Paralegal III
Drug Enforcement Administration
Arlington, VA

I support the Litigation Section at the DEA Headquarters in Arlington, Virginia as a paralegal.

My professional growth has been continuous since I joined FSA in November 2018, when I was hired as a Paralegal II. My responsibilities have been to analyze tort claims, take action to obtain missing information, make recommendations about claim dispositions, compose case summaries and maintain claim data as part of records management. I also perform legal research and handle discovery requests.

I recently applied for a Paralegal III position and earned the promotion. I had confidence to apply for the job because of my hard work and dedication over the past year. I feel I have contributed a great deal to my section and have provided excellent customer service to my customer while representing FSA.

When my caseload surged due to being short staffed temporarily, I jumped right in and chose to swim, not sink. I am very passionate about my work quality. I am also proud of being able to build a good rapport with my section colleagues and several colleagues within the Office of Chief Counsel.

I was glad to be assigned as a mentor to a new contract paralegal. I provided her with tools and information needed to assist her with completing her daily tasks. I shared with her an overview of what our section entails and gave her encouragement to get settled into her role.

My section colleagues think I have a collaborative nature, and my mentor expressed early on that I have been doing a great job. Some claimants whose cases I have handled have thanked me for being nice and professional. My government supervisor observed I have made great strides in how to assess tort claims and make recommendations, asking good questions and showing a positive attitude.