Paralegal (Litigation)

Important messages

We are committed to providing an inclusive and barrier-free work environment that starts with the assessment phase of the hiring process. If you need to be accommodated during the assessment phase, please use the ‘Contact information’ below to request a specialized accommodation. Please be advised that the assessment phase may include any of the following: an exam/test, an oral interview and a reference check etc. All information received in relation to accommodation (for example, a medical certificate, a psychologist evaluation, an example of a previous accommodation for staffing processes, etc.) will be kept confidential. Also note that accommodation requests are covered by the protected grounds under the Canadian Human Rights Act.

Accommodations Request Information: https://www.canada.ca/en/public-service-commission/services/assessment-accommodation-page/how-to-request-assessment-accommodation.html

The Department of Justice is committed to ensure we achieve representativeness, diversity and inclusion in all areas of our business. In reflecting on the composition of our workforce, we must do better to build representation. In the hope of increasing the representation of Indigenous Peoples, Black and other racialized group members and Persons with disabilities, we invite and encourage members of these groups to apply.

We will only accept on-line applications received via the Public Service Jobs site. Persons with disabilities or residing in locations that prevent them from applying on-line are asked to contact 1-800-645-5605.

Intent of the process

The intent of this process is to create qualified pools for two (2) streams which are identified as:

Stream 1: Paralegal, working with legal proceedings in applicable provincial or territorial superior Courts or Federal court.

Stream 2: Paralegal, working with civil proceedings in the province of Quebec.

A pool of qualified candidates will be established and may be used to staff similar or identical positions with various linguistic profiles and requirements, security profiles and various tenures.

The Department has a significant number of vacancies to fill.

Positions to be filled: Number to be determined

Information you must provide

Your résumé.

In order to be considered, your application must clearly explain how you meet the following (essential qualifications)

All Streams:

EDUCATION:
• Successful completion of two years of post-secondary school program with acceptable specialization in paralegal studies or in a law-related field from a recognized institution or an acceptable combination of education, training and/or experience.

Degree equivalency

EXPERIENCE:
• Experience* in conducting paralegal litigation activities of medium complexity** in a litigation file.

*Experience is defined as over a period of approximately four (4) years.
**Medium complexity is defined as a broad range of legal activities. For example: Drafting and/or analyzing legal documents where precedents, templates, information and/or documents are not readily available.

• Experience* in managing and organizing documents with databases and litigation support software. For example: Nuix Discover/Ringtail, Relativity, Summation, Ipro/Eclipse.

*Experience is defined as over a period of approximately four (4) years.

The following will be applied / assessed at a later date (essential for the job)

Various language requirements
English or French Essential
Bilingual Imperative: BBB/BBB, CBB/CBB, CCB/CCB, CBC/CBC, CCC/CCC, BBC/BBC, BCB/BCB

Information on language requirements

KNOWLEDGE:

Stream 1:
• Knowledge of civil litigation rules, procedures and practices as they relate to applicable provincial or territorial Superior Courts or Federal Court.

Stream 2:
• Knowledge of the rules of courts as they apply to legal proceedings in Quebec.

All Streams:
• Knowledge of how to collect, organize, preserve, process, review (relevance and privilege) and produce documents using a litigation support software. For example: Nuix Discover/Ringtail, Relativity, Summation, Ipro/Eclipse.

CORE COMPETENCIES:
All Streams:
• Demonstrating Integrity and Respect
• Thinking Things Through
• Working Effectively with Others
• Showing Initiative and Being Action-Oriented

ABILITY:
All Streams:
• Ability to conduct substantive legal research and analysis on factual and legal issues well established in law, prepare a summary and provide a recommendation.
• Oral Communication: Strong communication skills to present and discuss ideas, concepts and issues in a clear, concise, and effective manner orally.
• Written Communication: Strong communication to present and discuss ideas, concepts and issues in a clear, concise, and effective manner in writing.

The following may be applied / assessed at a later date (may be needed for the job)

ASSET QUALIFICATIONS:

EDUCATION:
• Paralegal or Law Clerk degree or diploma or certificate or diploma of collegial studies (DCS) in paralegal studies from a recognized institution.

Degree equivalency

EXPERIENCE:
• Experience using project management principles and techniques to plan, oversee and coordinate activities.

• Experience in providing paralegal support services in civil litigation cases in a government context.

• Experience working on files relating to real property law or federal real property transactions.

• Experience in civil litigation.

• Experience in aboriginal law.

• Experience in personal injury law.

• Experience in immigration law.

• Experience in tax law.

• Experience in tax recovery.

• Experience in administrative law.

• Experience working in a criminal litigation environment.

KNOWLEDGE:
• Knowledge of privilege issues as they relate to litigation.
• Knowledge of the steps in managing document disclosures.

Selection may be limited to members of the following Employment Equity groups: Aboriginal persons, persons with disabilities, visible minorities, women

Information on employment equity

ORGANIZATIONAL NEEDS:

The Department of Justice believes that to be able to effectively serve the public, its workforce needs to reflect the diversity of the Canadian population. Diversity is a great source of strength in driving Canada’s Legal Team in ensuring that Canada’s justice system is as fair, accessible and efficient as possible. The Department is committed to a representative workforce that represents the Canadian public we serve. If you are a woman, an Indigenous person, a person with a disability or a member of a racialized group* and are interested in bringing in different perspectives and insights we encourage you to self-declare in this staffing process. This self-declaration information can be factored into departmental strategies and selection decisions to address our commitment to eliminate gaps for these groups.

* Please note that this group is currently designated as members of visible minorities in the Employment Equity Act and the self-declaration form.

OPERATIONAL REQUIREMENTS
The following requirements can be accommodated based on a persons’ needs or status.

• Willingness and ability to travel as required.

• Willingness and ability to work overtime as required.

Conditions of employment

Reliability and Security:
Various security clearance levels such as reliability, secret and top secret.

Medical Clearance* for positions located in the Department of Justice, Northern Regional Offices (Whitehorse, Yellowknife and Iqaluit) only.

*The incumbent and his/her dependents may be required to obtain Health Canada medical clearance in accordance with the Isolated Posts and Government Housing Directive.

Other information

The Public Service of Canada is committed to building a skilled and diverse workforce that reflects the Canadians we serve. We promote employment equity and encourage you to indicate if you belong to one of the designated groups when you apply.

Information on employment equity

As the purpose of this pool is to fill vacancies among members of the above-mentioned groups on a priority basis, you are required to declare your membership of one of these groups as part of the application process.

In order to self-declare, please ensure to check off the appropriate box within the online application under the Employment Equity section. To learn more about self-declaring, we encourage you to consult the following website: https://www.canada.ca/en/services/jobs/opportunities/government/self-declaring-because-we-care.html

Applying for Government of Canada jobs: What to expect: https://www.canada.ca/en/public-service-commission/jobs/services/gc-jobs/applying-government-canada-jobs-what-expect.html

We will only accept on-line applications received via the GC Jobs site.
CANDIDATES WILL NOT BE SOLICITED FOR INCOMPLETE OR MISSING INFORMATION.

Please note that if appointed to bilingual positions, candidates will be entitled to $800 bilingualism bonus per year.

Proof of education, in the form of a diploma, degree, or official transcripts, will be requested at the assessment stage of this process. Candidates with foreign credentials must provide proof of Canadian equivalency. Consult the Canadian Information Centre for International Credentials for further information at http://www.cicic.ca/.

Proof of citizenship will be required.

A written test will be administered.

Interviews will be administered.

Reference checks may be administered.

As part of the selection process, the use of online, innovative tools may be used for testing purposes. As a result, selected candidates will require access to a device that has internet capabilities.

Testing/interviews will be conducted at locations of the employer's choice and may require candidates to travel to the test/interview location. Please note that candidates (including employees of the Public Service) will not be considered to be in travel status or on government business and that travel costs will not be reimbursed. Consequently, candidates will be responsible for travel costs.

Candidates may be required to meet some asset qualifications or the organizational needs, depending on the requirements of the specific position being staffed.

Other considerations may be a deciding factor in choosing the person to be appointed from the pool (i.e. other qualifications deemed relevant, organizational needs, and/or operational needs).

Persons are entitled to participate in the appointment process in the official language of their choice.

If you require any accommodations (e.g. an alternative method of assessment, a technical aid, accessibility requirements, etc.) at any stage of the assessment process, please contact us so that we can take the appropriate measures to facilitate your full participation.

For Current Federal Public Service employees:
Please identify clearly your substantive group and level, your employment status, and Personal Record Identifier (PRI) on your application.

Employees at the same group and level or equivalent may be considered for deployment or secondment.

An assignment or acting appointment or secondment requires approval of your supervisor.

Preference

Preference will be given to veterans first and then to Canadian citizens and permanent residents, with the exception of a job located in Nunavut, where Nunavut Inuit will be appointed first.

Information on the preference to veterans

We thank all those who apply. Only those selected for further consideration will be contacted.