Paralegal Specialist

Summary

This position is located in the Civil Rights Division. As a Paralegal Specialist, you will perform legal and factual research and other closely related duties in support of attorneys engaged in civil rights cases and matters.

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Duties

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As the federal agency whose mission is to ensure the fair and impartial administration of justice for all Americans, the Department of Justice is committed to fostering an inclusive work environment. To build and retain a workforce that reflects the multitude of experiences and perspectives of the American people, we welcome applicants from the many communities, races, ethnicities, backgrounds, abilities, religions, and cultures of the United States who share our commitment to public service.

The incumbent will serve as a Paralegal Specialist. Duties include, but are not limited to:

• Update and supplement tracking system ensuring that the established file system remains logically organized with files and documents that are easily accessible and able to be quickly retrieved.
• Prepare correspondence, memoranda, justification, and other written documentation involved in providing information about the researched aspects of the cases or issues.
• Prepare interview notes, memoranda, and reports for review by attorneys summarizing the allegations, facts, results of investigations and recommended disposition of cases.
• Prepare legal documents including declarations, memoranda, interview summaries, factual summaries, subpoenas, discovery documents and responses and legal correspondence.
• Proofread, cite-check, finalize, and file legal documents such as briefs and other papers of substance with the relevant court consistent with governing practices and style conventions, court-specific rules, and Department practice.
• Conduct preliminary analysis of the legal sufficiency of information contained in declarations, complaints, FOIA/Privacy Act requests, and similar documents.
• Review and analyze investigative reports and evidence to determine if a particular case is supported by sufficient evidence to provide a basis for enforcement.
• Independently conduct or assist attorneys in conducting interviews with investigative sources and prospective witnesses to gather information.
• Efficiently use document management tools to assist with document review and production, as well as court presentation.
• Effectively handle all arrangements for depositions, including securing court reporting services and office space, and drafting subpoenas and obtaining process servers.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• Must be a U.S. Citizen
• Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered or exempt from Selective Service (see
• DOJ uses E-Verify, an internet-based system, to confirm the eligibility of all newly hired employees to work in the United States. Learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, by visiting
• You may be required to complete a pre-employment security screening to initiate your background investigation, which includes a drug screening. Continued employment is contingent upon successful completion and adjudication of your investigation.
• This is a term appointment. The initial term appointment will not exceed (NTE) 13 months. The initial term appointment may be extended up to the 4-year limit.
• You may be required to successfully complete a one-year probationary period.
• You must meet all qualification requirements upon the closing date of this announcement.
• Resume cannot exceed two (2) pages.

Qualifications

To be eligible at the GS-09 level, you must meet at least ONE of the following conditions, as defined below:

Specialized Experience: For the GS-09, you must have one (1) year of specialized experience at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to the GS-07 grade level in the Federal service, public or other private sectors that is directly related to the position as listed above and which has equipped the candidate with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. Specialized experience for this position includes ALL of the following:

• Take notes during attorney proffers and witness interviews and prepare memoranda from those notes: AND
• Perform legal research to supply information for inclusion in memoranda, briefs, and similar documents.

OR

Education: Successful completion of a Master's or equivalent graduate degree, or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree, or LL.B. or J.D., if related.

OR

Combination of Education and Experience: Combinations of successfully completed graduate education and experience may be used to meet total qualification requirements. In order to qualify based on a combination, graduate education must be in excess of one full year.

To be eligible at the GS-11 level, you must meet at least ONE of the following conditions, as defined below:

Specialized Experience: For the GS-11, you must have one (1) year of specialized experience at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to the GS-09 grade level in the Federal service, public or other private sectors that is directly related to the position as listed above and which has equipped the candidate with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. Specialized experience for this position includes ALL of the following:

• Take notes during attorney proffers and witness interviews and prepare memoranda from those notes; AND
• Perform legal research to supply information for inclusion in memoranda, briefs, and similar documents; AND
• Provide guidance and advice to junior paralegals and/or distribute assignments to junior paralegals on behalf of attorneys.

OR

Education: Successful completion of a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree, or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree, or LL.M., if related.

OR

Combination of Education and Experience: Combination of successfully completed graduate education and experience may be used to meet total qualification requirements. In order to qualify based on a combination, graduate education must be in excess of two full years.

In order to be rated as qualified for this position, we must be able to determine that you meet the specialized experience requirement - please be sure to include this information in your resume. To be creditable, this experience must have been equivalent in difficulty and complexity to the next lower grade of the position to be filled. Specialized experience is defined as experience that has equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional, philanthropic, religious, spiritual, community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

All qualifications and education requirements (if applicable) must be met by the closing date of this announcement and clearly documented in your resume.

YOUR RESUME MUST support your responses to the online questionnaire and provide specific details as to how your experience meets the specialized experience as described in the vacancy announcement. If you are using experience to meet all or part of the qualification requirements, please ensure that your resume includes the month and year that you began and ended each position held or that position will not be credited toward meeting the specialized experience requirement. Part-time employment will be prorated in crediting experience. Failure to provide details will result in an ineligible rating. Your latest resume submitted for this vacancy announcement will be used to determine qualifications and supersedes previous submissions.

During the eligibility review process, the Human Resources Specialist will only review the latest document uploaded to USA Jobs. Therefore, if you submit duplicate documents, ensure the last version uploaded to USA Jobs is the necessary document required to meet the criteria/qualifications described in this job announcement.

Note : Applicants are required to have completed their degree prior to submitting an application.

Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP)- The ICTAP provides eligible displaced Federal competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. If your agency has notified you in writing that you are a displaced employee eligible for ICTAP consideration, you may receive selection priority if: 1) this vacancy is within your ICTAP eligibility; 2) you apply under the instructions in the announcement; and 3) you are found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified, you must satisfy all qualification requirements for the vacant position and receive a score of 85 or better on established ranking criteria. You must provide proof of eligibility to receive selection priority. Such proof may include a copy of your written notification of ICTAP eligibility or a copy of your separation personnel action form. Additional information about ICTAP eligibility is at:

Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP)- The CTAP provides eligible surplus and displaced competitive service employees in the Department of Justice with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. If your Department of Justice component has notified you in writing that you are a surplus or displaced employee eligible for CTAP consideration, you may receive selection priority if: 1) this vacancy is within your CTAP eligibility, 2) you apply under the instructions in this announcement, and 3) you are found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well qualified, you must satisfy all qualification requirements for the vacant position and receive a score of 85 or better on established ranking criteria. You must provide a copy of your written notification of CTAP eligibility with your application. Additional information about CTAP eligibility is at

Education

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements, please see the statements below .

You will need to submit an official transcript, unofficial transcript, or a list including courses, grades earned, completion dates, and quarter and/or semester hours earned, degree earned and confer dates. Failure to provide this documentation will result in objection to your qualifications, and removal from consideration. You will be required to submit your official college transcript if you are selected.

All academic degrees and coursework must be completed at a college or university that has obtained accreditation or pre-accreditation status from an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Click here to check accreditation.

Foreign Education: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show that the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For more information about this requirement, please visit the U.S. Department of Education website for Foreign Education Evaluation.

All documentation must be in English or include an English translation.

Additional information

EEO Statement : The United States government does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service or other non-merit factor.

FAIR CHANCE TO COMPETE FOR JOBS : The Fair Chance Act prohibits Federal agencies from requesting an applicant's criminal history information before the agency makes a conditional offer of employment. If you believe a DOJ employee has violated your rights under the Fair Chance Act, you may submit a written complaint within 30 days of the date of the alleged non-compliance directly with the DOJ component hiring office listed in the job opportunity announcement. For more information visit USAJOBS Help Center - What are criminal history inquiries?

SCHEDULE A, PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES : Learn more at USAJOBS - Individuals with Disabilities. DOJ welcomes and encourages applicants from persons with disabilities and is firmly committed to satisfying its affirmative obligations under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to ensure that persons with disabilities have every opportunity to be hired and advance on the basis of merit. The Civil Rights Division also encourages eligible Schedule A applicants to submit their resumes directly to Diane Turner by email to View email address on click.appcast.io.

Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests : If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended and Americans with Disabilities Act 1990 as amended, that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments here:

*Note: This announcement may be used to fill other Paralegal Specialist (GS-950-7) positions within the Division if identical vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.