special Note (All Levels):

Positions may require incumbents to be able to obtain a Notary Public upon hire, and to be able to pass a criminal background check to meet security requirements for using criminal record networks such as Alaska Public Safety Information Network (APSIN) and National Crime Enforcement Information Center/National Law Enforcement Telecommunications System (NCIC/NLETS). If this requirement is present, it will be stated in the vacancy announcement.

Some positions are required to work regular overtime during the standard workweek, on weekends, and/or holidays to provide support to the assigned duty attorney. If this requirement is present, it will be stated in the vacancy announcement.

“Competencies” means a combination of interrelated knowledge, skills, abilities, and behaviors that enable a person to act effectively in a job or situation.

“Paraprofessional” work is typically associated with and supportive of a professional field. It involves extensive practical knowledge gained through experience and/or specific formal or on-the-job training. Work in these occupations may involve substantial elements of the work of the professional or administrative field, but requires less than full knowledge of the field involved.

“Progressively responsible” means indicating growth and/or advancement in complexity, difficulty, or level of responsibility.

“Technical” means performing tasks, methods, procedures, and computations that are covered by established precedents or guidelines and often require a high degree of skill, care, and precision.

“Training” and “education” in this guidance are synonyms for the process of acquiring knowledge and skills through instruction. It includes instruction through formal and informal methods (such as classroom, on-line, self-study, and on-the-job), from accredited and unaccredited sources, and long-duration (such as a post-secondary degree) and short-duration (such as a seminar) programs.

“Typically gained by” means the prevalent, usual method of gaining the competencies expected for entry into the job.

Additional Required Information

Members of the Criminal Division are held to high standards of professionalism even in our personal lives. The incumbent must maintain the strictest of confidences with information they will be exposed to and have access to. Applicants should be aware that due to the nature of the work being performed in this office, the incumbent must have the ability to tolerate some exposure to graphic pictures, coarse language, and detailed descriptions of sometimes horrific criminal acts.

Please read the information below carefully. This applies to your application submission.

DISCLOSURE OF PRIO