Paralegal (Fact Witness Coordinator)

Responsibilities

• Provide witness management assistance prior to, during, and after trial, working directly with fact witnesses to ensure their appearance for court, pre-trial conferences, and grand jury.
• Receive visitors, field phone calls, and respond to inquiries from fact witnesses regarding court appearances, pre-trial conferences, grand jury appearances, and expense reimbursement; gather necessary information for files and documents to arrange witness travel and reimbursements.
• Initiate contact with fact witnesses to notify them of travel arrangements, appearance dates/times, and assess any special circumstances or needs; determine when USAO/DOJ Assistant U.S. Attorneys should be notified of these circumstances.
• Confer with Assistant U.S. Attorneys concerning fact witness appearances and special circumstances (e.g., special authorizations, international witnesses, military/federal employee witnesses, or hostile witnesses); complete and submit proper documentation for special authorizations and obtain prior approval before proceeding with travel arrangements.
• Ensure all travel documents and appearance details are provided to fact witnesses; make necessary arrangements for travel and lodging according to USAO/DOJ policies and procedures.
• Prepare and submit documentation for fact witness reimbursement, including witness vouchers and other required forms; furnish requested information concerning pending and completed vouchers and reconcile Government Travel Accounts.
• Coordinate with the Court, Probation, Pretrial, U.S. Marshals Service, investigative agencies, and other counterparts as necessary.
• Complete recurring legal documents in conformance with style and format rules; compose letters from templates using legal procedures and specialized terminology relevant to fact witness laws and regulations.
• Perform general office procedures related to fact witness management, including establishing and maintaining witness files, documents, and databases; assembling documents for retention; maintaining calendars/databases of active and pending witness appearances; tracking hearings, trial dates, grand jury, and scheduling conferences; and other administrative/logistical duties as assigned.

Requirements

• Paralegal certificate, JD, or currently attending an ABA-accredited law school with at least one year of study completed.
• One year of legal training or legal experience, or at least two years of college education may substitute for the paralegal certificate.
• At least one year of litigation paralegal experience or relevant project experience; trial experience is highly beneficial.
• Automated litigation support experience is valued.
• Basic legal knowledge, including familiarity with standard legal citations to cite-check legal motions and memoranda.
• Experience with legal research tools such as LEXIS and Westlaw for basic legal research.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Thorough knowledge and hands-on familiarity with computer applications, including word processing, databases (e.g., document review and file management systems), spreadsheets, imaging, and hardware systems.
• Basic familiarity with Client tools and knowledge of eDiscovery procedures and resources.
• Ability to consistently deliver high-quality work under extreme pressure.