Senior Paralegal

Parliamentary Counsel's Office

Senior Paralegal

You. At the centre of big ideas.

• Salary: Clerk Grade 7/8
• Applications close: 12 September 2025 at 10 AM

The Parliamentary Counsel's Office (PCO) is headed by the Parliamentary Counsel and is a Public Service executive agency related to The
Cabinet Office under the Government Sector Employment Act 2013. The PCO
provides a comprehensive and integrated range of high-quality services for the
drafting of, and access to, NSW legislation and the giving of advice and
information about legislation.

Primary purpose of the role
The Senior Paralegal contributes directly to the work of,
and provides guidance and support to the Paralegal and Executive Support Team,
who in turn perform a range of administrative activities to assist the smooth
running of the office and effectively support the Parliamentary Counsel and
Deputy Parliamentary Counsels (Deputies).

Responsibilities of the team include editorial checking, production processes,
preparation of Explanatory Notes, Notices of Motion for Bills and Cabinet
materials for the Parliamentary Counsel; undertaking legal research projects
and investigating specific legislative matters on behalf of the Parliamentary
Counsel; the administration of legislative projects; assisting with reception,
meeting organisation and general office administration. As required, this role
and the paralegal team also provides direct assistance to the Senior Executive
Assistant/Executive Officer, Deputies and occasional assistance to other
legislation editing and access teams.

Key Accountabilities

• Manage, guide and directly contribute to the work of the Paralegal and Executive Support Team, ensuring appropriate prioritisation, distribution of workload, learning and development, and timely delivery of work to the standard required.
• Activities of the team include, though are not necessarily limited to:
  • assisting the Parliamentary Counsel with the preparation of draft Bills and other legislative instruments, minimising disruptions where possible,
  • editorial checking and proofreading and providing production assistance to the Parliamentary Counsel
  • preparation of legislative material and documents for Parliament, including Explanatory Notes and Notices of Motion for Bills to be introduced into Parliament and Cabinet materials as directed by the Parliamentary Counsel
  • undertaking legal research projects as directed by the Parliamentary Counsel
  • maintaining critical records and systems including those associated with the tracking of drafting workflows, and liaising as required with drafting staff, instructing staff and others
  • providing direct support and assistance to the Parliamentary Counsel and Deputies
• Oversees large projects (e.g., SLR and Staged Repeal), and support the team to act as the PCC Secretariat
• Support and manage direct reports, ensuring they have the capabilities and knowledge required to deliver their key accountabilities.
• Work with drafters leading particular legislative programs to offer support, as required.
• Deliver drafting projects under the supervision of senior drafters, Deputies or the Parliamentary Counsel, as required.

Key challenges

•  Appropriately prioritising/distributing workload and ensuring the timely delivery of work to the standard required given a high-volume environment with occasionally shifting priorities and deadlines, and multiple stakeholders.
• Ensuring the timely delivery of quality work given the high level of attention to detail and high-quality written and verbal communication skills required.

How to apply

To start your journey in becoming our new Senior Paralegal, you will need to create an account on I Work for NSW and apply online. Your application should include:

• A resume which clearly details your relevant skills and experience (maximum 5 pages).
• A cover letter addressing how you meet the requirements of the role (maximum 2 pages), including your response to the two targeted questions:
  1. One of the responsibilities of this role includes reviewing and quality checking the team's work. Describe how you would approach this task to ensure consistency, accuracy and development of team's skills.
  2. The Senior Paralegal is often required to support the Parliamentary Counsel by identifying process improvements across drafting workflows and systems. Describe a time when you identified a problem in a process or system and implemented a solution. How did you evaluate its success?

Applicants should read the role description and consider the key accountabilities, focus capabilities and essential requirements when preparing their resume and cover letter.

To help us figure out if you are the right person for the role, the selection process will include an interview and relevant assessments. We expect it will take up to 6-8 weeks before an outcome is communicated.

Candidates can request a reasonable adjustment through each step of the recruitment process. If you require a reasonable adjustment to the recruitment process, please let us know in your application. If you require any alternative formats to participate in the process, or have any questions regarding this role, please contact our HR Representative, Vibha Gupta via email on 
A talent pool may be created from this recruitment process. Once added to the talent pool, you may be contacted about similar ongoing and temporary roles that may become available over the next 18 months.

Our commitment to diversity and flexibility
PCO is committed to ensuring our agency reflects the NSW community it serves. Diverse workforces are more innovative and productive and increase the delivery of high-quality services. We welcome and encourage applications from diverse community groups including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, LGBTQIA+, people with disability, women and other diversity groups.