Legal Administrative Specialist

Summary

For more information on the Department of Justice and the United States Attorneys' Offices, visit

As needed, additional positions may be filled using this announcement.

This position is also being announced to All U.S. Citizens and Nationals under 26-WAW-12987226-DE .

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Duties

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If selected, you will serve as a Case Manager for the Criminal Division of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Washington. You will be responsible for providing a wide range of legal and administrative support services to multiple attorneys in various criminal matters. At the full performance level, duties will include (but are not limited to):

• Serving as the primary support specialist responsible for managing discovery in a variety of criminal matters, to include coordinating with agency partners to collect materials, reviewing incoming materials in a variety of paper and electronic formats to assess responsiveness, organizing voluminous materials for efficient review by the case team, preparing materials for production, and maintaining detailed indices of materials received and produced;
• Drawing upon knowledge of the facts and legal issues in an assigned case and using various functions of document review software tools to organize and review discovery materials;
• Assisting attorneys with hearing and trial preparation, and during live court proceedings, to include maintaining witness lists and schedules, drafting subpoenas, preparing, assembling and managing exhibits, and operating trial presentation software in the courtroom;
• Conducting legal and factual research in legal and non-legal databases in support of criminal cases, and evaluating the need for and drafting a variety of legal documents such as routine motions, proposed orders, non-disclosure orders, extensions of deadlines, and notices that require good working knowledge of legal procedures and specialized terminology;
• Providing administrative support as assigned, to include, independently entering and updating case management software, closing paper and electronic case files, procuring transcripts, expert witness contracts, and other case activities requiring budget approval, scheduling case meetings and witness interviews, calculating and tracking deadlines for legal filings, and electronically filing pleadings with the court via email or PACER; and,
• Proofreading and editing legal briefs, including verifying citations to law and facts against original sources, and conducting further research as needed.

Responsibilities will increase and assignments will become more complex as your training and experience progress.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen or National.
• Initial appointment is conditioned upon a satisfactory pre-employment adjudication. This includes fingerprint, credit and tax checks, and drug testing. Continued employment is subject to a favorable adjudication of a background investigation.
• You must be registered for Selective Service, if applicable.
• If selected, you may be required to complete a one year probationary period.
• Time-in-Grade: Federal employees must meet time-in-grade requirements within 30 days after the closing date of this announcement.
• You must meet all qualification and eligibility requirements within 30 days after the closing date of this announcement and before placement in the position unless a particular timeline has been outlined below for a specific grade level.

Qualifications

GS-7 : To be eligible at the GS-7 level, you must meet at least ONE of the following conditions, as defined below: Specialized Experience, Education, a combination of Education and Experience, OR Superior Academic Achievement.

• Specialized Experience : One full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-5 level in the Federal service or equivalent paid/nonpaid experience in the private or public sector. Specialized Experience is defined as experience working in a legal environment performing routine legal assistance assignments that demonstrates a basic knowledge of litigative procedures. Examples of specialized experiences include:
  • assisting attorneys by preparing routine legal documents (e.g., basic motions, notices, subpoenas, proposed orders, or routine correspondence);
  • assisting attorneys with the discovery process, such as by indexing and organizing discovery items received; transmitting discovery productions, maintaining discovery logs, and tracking productions to opposing counsel;
  • assisting attorneys with hearing and trial preparation such as by compiling, organizing and indexing evidentiary exhibits; compiling witness and exhibit lists; and assembling trial notebooks;
  • assisting attorneys with case development and preparation, such as by performing basic legal or factual research or preparing written summaries of evidentiary materials;
  • assisting attorneys in trial preparation and courtroom presentations, such as by preparing trial exhibits such as charts, graphs and timelines and presenting trial exhibits using trial presentation software in court.
• Education : One full year of graduate level education in a related field (e.g., Criminal Justice, Paralegal Sciences, Law) leading to a Master's degree or higher.
• Combining Education and Experience : Combinations of successfully completed graduate education and specialized experience may be used to meet total qualification requirements.
• Superior Academic Achievement : Possess a Bachelor's Degree or expect to complete the requirements for a Bachelor's degree within the next 9 months in a related field (e.g., Criminal Justice, Paralegal Sciences, Law) AND possess at least one of the following criteria: class standing in the upper third of the graduating class; an overall GPA of 3.0 OR at least a 3.0 based on courses completed during the final two years of my curriculum; a GPA of at least 3.5 based on the average of required courses completed in my major field OR based on the average of required courses completed during the final two years of my curriculum; OR election to membership in a national scholastic honor society.

GS-9 : To be eligible at the GS-9 level, you must meet at least ONE of the following conditions, as defined below: Specialized Experience, Education, OR a combination of Education and Experience.

• Specialized Experience : One full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-7 level in the Federal service or equivalent paid/nonpaid experience in the private or public sector. Specialized Experience is defined as experience, working under supervision and guidance, performing routine litigation support assignments in support of discovery, which require a basic knowledge of processing, review, and/or production of commonly found electronically stored information (ESI). Examples of specialized experiences include:
  
  
  • managing discovery in a variety of formats, such as by receiving, indexing, and organizing incoming discovery materials, and preparing, transmitting, and tracking discovery productions;
  • assisting attorneys with evaluating discovery or evidentiary materials' value or relevance to assigned criminal or civil cases;
  • conducting straightforward factual and legal research in support of assigned criminal or civil cases, utilizing legal databases and public sources;
  • drafting routine legal documents and correspondence, such as requests for extensions, letters transmitting discovery, routine notices, and written summaries of witness statements or documentary evidence;
  • assisting attorneys with hearing or trial preparation, such as by preparing trial subpoenas, assembling evidentiary exhibits, maintaining witness lists and schedules, and preparing demonstrative exhibits;
  • supporting attorneys during court proceedings or other live case presentations, such as by using trial presentation software and equipment to display exhibits or demonstratives, maintaining accounting system of exhibits, and managing witnesses.
• Education : One of the following types of education in a related field (e.g., Criminal Justice, Paralegal Sciences, Law): a Master's or equivalent graduate degree (such as an LL.B. or J.D.); OR 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree. Education at the graduate level must be in an accredited college or university and must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to perform the duties of the position.
• Combining 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 1 full year.

This position is considered a career ladder opportunity, with a full performance level of GS-9. If selected, you may be non-competitively promoted to the next grade level at the discretion of your supervisor and is contingent upon meeting regulatory and legal requirements for promotion, satisfactory performance, availability of higher-level work, and funding availability. Promotion is not guaranteed, and no promise of promotion is implied.

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

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. For a list of schools that meet this criteria, see

OR

Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the above education requirements if you can show that the foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States. It is your responsibility to timely provide such evidence by submitting proof of creditability of education as evaluated by a credentialing agency with your application materials. More information may be found at All documentation must be in English or include an English translation.

Additional information

Recruitment and/or relocation incentives may be authorized if this position is determined to be difficult to fill, if supported by the skills of the selected candidate, and subject to the availability of funds.

A relocation incentive may be considered as appropriate based on qualifications.

Payment of relocation expenses will not be authorized.

The Dept of Justice offers a comprehensive benefits package that includes, in part, paid vacation; sick leave; holidays; telework; life insurance; health benefits; and participation in the Federal Employees Retirement System.

Selective Service: If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, you must certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System, or are exempt from having to do so under the Selective Service Law. See

Reasonable Accommodation Statement: Federal Agencies must provide reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities, where appropriate. Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process should contact the hiring agency directly. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis.

EEO Statement/Policy: 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. More information can be found here:

Political Appointees (Current or Former ): The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C or Non-Career SES employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the HR Office. Failure to disclose this information could result in disciplinary action including removal from Federal Service.

Veterans Employment Opportunity Act (VEOA) -VEOA allows eligible veterans to apply and compete for positions announced under merit promotion procedures when the hiring agency is recruiting from outside its own workforce. To be eligible for a VEOA appointment, a veteran must be honorably separated and either a preference eligible or have substantially completed three (3) or more years of continuous active military service. If you are applying for a Merit Promotion announcement and wish to be considered under VEOA, you must submit a copy of the Member Copy 4 of your DD-214, in addition to any other required documents listed on this announcement.

Special Employment Consideration - Persons with disabilities, veterans with a compensable service-connected disability of 30% or more, certain other veterans, spouses of certain members of the armed forces, and returning Peace Corps volunteers are examples of individuals who are potentially eligible for non-competitive appointments. For further information, click on the links provided below. You must specify in your online questionnaire under what authority you wish to be considered and submit appropriate documentation to verify your eligibility.

Noncompetitive Appointment Authorities Links:

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.

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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.