Paralegal

Overview of FRH

Ruwad al Houkouk is a non-profit and apolitical NGO that aims at enhancing the human rights of vulnerable marginalized groups in Lebanon. The association’s target population is the refugees, stateless persons and migrant workers. Its main activities include legal services, produces policy papers and conduct advocacy activities.

Description

Ruwad alHoukouk FR is looking to hire a paralegal to join the legal team.

You will be supporting our legal team by, drafting documents, and organizing files, calling on beneficiaries, maintaining a legal library and more. by preparing documents like affidavits and legal correspondence, as well as organizing and maintaining files. You will also be asked to file pleadings with court clerks and help prepare for trials by organizing exhibits and assisting with other tasks as required.

To be successful in this role, you will need to be proficient with Microsoft Office applications such as Word and Excel, and have good research and analytical and organizational skills. You will also need to be able to multitask effectively and essentially thrive in a busy, team-oriented environment.

The Project

The birth of children of migrants’ workers in illegal situation born in Lebanon cannot be registered and hence become stateless. The illegal residency of parents marginalizes and denies them adequate work conditions. They have to regularize their legal status in order to register their marriage and the birth of their children with the administration and/or judicially and thereafter with their respective embassies. Children without a nationality or legal status means denial of access to other basic and fundamental rights such as education and health care. Further, this denies them childhood enjoyment and proper development.

Project aim

The project is designed based on post identification to the particular target group of foreign migrant workers and an assessment of the needs to reach fundamental rights.

Working toward preventing and reducing protection risks faced by migrant workers, the project will bring the following concrete changes on their situation:

1. 1. Regularized marital and kinship status of parents
   2. Regularized residency permits of parents allowing them to obtain legal status and obtain adequate work conditions
   3. Parents’ marriage and children’s birth are registered with administration and embassies

Paralegal Duties and Responsibilities:

• Organizing and maintaining documents in a paper or electronic filing system.
• Meeting with clients, attorneys, and other professionals to talk about case details.
• Filing pleadings with court clerk.
• Helping prepare for trial by organizing exhibits and assisting with other tasks as needed.
• Investigating facts and laws of cases and searching public records and other resources to prepare cases and determine causes of action.
• Directing and coordinating law office activity.
• Gathering and analyzing statutes, decisions, and legal articles, codes, documents and other data.
• Calling on witnesses to testify at hearings.
• Keeping law library up-to-date by monitoring legal volumes.

Paralegal Requirements:

• Law degree or related social science degree
• Proficient with Microsoft Office, specifically Outlook, Word, and Excel
• Strong oral and written communication skills
• Excellent organizational skills
• Must be able to effectively multi-task, manage time-sensitive documents and have exceptional organizational skills in a fast-paced environment
• Must be able to function effectively in a busy, team-oriented environment
• Office administration experience
• Ability to develop multi-tasking skills and to juggle competing priorities, and meet tight deadlines
• Empathy and compassion and supportive to clients
• Honesty and trustworthiness and follow strict ethical guidelines and client confidentiality rules

Working environment 

The work is conducted mainly from the office (Badaro), but travel will be required for meetings, trainings, workshops, and attending business in courts.

Hours

Working hours range from 37 to 48 hours a week.

Project period: 6 months

Remuneration

A global package ranging between US$ 4000 to US$ 6000