Summary 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. This position is also being announced to applicants eligible to apply through Merit Staffing procedures under 25-WAW-12751146-MS. Responsibilities If selected, you will serve as a Legal Administrative Specialist (Litigation Support) providing technical and analytical assistance to support the litigation needs of the United States Attorney's Office (USAO) for the Western District of Washington. At the full performance level, typical work assignments will include: Performing a variety of litigation support duties necessary to process complex and/or voluminous electronically stored information (e.g. PDF files and portfolios, Word documents, Excel spreadsheets, email files, non-standard propriety files, audio and video files, etc.) and preparing it for review or production by the case team; Developing a plan for copying, storing, and reviewing complex and/or voluminous electronic files consistent with technical requirements, including by proposing software tools, review criteria (e.g., search terms, date ranges, etc.), and organizational strategies (e.g., fielded data, tagging templates); Generating complex electronic discovery productions (e.g., Bates-numbered images with redactions and searchable text or industry standard load files) that comply with production specifications and deadlines, including productions from document review databases or productions from specified criteria; Performing quality control on electronic discovery productions and diagnosing and resolving any identified issues; Regularly communicating with case team members (e.g., attorneys, investigators, legal support staff) about the status of litigation support projects (e.g., processing, production preparation, etc.) and the time and resources needed to complete projects; Working with case team members to understand case presentation needs and suggesting methods or software applications for presenting evidence or producing demonstrative exhibits; and Providing training and support to case teams on the operation of software or equipment to present exhibits during civil or criminal legal proceedings. Responsibilities will increase and assignments will become more complex as your training and experience progress. Requirements Conditions of Employment Qualifications GS-7: 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: at least one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-5 level in Federal service. Examples of specialized experience include assisting with organizing basic case information, preparing discovery productions, including scanning and coding documents and creating CDs; assisting attorneys in preparing for court such as preparing basic demonstrative exhibits; assisting in the use of technology to organize digital evidence; and preparing, drafting, and editing a variety of routine legal and trial-related documents. Education: Successful completion of one (1) full year of progressively higher-level graduate education (18 semester hours or the number of units your school uses to describe one graduate year of academic study) in related field (e.g., Criminal Justice, Computer Science, Law, Information Technology) leading to a master's degree OR bachelor's degree with superior academic achievement. Superior academic achievement is as follows: standing in the upper third of your graduating class or major subdivision OR membership in one of the national scholastic honor Societies; OR Grade Point Average. Applicants must have a grade point average of: (a) 3.0 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B" or better) as recorded on their official transcript, or as computed based on 4 years of education, or as computed based on courses completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum; or (b) 3.5 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B+" or better) based on the average of the required courses completed in the major field or the required courses in the major field completed during the final 2 years of the curriculum. 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, a combination of specialized experience and graduate-level education as described above, which when combined equal 100% of the requirements (only graduate education in excess of the first full year may be used in this calculation). GS-9: 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: at least one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-7 level in Federal service. Examples of specialized experience include performing routine litigation support tasks necessary to process common electronically stored information and preparing it for review; scanning hard copy documents and making appropriate determinations about equipment, resolution, and format; uploading various files into document review databases; using basic document review databases to perform functions such as coding, tagging, basic searching, sorting, and filtering; performing quality control on loaded files; and creating electronic versions of exhibits for court filings, depositions, hearings, or trials. Education: One of the following @types of education in a related field (e.g., Criminal Justice, Computer Science, Law, Information Technology): a master's degree or equivalent graduate degree (such as an LL.B. or J.D., if related); 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. 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 meet at least ONE of the following conditions, as defined below: Specialized Experience, Education, OR a combination of Education and Experience. Specialized experience: at least one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-9 level in Federal service. Examples of specialized experience include working in a legal environment providing technical advice to litigation teams on legal automation requirements and system capabilities; providing advice, customer support services, and project management services in connection with electronic discovery and evidence, litigation support projects, and litigation technology software applications; assisting attorneys with trial preparation and presentation, including making recommendations on how to proceed with trial presentations; using automated litigation support technology to organize voluminous case information for retrieval, prepare computerized trial presentations, and index digital evidence; diagnosing and resolving litigation support computer system problems; and providing training to case team members relating to their use of litigation technology applications. Education: One of the following @types of education in a related field (e.g., Criminal Justice, Computer Science, Law, Information Technology): a 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. 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. Combining Education and Experience: 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). 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/. Education All academic degrees and coursework must be completed at a college or university that has obtained accreditation or pre-accreditation status from an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For a list of schools that meet this criteria, see http://www.ed.gov OR Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the above education requirements if you can show that the foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States. It is your responsibility to timely provide such evidence by submitting proof of creditability of education as evaluated by a credentialing agency with your application materials. More information may be found at http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html. All documentation must be in English or include an English translation. Additional Information Recruitment incentives may be authorized if this position is determined to be difficult to fill, if supported by the skills of the selected candidate, and subject to the availability of funds. Payment of relocation expenses will not be authorized. A relocation incentive may be considered as appropriate based on qualifications. The Department of Justice 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. 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. See www.sss.gov. Reasonable Accommodation Statement: Federal Agencies must provide reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities, where appropriate. Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process should contact the hiring agency directly. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis. EEO Statement: The United States government does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service or other non-merit factor. Political Appointees (Current or Former): The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C or Non-Career SES employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the HR Office. Failure to disclose this information could result in disciplinary action including removal from Federal Service.
