Paralegal Specialist

Full Job Description

The position is located in the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board, Regional Operations. The office is responsible for adjudicating appeals filed by Federal employees.

The incumbent of this position serves as a Paralegal Specialist responsible for assisting in the processing and adjudication of those appeals, as well as providing administrative support to the office.

Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement including time-in-grade restrictions, specialized experience and/or education, as defined below.

TIME-IN-GRADE: Current federal employees applying for a promotion opportunity must meet time-in-grade (TIG) requirement of 52 weeks of service at the next lower grade level in the normal line of progression for the position being filled.

FOR THE GS-07 LEVEL: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-05 level) that may have been obtained in the private or public (local, county, state, Federal) sectors.

Specialized experience is defined as experience performing paralegal or legal work which include performing the following types of duties: Drafting a variety of legal documents and correspondence.

Reviewing legal documents to extract information related to specific issues. Verifying citations and statutory references contained in legal documents.

Utilizing various computerized database programs to organize extensive documents.

OR EDUCATION SUBSTITUTION FOR THE GS-07: Applicants may qualify based upon the completion of 1 full year of graduate level education or superior academic achievement leading to such a degree in a closely related field as Paralegal Studies or Legal Studies.

Equivalent combinations of education and experience are qualifying for this grade level. TRANSCRIPTS are required if: You are qualifying for the position based on education.

You are qualifying for this position based on a combination of experience and education.

This education must have been successfully completed and obtained from an accredited school, college, or university.

COMBINATION OF EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE AT THE GS-7 GRADE LEVEL: Applicants may have combinations of successfully completed education and specialized experience to meet total qualification requirements.

The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent to qualify an applicant for that grade level.

Applicants may have combinations of successfully completed graduate education and specialized experience to meet total qualification requirements.

The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent to qualify an applicant for that grade level.

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 skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment.

You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Major Duties:

• The duties described are for the full-performance level. At developmental grade levels, assignments will be of more limited scope, performed with less independence and limited complexity.
• The work requires discretion and independent judgment in the application of a specialized body of laws, regulations, agency policies and practices, and judicial/administrative proceedings.
• The duties may include, but are not limited to:
• Ensures accuracy of the electronic case file, researching legal issues, assisting at teleconferences and hearings, and drafting orders.
• Initiates inquiries regarding case processing and responds to appeal inquiries on behalf of the Administrative Judges (AJs) of the office.
• Drafts initial decisions, involving dismissals because of lack of jurisdiction and/or untimely filing, settlements, and other similar appeals.
• Analyzes dockets, performs research using electronic systems to identify legal and procedural issues affecting appeals.
• Responds to oral and written requests from other Board offices, the public, appellants and their representatives, and agency representatives, concerning potential, pending and past appeals and general Board procedures.
• Analyzes and evaluates initial appeals, determining timeliness and jurisdictional issues and hearing requirements.