DEFDPL024 Provide high-level support on criminal law matters

Release: 1

DEFDPL024 Provide high-level support on criminal law matters

Modification History

Release 1. This is the first release of this unit of competency in the DEF Defence Training Package.

Application

This unit describes the skills and knowledge required to provide paralegal support services within a Defence legal environment. It includes planning and preparing to provide high-level support, clarifying complex legal issues and performing legal research. It also includes preparing complex documents and finalising criminal law matters. This unit applies to Defence personnel who are required to provide paralegal support services. The skills and knowledge described in this unit must be applied within the legislative, regulatory and policy environment in which they are carried out. Organisational policies and procedures must be consulted and adhered to. Persons undertaking this unit work mostly independently while of a team, and perform routine and complex tasks. They would work with limited supervision, with identified approval authorities. They apply solutions to a variety of predictable and complex problems in familiar and unfamiliar contexts. No licensing, legislative or certification requirements apply to this unit at the time of publication.

Pre-requisite Unit

Not applicable.

Competency Field

Defence Paralegal Operations.

Unit Sector

Not applicable.

Elements and Performance Criteria

ELEMENTS	PERFORMANCE CRITERIA
Elements describe the essential outcomes.	Performance criteria describe the performance needed to demonstrate achievement of the element.
1	Plan and prepare to provide support	1.1	Register a criminal law matter and identify possible legal issues for the matter
1.2	Analyse the matter requirements according to organisational procedures
1.3	Determine staffing required to action the request and identify any military entities and/or stakeholders
2	Clarify legal issues	2.1	Identify and clarify complex legal issues of matter with instructing legal officer
2.2	Obtain additional information, as required, to meet matter requirements and manage client and stakeholder expectations
2.3	Outline the scope of the paralegal’s responsibilities clearly to stakeholders and establish clear responsibilities with client in accordance with legal and organisational requirements
3	Perform legal research	3.1	Identify scope and requirements for researching the matter, as required
3.2	Conduct legal research of all relevant resources and engage with stakeholders to complete matter
3.3	Analyse and document research outcomes and propose a course of action in accordance with matter requirements
4	Prepare documents	4.1	Prepare required documents for matter according to instructions of legal officer for review and sign off, as required, in accordance with organisational policies and procedures
4.2	Review prepared documents with instructing legal officer, confirm document accuracy with client and stakeholders, and amend as required
5	Finalise criminal law matter	5.1	Finalise legal documents in accordance with legal and organisational procedures
5.2	Communicate outcomes to stakeholders as required
5.3	Update file notes and place outcomes on file in accordance with operating guidelines
5.4	Store and secure files in accordance with operating guidelines

Foundation Skills

Foundation skills essential to performance are explicit in the performance criteria of this unit of competency.

Range of Conditions

Range is restricted to essential operating conditions and any other variables essential to the work environment. Non-essential conditions may be found in the DEF Defence Training Package Companion Volume Implementation Guide.

Unit Mapping Information

This unit supersedes and is equivalent to DEFDPL002 Provide high-level support on criminal law matters.

Links

Companion Volume Implementation Guides are found on VETNet - https://vetnet.gov.au/Pages/TrainingDocs.aspx?q=6bdbab1e-11ed-4bc9-9cba-9e1a55d4e4a9