Paralegal – Legal Operations

Job Description

Paralegal Specialist | U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

The Tone:
This is a full-time position located within the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA) Legal Operations, with offices available throughout the country. ICE OPLA operates as the largest legal department within DHS, encompassing over 3,000 attorneys and 500 support staff across 143 offices nationwide and nine distinct regions. This role is pivotal in supporting OPLA attorneys who function as the exclusive representatives of the U.S. Government in removal proceedings before the Executive Office for Immigration Review and in federal litigation. The Paralegal Specialist directly contributes to the effective litigation of cases involving criminal aliens, terrorists, human rights violators, and other priority aliens, providing essential legal services to all ICE programs and offices.

The TL;DR
• Role: Early Career
• Type: Full-time
• Location: In-person, throughout the country
• Team: Reports to OPLA Legal Operations attorneys
• Mission: To assist OPLA attorneys in representing the U.S. Government in immigration proceedings and federal litigation, supporting effective legal operations.
• Tech Stack: Automated legal research tools, electronic case management system

What You’ll Actually Do
• Legal Research: Conduct comprehensive legal research on laws, regulations, court decisions, opinions, and legislative history, then analyze and apply these findings to directly support OPLA attorneys in their cases.
• Case Preparation and Support: Assist attorneys in thorough preparation for and representation of the United States Government in immigration proceedings before various tribunals, addressing evidentiary, procedural, and substantive issues, and facilitate communication with clients, witnesses, or other parties.
• Document Quality Assurance: Meticulously review all case-related documents to ensure strict conformity with standardized formatting, grammar, legal citations, and internal practice manuals prior to final signature and issuance by attorneys.
• Data Management and Monitoring: Monitor and systematically update various databases and repositories utilizing an electronic case management system or similar platforms, ensuring accurate and current case information.
• Legal Document Drafting: Prepare a variety of legal written work products in both draft and final forms, including correspondence, motions, briefs, case summaries, affidavits, discovery requests, responses, and evidentiary packages for immigration proceedings and federal litigation.

The Must-Haves
• Background: Master’s or equivalent graduate degree, or two full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree (or LL.B. or J.D., if related) for the GS-09 level.
• Experience: At least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 level in Federal service, which included drafting and editing memoranda, research reports, or legal correspondences; reviewing case materials; preparing and organizing trial exhibits; and preparing summaries of testimony and depositions.
• Skills: Ability to research and analyze laws, regulations, court decisions, and legislative history; proficiency in drafting and editing legal documents such as memoranda, motions, briefs, and case summaries; skill in monitoring and updating electronic case management systems and managing legal calendars and deadlines; competence in reviewing legal documents for conformity with established formatting, grammar, and legal citations.