Duties

Summary

This position is located in the Indian Resources Section, Environment and Natural Resources Division. The Indian Resources Section's suits include seeking to establish tribal water rights, protecting treaty hunting and fishing rights, remedying trespasses on tribal lands, and establishing reservation boundaries and rights to land. The incumbent will provide paralegal support to the Section's attorneys.

Responsibilities

This vacancy is also being announced concurrently with Ann# ENRD-21-030-MP for employees with Federal status or eligibility and applicants eligible for special appointment authorities. Please review that announcement to determine if you are eligible to apply. Note: Applicants must apply separately for each announcement.

As a Paralegal Specialist, your typical work assignments may include the following:

Performing research in various databases including Westlaw, PACER and Lexis; performing cite checks pursuant to The Bluebook, compiling legislative histories; drafting, proofreading, and editing legal briefs and memoranda prior to filing in court; and ensuring conformance of documents to applicable court rules.
Assisting in litigation involving objections to water rights claims and litigation of affirmative water rights claims on behalf of Indian tribes and allottees. Drafting stipulations and abstracts associated with water right claims.
Researching and identifying expert witnesses and litigative consultants by evaluating and assessing the knowledge, skill and experience of the potential expert to assist in case development and litigation. Drafting statements of work and manage contracts for experts.
Assessing expert reports and preparing submissions for administrative proceedings in state and federal courts.
Communicating with other government agencies, and private institutions to gather information to develop and corroborate findings and testimony.
Coordinating litigation logistics, including travel and use of site facilities with tribes, states, and United States Attorney's Offices and other government agencies. Preparing exhibits, charts, graphs, maps, procedural histories, case statements, and other records for presentation in court. Providing assistance at hearings and/or trials.
Performing document management, including creating and maintaining litigation databases.
Organizing and writing synopses of factual materials; summarizing depositions; preparing, organizing, and indexing administrative records; and preparing non-legal memoranda.
Performing case docketing; maintaining filing deadline calendar and coordinating with attorneys on each court filing; and preparing and filing all documents using PACER (ECF) and/or other relevant court filing systems.

Travel Required

Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position.

Supervisory status

Promotion Potential

Job family (Series)

0950 Paralegal Specialist
Similar jobs
- Paralegals

Requirements
Requirements

Conditions of Employment
- Must be a U.S. citizen or national
- Must complete a Background Investigation to include pre-employment drug testing
- Selective Service Registration is required, as applicable
- Must meet eligibility and qualification requirements by closing date
- You will be required to serve a one year probationary period.
Qualifications

To qualify for GS-9: You must have one year of specialized experience at, or equivalent to, the GS-7 Federal grade level or above utilizing automated legal databases to verify legal citations and statutory references; analyzing and organizing factual, legal, and archival records; providing assistance to attorneys in preparation for hearings and/or trials; and creating and maintaining litigation databases for management of case materials; OR have a Master's or equivalent graduate degree; OR two (2) full academic years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree; OR LL.B. or J.D.; OR a combination of graduate education and experience that meets 100% of the qualification requirements for this position.

To qualify for GS-11: You must have one year of specialized experience at, or equivalent to, the GS-9 Federal grade level or above preparing summaries of depositions and other documents; performing factual, legal, and archival research; compiling and researching a variety of sources to verify, support, or dispute case information; and resolving problems in line with established policies, precedents, directives, and practices; OR Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree; OR three (3) full academic years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree; OR LL.M., if related; OR a combination of education and experience that meets 100% of the qualification requirements for this position.

Note: Experience with water rights adjudication is highly desirable.

Qualifying education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position.

Education

Additional information

Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP/ICTAP):The Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) provides eligible surplus and displaced competitive service employees in DOJ with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies.ICTAP provides eligible displaced Federal competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. If you have received written notification of your eligibility for consideration under CTAP/ICTAP, you may receive special priority consideration for this position, if this vacancy is within your CTAP/ICTAP eligibility and you are well-qualified for the position. To be well qualified, you must satisfy all qualification requirements and score 85 or better on established ranking criteria (for scored examining) OR rate equivalent to the Highly Qualified or better category using established category rating criteria.

Veterans Preference: If you are entitled to or claim veteran preference (VP), you should indicate the type of veteran preference (5 or 10 points) you are claiming on your resume. In order to determine your eligibility, you can find additional information at: http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/veterans-services/vet-guide/

To verify your veteran preference entitlement, submit a copy of the Member Copy 4 of your DD-214; official statement of service from your command if you are currently on active duty; or other official documentation (e.g., documentation of receipt of a campaign badge or expeditionary medal) that shows your military service was performed under honorable conditions. If you are claiming 10-point preference, you must submit Member Copy 4 of your DD-214 in addition to the supporting documentation required and identified on the reserve side of the SF-15, Application for 10 Point Veteran Preference. If you are claiming 10-point DERIVED PREFERENCE as a relative you must submit Member Copy 4 of the veteran's DD-214 and an SF-15 in addition to the supporting documentation required and identified on the reverse side of the SF-15. If you fail to do so, you will receive consideration as a non-veteran.

Reasonable Accommodation 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 reasonable accommodation in your online application. Requests for Reasonable Accommodations for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for Reasonable Accommodation must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for Reasonable Accommodations 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 Reasonable Accommodation, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments here.
How You Will Be Evaluated
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications listed in this vacancy announcement. Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), the responses you provide on the application questionnaire, and the result of the online assessments required for this position.In order to be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and application questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.You will be assessed on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics):
- Attention to Detail
- Customer Service
- Flexibility
- Integrity/Honesty
- Interpersonal Skills
- Learning
- Self-Management
- Stress Tolerance
- Teamwork
- Decision Making
- Reading
- Reasoning
Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on the online assessment may also result in your removal from consideration.

Your application will then be placed in one of three categories: Best Qualified, Highly Qualified, or Qualified. Within these categories, applicants eligible for Veterans' Preference will receive selection priority over non-veteran preference eligibles.

*Note: Additional candidates may be selected if more positions become available in the Division within 90 days after the HR office issues the selection certificate.
Background checks and security clearance

Security clearance

Other

Drug test required

Yes

Position sensitivity and risk

Moderate Risk (MR)

Trust determination process

Credentialing

Required Documents
Required Documents
To apply for this position, you must submit a complete Application Package which includes:
- Your resume showing work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment and duties performed.
- An unofficial GRADUATE transcript if you are using education to qualify. (If you are selected for a position, you must provide an official, sealed transcript before your hiring date can be established to include the date your degree was conferred.)
- Documentation to support your claim for veteran preference and, if applicable.
- CTAP/ICTAP documentation, if applicable.
Your resumé MUST include full employment information such as periods of employment with Month/Year started and ended, title of position(s), and FT or PT. If employment is PT, indicate PT hours worked. If Federal employment, you must include the grade of the position(s). If information is missing or incomplete on your application, you may be rated INELIGIBLE.

If you are requesting a reasonable accommodation to the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, submit documentation to support your request, including the Reasonable Accommodation Request Form found here.

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.

Benefits

Benefits

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.

Review our 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.

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