Air Force seeks retrainees to become paralegals

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Benjamin Raughton
  • 2nd Bomb Wing Public Affairs
BARKSDALE AIR FORCE BASE, La. --  A career field where Airmen can become experts on legal information and judicial processes is seeking retrainees.

Paralegals do not practice law, but work alongside attorneys to draft wills, powers of attorney, perform notary services, process legal reviews and more.

"If Barksdale didn't have paralegals, we wouldn't have the good order and discipline that we do now," said Airman 1st Class Sergio Espinoza, 2nd Bomb Wing military justice paralegal. "The most rewarding thing is knowing that we can help with the mission and keep everyone on track and performing well."

Keeping everyone legally in line involves more than just providing legal services to commanders.

"We serve active-duty, their dependents and retirees," said Senior Master Sgt. Bryan Cawvey, 2nd Bomb Wing law office superintendent. "We also support guard and reserve when they're on orders and when Airmen are in the process of preparing for deployment."

Paralegals also provide services to base civilians and contractors tasked to deploy, he said.

Airmen can become paralegals after basic military training and completing a six-week technical school. They also have the option to retrain into the career field during their retraining availability window. Those who are interested will meet with the law office superintendent.

"I recruit paralegals for the Air Force," said Cawvey. "The Air Force sets the quota of how many paralegals we need in the career field this year, and then it's our job as superintendents to find people who are interested in the career field."

To be eligible for a career as a paralegal, Airmen must obtain a general score no less than a 51 on the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery, be able to type 25 words per minute and have no disciplinary action such as an unfavorable information file or control roster.

Airmen who are selected for training as a paralegal will begin their six-week technical training at Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala. The training those Airmen receive will enable them to perform important tasks in the Air Force legal system.

"If someone is looking for a challenging career field where everything you do is going to make a difference in somebody's life every day, then this is the career field you want to look into," Cawvey said. "We affect people's lives every day."
Airmen considering a career path as a paralegal can contact Cawvey at 456-5311.