Supervisory Paralegal Specialist

Summary

This position is located in the Environmental Enforcement Section, Energy and Natural Resources Division. The Section is responsible for bringing civil judicial actions under federal laws enacted to protect public health and the environment from pollution, such as the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, and the Superfund law. The Supervisory Paralegal manages and trains Paralegal Specialists, coordinates with attorneys on assignments, and advises Section managers on related issues.

Duties

As a Supervisory Paralegal Specialist, duties include, but are not limited to, the following: Supervising the work of Section legal assistants and paralegals assigned to support trial attorneys. Providing advice and assistance to paralegal staff on assigned work and on how to prioritize work and balance deadlines. Providing legal and technical support on cases by using document management tools to manage document collection, review, and production and to create presentations for hearings, trials, or other litigation work. Serving as a paralegal on assigned cases, and assisting with paralegal responsibilities and oversight on complex litigation matters. Identifying training needs of paralegals and working with the paralegal and managers to address such needs. Serving as a liaison between paralegals, attorneys, and managers.

Qualifications

To qualify for GS-12: You must have at least one year of specialized experience at, or equivalent to, the GS-11 Federal grade level or above providing a variety of analytical paralegal and legal support work that demonstrates a practical knowledge of law; the litigation process; and applicable rules, regulations, policies, and procedures. Examples of specialized experience may include the following: verifying the accuracy and format of legal citations in briefs and other documents; conducting legal research using on-line legal databases such as Westlaw and Lexis; drafting, proof-reading, and editing legal documents; creating and maintaining large databases of case-related materials; conducting privilege reviews; summarizing trial and deposition transcripts; and providing support at trials and other court proceedings. Experience in complex litigation, including discovery, motion practice and trial, is highly desirable. Experience supervising paralegals or employees is also desirable, but not required. 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 skill and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Time in Grade: Federal employees must meet time-in-grade requirements (one year at the next lower grade) by the closing date of announcement. 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. Only experience and education obtained by the closing date of this announcement will be considered. To preview questions, please click here: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13064559.

Education

There is no substitution of education for experience at this grade level.

How You Will Be Evaluated

Your qualifications will be reviewed based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents) and the responses you provide on the application questionnaire. When addressing the specialized experience qualification statement, you must present evidence of that experience in your resume. If the specialized experience statement is merely repeated in your resume, you may be deemed ineligible. If you meet the minimum qualifications, your application will then be compared to your responses to the online assessment questionnaire(s) that measure important competencies required to perform the job. You will be assessed on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics): Accountability Customer Service Decisiveness Flexibility Interpersonal Skills Performance & Awards Problem Solving Resilience If you are found to be among the top candidates based on your assessment responses, you will be referred to the hiring manager for employment consideration *Note: Additional candidates may be selected if more positions become available within 90 days after the HR office issues the selection certificate. 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 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, based on your adjudication decision. 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: https://help.usastaffing.gov/Apply/index.php?title=Reasonable_Accommodations_for_USA_Hire

Required Documents

Resume (not to exceed two pages) demonstrating relevant experience and dates the experience was obtained. Cover letter (optional) SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action which shows career or career-conditional tenure in the competitive service or Federal reinstatement eligibility, such as an appointment action, change in tenure, within-grade increase, or promotion, whichever is most recent. An Award or General Pay Adjustment action will not suffice. Performance appraisal issued within the last 12 months. Your online responses to the Occupational Questionnaire. CTAP documentation, if applicable. Your resume MUST include full employment information such as periods of employment with month/year started and ended, title of position(s), PT hours worked, and description of duties. If Federal employment, you must include the grade of the position(s) on your resume. To prove eligibility for the special CTAP selection priority, you must submit a copy of a Reduction-in-Force notice of impending separation and your latest performance appraisal showing a rating of at least fully successful. Additional information about CTAP eligibility can be found at http://www.opm.gov/ctap/index.asp. Do not include the following types of information in your profile or resume: Classified or government sensitive information Social Security Number (SSN) Photos of yourself Personal information, such as age, gender, religious affiliation, etc. Encrypted and digitally signed documents

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 the online assessment and submission of the required documentation specified in the Required Documents section. 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. Click the Submit Application button prior to 11:59 PM (ET) on the announcement closing date. After submitting an online application, you will be notified whether or not you are required to take additional online assessments through the USA Hire Competency Based Assessment system. This message will be delivered to you and via email notification. The email may be routed to your "Spam" or "Junk" folder. 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 on the Additional Application Information page that can be located in the application record in your USAJOBS account. To update your application, including supporting documentation, at any time during the announcement open period, return to your USAJOBS account (https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login). There you will find a record of your application, the application status, and an option to Update Application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed. To verify the status of your application both during and after the announcement open period, log into your USAJOBS account: https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login. All of your applications will appear on the Welcome page. The application record in your USAJOBS account provides an Additional Application Information page that provides information regarding the documentation you submitted and any correspondence we have sent related to this application, including the invitation to take the USA Hire assessment. The Application Status will appear along with the date your application was last updated.

What to Expect Next

Based on your application and your responses to the application questionnaire, you may be presented with instructions on how to access the USA Hire system to complete the online assessments. The online assessments must be completed within 48 hours following the close of this announcement. You will have the opportunity to request a testing accommodation for the assessment should you have a disability covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Your assessment results will be kept on record for one year and used toward future positions for which you might apply that require the same assessments. To be considered for the position, you must meet all qualification requirements. Based on your qualifications and assessment scores, you will be notified of your rating and/or referral to the hiring official. We will notify you of the outcome after each step of the recruitment process has been completed. After making a tentative job offer, we will conduct a suitability/security background investigation. We expect to make a final job offer within 80 days after the closing date of the announcement.

Additional Information

Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP): The Career Transition Assistance Program provides eligible surplus and displaced competitive service employees within ENRD with selection priority over other internal candidates for competitive service vacancies. If you have received written notification of your eligibility for consideration under CTAP, you may receive special priority consideration for this position, if this vacancy is within your CTAP 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. 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. Additional information is found at: www.sss.gov. Benefits: DOJ 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. Please review the link below for an overview of the benefits currently offered to Federal employees.

To qualify for GS-12: You must have at least one year of specialized experience at, or equivalent to, the GS-11 Federal grade level or above providing a variety of analytical paralegal and legal support work that demonstrates a practical knowledge of law; the litigation process; and applicable rules, regulations, policies, and procedures. Examples of specialized experience may include the following: verifying the accuracy and format of legal citations in briefs and other documents; conducting legal research using on-line legal databases such as Westlaw and Lexis; drafting, proof-reading, and editing legal documents; creating and maintaining large databases of case-related materials; conducting privilege reviews; summarizing trial and deposition transcripts; and providing support at trials and other court proceedings. Experience in complex litigation, including discovery, motion practice and trial, is highly desirable. Experience supervising paralegals or employees is also desirable, but not required. 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 skill and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Time in Grade: Federal employees must meet time-in-grade requirements (one year at the next lower grade) by the closing date of announcement. 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. Only experience and education obtained by the closing date of this announcement will be considered. To preview questions, please click here: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13064559.