VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT

Position: Para-Legal Officer

Number of position: 1 Paralegal Officer for each district

Based in: Biratnagar and Nepalgunj

Reports to: Advocate of respective districts

Coordinates with: Attorney-In-Charge and District Director/Advocate

Contract type: 1 year (renewable upon availability of funds and performance)

The Public Defender Society of Nepal (PDS-Nepal), an organization spun off from PDS-Nepal, a project of The International Legal Foundation, is a not-for-profit, nongovernmental organization that upholds the human right to a fair trial and life and liberty, by defending poor, marginalized and vulnerable persons accused of criminal offenses, regardless of age, gender and ethnicity. It also works with the government to build its capacity to meet its legal obligation to provide criminal defense services to poor persons who cannot afford to hire private lawyers, so that all accused have equal access to competent defense lawyers. The primary mission of the organization is to ensure fair and effective access to justice, to develop a public defender system in Nepal and to work to develop the efficiency and sustainability of a Nepal public defender system. It focuses on the need for quality and meaningful legal representation for indigent accused in judicial and quasi-judicial tribunals.

Duties and Responsibilities:

During the Employment Term, the Paralegal will serve as an advocate of the Employer. In such capacity, the Paralegal will be responsible for assisting advocates to provide criminal defense services for indigent clients before judicial and quasi-judicial bodies. The Paralegal will perform such duties, services and responsibilities on behalf of the Employer consistent with the terms of reference outlined below and as may be reasonably assigned to the Paralegal from time to time.

During the Employment Term, the Paralegal will devote his/her full business time, attention and skill to the performance of such duties, services and responsibilities, and will use his best efforts to promote the interests of the Employer, and the Paralegal will not engage in any other business activity without the approval of his or her direct supervisor.

The successful candidate shall:

Assist and provide a wide range of legal support and administration to advocates related to the representation of criminally accused persons before judicial and quasi-judicial bodies.

Specific Paralegal duties include, but are not limited to:

• Go to the detention center to intake and initial interviews for new clients.
• Able to contact or intake new clients.
• Assisting with preparation of and filing applications;
• Well informed of current legal trends and to do research on legal issues as requested.
• Organizing documents and assisting advocates in preparation for hearings and trial;
• Visit court on a regular basis to wait for or meet and intake clients, and to obtain copies of witness testimony and decisions of the court, court files, orders, etc.;
• Keep track of court dates and making sure that advocates are informed about court dates;
• Gathering information from advocates and the court to enhance and maintain the current motions bank by filing and organizing applications and court orders by legal issue or subject.

In fulfilling [his/her] duties, the Paralegal agrees: