Legal Administrative Specialist (FLU)

Full Job Description

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.

GS-07: To be eligible at the GS-7 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-5 level.

Specialized experience is defined as experience utilizing a variety of automated legal research tools as well as public information databases and other automated resources to research case, or program specific legal matters, and participating in assigned areas of criminal or civil proceedings, e.g., electronic discovery; Searching a variety of databases for deed records, liens, determining lienholders priority, obtaining copies of deeds and/or trust documents; Preparing a variety of substantive legal documents to include various motions, foreclosures, garnishments, and other legal actions to effect necessary post-judgment action regarding debts owed OR Education: Successful completion of one (1) full year of graduate education (18 semester hours or the number of units your school uses to describe one graduate year of academic study) leading to a master's degree in a related field (e.g., Criminal Justice, Law); or LL.B or JD; which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do paralegal specialist work.

OR Superior Academic Achievement: A full four year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree (or expect to complete within 9 months) and meet one of the following superior academic achievement provisions: (1) class standing in the upper one-third of the graduating class; (2) a grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or higher as recorded on the official transcript, or computed based on courses completed during the final two full years of the curriculum; (3) a GPA of 3.5 or higher based on the required courses completed in the major field or the required courses in a major field completed during the final two years of curriculum; or (4) election to a membership in a national scholastic honor society.

OR Combining Education and Experience: Combination 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.

GS-09: 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 that has provided the ability to perform legal support work in the area of debt collection.

Processing debt collection claims referred from client agencies. Ensuring property liens have been filed in the appropriate county and state of the property location.

Researching property records in various counties and states, determining proper ownership of the property OR 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.

OR 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 GS-11: To be eligible at the GS-11 level, you must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-9 grade level in the Federal service as defined below; or three full years of progressively higher level graduate education, LL.M., Ph.D.

or equivalent doctoral degree in a related field (e.g., Information Technology, Criminal Justice, Law); or a combination of both specialized experience and education as explained below.

Specialized Experience One full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-9 level.

Specialized experience is defined as experience working with various title companies confirming how proceeds are to be distributed; serving as contact person for assigned cases and providing information and assistance concerning status or relevant procedural issues; utilizing the proprietary Financial Litigation software program, Consolidated Debt Collection System (CDCS), to track all criminal and civil activity; enforcing criminal judgment and commitment orders and performing all functions to collect amounts imposed as a result of the prosecution of criminal cases.

A combination of experience and graduate level education can be used if, when combined, are equivalent to 100% of the qualification requirement.

Only graduate level education in excess of the first two years can be used in this calculation.

To calculate your percentage of graduate education, first determine the total number of graduate level hours that exceed 36 semester hours (or your school's definition of two years of graduate study), then divide the total number of your excess graduate semester hours by 18 (or your school's definition of one year of graduate study).

To calculate your percentage of specialized experience, divide the total number of months of qualifying experience by 12. Now, add the two percentages together.

The sum of the percentages must equal at least 100%.

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: http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.

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 http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/. Major Duties:

If selected for this position, you wil join a well-respected team responsible for providing a wide range of legal support services to one or more Assistant U.S.

Attorneys (AUSAs) involved in criminal and civil enforcements and collections associated with Financial Litigation.

As a Legal Administrative Specialist in the Civil Division Financial Litigation Unit (FLU), you will: Receive, examine, and evaluate criminal proceeding cases, either pre-collection as referred by the FLU AUSA or post-conviction.

Searches a variety of databases for deed records, liens, determining lienholders priority, obtaining copies of deeds and/or trust documents as appropriate.

Prepares and maintains a variety of court-related documents, e.g., discovery letters, exhibit lists, jury instructions, trial subpoenas, etc.

Prepares a variety of substantive legal documents to include preparation of subpoenas, various motions, garnishments, and other legal actions to effect necessary post-judgment action regarding debts owed to victims and the U.S.

government. Process debt collection claims referred from client agencies.

Monitors the progress of pending cases and initiates action to insure that legal pleadings, forms, reports, correspondence, and other documents are prepared and submitted within established deadlines.

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