Enclosure (2) to COMDTINST 1221.1
Skills & Competencies Required for CG Paralegal Designation and the L5 Competency Code
Paralegals are persons who assist attorneys in the delivery of legal services. Through formal education,
training and experience, paralegals have knowledge and expertise regarding the legal system and
substantive and procedural law, which qualify them to do work of a legal nature under the supervision of
an attorney. Responsibilities most often assigned to paralegals/legal assistants are maintaining client
files, drafting correspondence, performing factual research, monitoring deadlines, drafting and
investigation and analyzing documents, and acting as liaison with clients and others.
A CG Paralegal independently plans and carries out assignments and coordinates activities with
professional legal staff of the office and with staff of other CG offices, units and other Federal or non-
Federal activities. Paralegals at this level must use considerable ingenuity to anticipate program or case
requirements, develop legal arguments and supporting evidence, resolve conflicting statements, or
search for corroborating or contravening precedents. In some assignments, the paralegal also determines
the approach to be taken and methodology to be used. The supervisor is kept informed of actions
involving potentially controversial issues or issues with far-reaching implications.
Coast Guard Paralegals shall be able to perform all functions identified for L1/Legal Technicians with
little or no supervision and those functions generally identified in the OPM Benchmark Description for
Paralegal Specialist, GS-0950-9, including (but not limited to):
Practical knowledge of legal principles and concepts to interpret and apply, or explain to others
the application of, a body of law, regulations, precedents, and practices covering one or more
recurring types of legal actions encountered in the agency.
Knowledge of the principles, concepts, and methods of legal research and reference sources such
as agency manuals, directives, issuances, court reports, appellate records, or commercial legal
publications sufficient to locate appropriate data such as applicable precedents, legislative
history, and commentaries which bear on particular legal issues. Ability to perform extensive
and thorough legal research into the legislative history, precedent cases, decisions, and opinions
that may be applicable to particular legal matters;
Knowledge of legal techniques and skills necessary to analyze both issues of fact and issues of
law in order to prepare digests of case decisions, evaluate the applicability of precedents, or to
draft briefs, other litigation papers, advisory opinions, or findings.
Knowledge of formal or informal rules of evidence and skill necessary to evaluate the adequacy
and/or admissibility of evidence, to request additional data or further investigation, when needed,
or to develop narrative or graphic exhibits to support specified legal arguments.
Ability to independently investigate and become thoroughly familiar with subject matter details
involved in a case or legal matter; determine the specific data needed and best approach to obtain
this data or to determine the relevance or sufficiency of available legal, technical (e.g., financial,
statistical), or other related data.
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