Paralegal Specialist

Summary

See below for important information regarding this job.

Duties

If selected at the GS-09 level, duties will be performed at a developmental capacity. Evaluate, develop, and support complex cases across procurement fraud, federal contracts, labor/employment, ethics, environmental, and installation law. Research complex statutes and regulations to draft formal legal memoranda, litigation reports, affidavits, and advisory opinions on unique, non-precedent-setting issues. Act as a non-bar representative in meetings and negotiations, coordinating closely with investigators, auditors, contractors, and federal officials to develop legal strategies. Independently review laboratory test reports and technical supply deficiencies to author performance-based suspension and debarment recommendations. Analyze and process administrative and legislative claims, including Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), Privacy Act, and Permanent Change of Station (PCS) travel claims. Provide direct support to agency attorneys during court and administrative hearings while managing essential administrative team operations.

Qualifications

To qualify for a Paralegal Specialist, your resume and supporting documentation must support: A. Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience that equipped you with the particular competencies to successfully perform the duties of the position and is directly in or related to this position. To qualify at the GS-09 level, applicants must possess one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 level or equivalent under other pay systems in the Federal service, military, or private sector. To qualify at the GS-11 level, applicants must possess one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 level or equivalent under other pay systems in the Federal service, military, or private sector. Applicants must meet eligibility requirements including time-in-grade (General Schedule (GS) positions only), time-after-competitive appointment, minimum qualifications, and any other regulatory requirements by the cut-off/closing date of the announcement. Creditable specialized experience includes: GS-09: Support the development, investigation, and processing of diverse civil, administrative, and labor law cases in a developmental capacity, helping prepare evidence, exhibits, and documentation for hearings. Conduct legal research using databases and statutes to analyze policy, evaluate administrative claims, and draft clear, structured memoranda, reports, and correspondence on varied legal issues. Serve as a point of contact for internal and external stakeholders, including investigators, officials, and contractors, to gather information, coordinate legal administrative tasks, and support program integrity efforts. GS-11: Lead the end-to-end investigation, preparation, and strategic development of complex civil, administrative, and regulatory cases; independently constructs authoritative evidentiary files, exhibits, and critical documentation to secure favorable outcomes. Perform sophisticated statutory and policy research across multi-jurisdictional databases to evaluate complex claims and author definitive legal memoranda, risk reports, and executive correspondence that shape organizational strategy. Serve as the primary, trusted point of contact for key internal and external stakeholders, including investigators, executives, and external partners to negotiate information sharing, manage critical communications, and safeguard organizational compliance. B. Education Substitution: Such education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work. Education must be from a college or university accredited by an organization approved by the U.S. Department of Education. See http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/Search.aspx. If using education to meet basic qualifications, YOU MUST SUBMIT A TRANSCRIPT as supplemental documentation. To qualify based on education in lieu of specialized experience, you must possess: GS-09: 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. GS-11: 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. C. Combination: Combinations of successfully completed post-high school education and experience may be used to meet total qualification requirements for grade levels GS-09 and GS-11 and may be computed by first determining the applicant's total qualifying experience as a percentage of the experience required for the grade level; then determining the applicant's education as a percentage of the education required for the grade level; and then adding the two percentages. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent to qualify an applicant for that grade level. Only graduate education in excess of the amount required for the next lower grade level may be used to qualify applicants for positions at grade GS-09 and GS-11.

Education

Are you using your education to qualify? You MUST provide transcripts or other documentation to support your educational claims. Unless otherwise stated: Unofficial transcripts are acceptable at time of application. GRADUATE EDUCATION: One academic year of graduate education is considered to be the number of credits hours that your graduate school has determined to represent one academic year of full-time study. Such study may have been performed on a full-time or part-time basis. If you cannot obtain your graduate school's definition of one year of graduate study, 18 semester hours (or 27 quarter hours) should be considered as satisfying the requirement for one year of full-time graduate study. 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.

How You Will Be Evaluated

The OPM assessments for this job will measure the following Competencies: Attention to Detail Customer Service Flexibility Integrity/Honesty Interpersonal Skills Learning Self-Management Stress Tolerance Teamwork Decision Making Reading Comprehension Reasoning Once the application process is complete, a review of your resume and supporting documentation may be completed and compared against your responses to the assessment questionnaire to determine if you are qualified for this job. The rating you receive is based on your responses to the assessment questionnaire and USA Hire assessments. The score is a measure of the degree to which your background matches the competencies required for this position. If your resume and/or supporting documentation is reviewed and a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and or experience, you may lose consideration for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating.

Required Documents

To apply for this position you must provide a complete Application Package. Each Application Package MUST include: Your Resume: IMPORTANT UPDATE: Your resume must not exceed two (2) pages. If your resume exceeds the two-page limit, you will be removed from consideration for this announcement. The resume and required supporting documentation should provide the minimum qualifications and relevant experience for the announced position. Must include the work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment, and duties performed. If multiple resumes are submitted by an applicant, only the last resume submitted will be reviewed for qualifications and referred for selection consideration, if eligible. The resume must not be more than 5MB and should be saved and uploaded as a PDF to maintain formatting and number of pages. We also accept GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, TXT, PDF, ODT or Word (DOC or DOCX). We do not accept PDF portfolio files. Page margins should be 0.5 inches, and font styles must be legible. Consider using 14-point size font for titles and 10-point for the main text. We recommend using a font like Lato, if available. Other widely available options are Calibri, Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, Open San Source Sans Pro, Roboto or Noro Sans. Applicable documents to support the eligibility(s) for which you are applying. Please review the following link for a listing of the additional documents you will need to provide: Supporting Documents. 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. Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP): If you are an eligible ICTAP applicant you may apply for special selection over other candidates for this position. To be well-qualified and exercise selection priority for this vacancy, displaced Federal employees must be rated at a score of 85 or higher for this position. ICTAP eligibles must submit one of the following as proof of eligibility for the special selection priority: a separation notice; a "Notice of Personnel Action" (SF-50) documenting separation; an agency certification that you cannot be placed after injury compensation has been terminated; an OPM notification that your disability annuity has been terminated; OR a Military Department or National Guard Bureau notification that you are retired under 5 U.S.C. 8337(h) or 8456. Priority Placement Program (PPP) DoD Military Spouse Preference (MSP): In order to receive this preference, you must choose to apply using the "Priority Placement Program, DoD Military Spouse Preference (MSP)" eligibility. If you are claiming MSP and are determined to be among the Best Qualified for the position, you may be referred to the hiring manager as a priority applicant. To be eligible as a MSP, you must submit the following supporting documents with your application package: Spouse's Permanent Change of Station (PCS) orders; Marriage Certificate or License; PPP Self Certification Checklist; Veterans' Preference documentation (e.g., DD-214, VA Letter, Statement of Service, if applicable); Transcripts (if applicable). These documents must provide acceptable information to verify: Residency within the commuting area of your sponsor's permanent duty station (PDS); proof of marriage to the active duty sponsor; proof of military member's active duty status; and other documentation required by the vacancy announcement to which you are applying. NOTE: Previous federal employees must also submit the following additional documentation: SF-50s (e.g., LWOP, highest grade held, overseas appointments, etc.), SF-75 information, and documentation of performance rating of record (dated within the last 12 months). Selected PPP MSP applicants will need to certify they have not accepted nor declined another offer of permanent, Federal employment (to include NAF and the military exchange services) since relocating to the military sponsor's current duty station. Priority Placement Program (PPP) DoD Retained Grade Preference (RGP): In order to receive this preference, you must choose to apply using the "Priority Placement Program, DoD Retained Grade Preference (RGP)" eligibility. If you are claiming RGP and are determined to be Well Qualified (score of 85 or above) for the position, you will be referred to the hiring manager as a priority applicant. Information and required documentation for claiming RGP may be found at the General Applicant Information and Definitions link below. To be eligible as a RGP, you must submit the following supporting documents with your application package: a signed Retained Grade PPP Self-Certification Checklist (DD3145-1 (whs.mil)); a copy of your Notification of Personnel Action (SF-50) effecting the placement in retained grade status; or a copy of the notification letter you received regarding the RIF or classification downgrade.

How to Apply

Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application. To apply for this position, you must complete the initial online application, to include submission of the required documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on the closing date of the announcement to receive consideration. The application process is as follows: To begin the application process, click the Apply Online button. Answer the questions presented in the application and attach all necessary supporting documentation. NOTE: Resumes up to a total of two pages will be accepted. Your resume must not exceed two (2) pages. If your resume exceeds the two-page limit, you will be removed from consideration for this announcement. Click the Submit Application button prior to 11:59 PM (ET) on 10/16/2026. After submitting your online application, you will be notified whether or not you are required to take any additional online assessments through the USA Hire Competency Based Assessment system. This message will be delivered to you both on screen and via email notification. The email may be routed to your "Spam" or "Junk" folder. If you do not receive the email invitation to the assessment and you meet the minimum qualifications for the position, you should contact https://apply.usastaffing.gov/HelpTicket to request the email be re-sent. Requests to re-send invitations to the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments must be received by https://apply.usastaffing.gov/HelpTicket BEFORE the close of the JOA. If you are asked to take the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be presented with a unique URL to access the USA Hire system. Access to USA Hire is granted through your USAJOBS login credentials. Be sure to review all instructions prior to beginning your USA Hire Assessments. Click here for Computer System Requirements. NOTE: Set aside at least 3 hours to take these assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments and continue at a later time, you can re-use the URL sent to you via email and also found in your USAJOBS account under the "Track my application" link for the corresponding application. You may update your application documents and some questions related to your personal information at any time during the announcement open period. However, you will not be able to make changes to questions related to assessing the minimum q...

To qualify for a Paralegal Specialist, your resume and supporting documentation must support: A. Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience that equipped you with the particular competencies to successfully perform the duties of the position and is directly in or related to this position. To qualify at the GS-09 level, applicants must possess one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 level or equivalent under other pay systems in the Federal service, military, or private sector. To qualify at the GS-11 level, applicants must possess one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 level or equivalent under other pay systems in the Federal service, military, or private sector. Applicants must meet eligibility requirements including time-in-grade (General Schedule (GS) positions only), time-after-competitive appointment, minimum qualifications, and any other regulatory requirements by the cut-off/closing date of the announcement. Creditable specialized experience includes: GS-09: Support the development, investigation, and processing of diverse civil, administrative, and labor law cases in a developmental capacity, helping prepare evidence, exhibits, and documentation for hearings. Conduct legal research using databases and statutes to analyze policy, evaluate administrative claims, and draft clear, structured memoranda, reports, and correspondence on varied legal issues. Serve as a point of contact for internal and external stakeholders, including investigators, officials, and contractors, to gather information, coordinate legal administrative tasks, and support program integrity efforts. GS-11: Lead the end-to-end investigation, preparation, and strategic development of complex civil, administrative, and regulatory cases; independently constructs authoritative evidentiary files, exhibits, and critical documentation to secure favorable outcomes. Perform sophisticated statutory and policy research across multi-jurisdictional databases to evaluate complex claims and author definitive legal memoranda, risk reports, and executive correspondence that shape organizational strategy. Serve as the primary, trusted point of contact for key internal and external stakeholders, including investigators, executives, and external partners to negotiate information sharing, manage critical communications, and safeguard organizational compliance. B. Education Substitution: Such education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work. Education must be from a college or university accredited by an organization approved by the U.S. Department of Education. See http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/Search.aspx. If using education to meet basic qualifications, YOU MUST SUBMIT A TRANSCRIPT as supplemental documentation. To qualify based on education in lieu of specialized experience, you must possess: GS-09: 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. GS-11: 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. C. Combination: Combinations of successfully completed post-high school education and experience may be used to meet total qualification requirements for grade levels GS-09 and GS-11 and may be computed by first determining the applicant's total qualifying experience as a percentage of the experience required for the grade level; then determining the applicant's education as a percentage of the education required for the grade level; and then adding the two percentages. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent to qualify an applicant for that grade level. Only graduate education in excess of the amount required for the next lower grade level may be used to qualify applicants for positions at grade GS-09 and GS-11.