Paralegal Specialist

For more information on the Department of Justice and the United States Attorneys' Offices, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/.

As needed, additional positions may be filled using this announcement. 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 http://www.ed.gov
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 http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html. All documentation must be in English or include an English translation.
If selected, you will serve as a Paralegal Specialist in the Civil Division of the United States Attorney's Office (USAO) for the Western District of Washington. You will be responsible for providing substantive legal support to Assistant United States Attorney's (AUSAs) in a variety of litigative activities related to defensive litigation, such as immigration, Federal employment, torts, constitutional law and challenges to agency actions. At the full performance level, typical work assignments will include:

• Independently performing extensive and thorough legal research into legislative history, precedent cases, decisions, and opinions that may be applicable to particular legal matters;
• Organizing and preparing research material, determining pertinent information, reconciling conflicting facts, making sound interpretations, and preparing initial summaries;
• Drafting initial and legal administrative briefs, USAO motions, oppositions to defense motions, and correspondence for AUSA review;
• Verifying citations and statutory references against original sources;
• Coordinating production of administrative records and responses to requests for discovery; and
• Examining and evaluating information in case files, following agency standards regarding case litigation worthiness and appropriate titles of law.

Initially, litigation casework will consist predominantly or exclusively of immigration matters. However, as workload and office needs allow, there may be opportunities to work on or transition to non-immigration civil defensive practice areas.

Responsibilities will increase and assignments will become more complex as your training and experience progress. 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. Specialized experience is defined as experience performing paralegal or legal work which demonstrates a basic knowledge of legal research and the ability to interpret legal decisions. Examples of specialized experience may include the following: examining and processing a variety of legal documents; conducting research, analysis and evaluation of data in response to complex or sensitive requests; drafting briefs, pleadings, litigation recommendations, or other legal documents and correspondence; using a variety of electronic or manual filing systems to acquire and store information; document findings and preparing recommendations; searching and reviewing legal references, case files, and other sources for information and data required by attorneys or court personnel.
• Education: One of the following types of education in a related field (e.g., Criminal Justice, 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.