Summary The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is ranked within the top 5 mid-size agencies as a "Best Place to Work" in the Federal government! This Paralegal Specialist vacancy is being used to fill position in the Office of Enforcement and Regulatory Account and the Office of the General Counsel. For more information visit: Office of Enforcement and Regulatory Accounting (OERA) and Office of the General Counsel (OGC). Responsibilities This vacancy will be used to fill multiple positions in the Office of Enforcement and Regulatory Accounting and the Office of the General Counsel. This means you may be contacted by several different hiring managers for different vacancies. You can indicate in the vacancy questionnaire which areas you are interested in applying for. Please see Next Steps section for additional information. As a Paralegal Specialist some of your typical work assignments include: Researching statutory, regulatory, court and/or administrative precedents and other legal opinions or documentary materials. Interpreting and evaluating information collected from various sources. Conducting independent research of legal records, including Westlaw and records maintained by office. Performing detailed legal research and analyses which require discretion and independent sound judgment to identify, select and interpret laws and precedents which may be obscure, vague and conflicting. Assisting new attorneys, law clerks and interns in the orientation process of the section. This includes providing samples of incumbent's work products, particularly drafts of FOIA/CEII letters, Unified Agenda correspondence and submissions, reports and sometimes advising them on highly specialized problems and the importance of documentation requirements. Screening incoming case materials for preparation of responses and recommendations. Organizing the accumulation and compilation of relevant case data and evaluates and analyzes the data to determine if there are deficiencies in the information required to complete the case. Researching, reviewing, and analyzing information and prepares draft or accompanying memoranda for meetings of attorneys concerning cases. Maintaining litigation and case tracking system. Requirements Conditions of Employment Qualifications You must meet the qualification (experience and/or education) requirements by the closing date of this announcement. To view the eligibility and qualification requirements of a/n Paralegal Specialist, GS-0950, please visit: Paralegal Specialist You can qualify based on your education OR one full year of specialized experience at or equivalent to the GS-09 level, OR have a combination education and experience. Specialized experience is defined as: supporting attorneys and other professionals by tracking pending legal issues, identifying problems, and resolving such issues when they occur; and experience processing documents that require utilization of electronic litigation support software, such as Relativity or a similar platform; and maintaining case-management organization systems such as shared drive folders. 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 any volunteer experience. Please do not cut and paste the "Duties" section, specialized experience statement, or occupational assessment questionnaire from this announcement into your resume, as this will not be considered a demonstration of your qualifications for this position. Education If you are using your education to qualify for this position, transcripts are required. Failure to submit a copy of your transcripts at the time of application will result in your application being marked incomplete and you will not receive further consideration. PASS/FAIL COURSES: If more than 10 percent of your undergraduate course work (credit hours) were taken on a pass/fail basis, your claim of superior academic achievement must be based upon class standing or membership in an honor society. GRADUATE EDUCATION: One academic year of graduate education is the number of credits hours 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. Additional Information The duty location of this position is Washington, DC. When promotion potential is shown, future promotions will be dependent on your ability to perform the duties at a higher level, the continuing need for an employee assigned to the higher level, and administrative approval. If selected for this position, you will be required to: Complete a Declaration for Federal Employment (OF-306) to determine your suitability for Federal employment. Have your Federal salary payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of your choice. Go through a Personal Identity Verification (PIV) process that requires two forms of identification from the Form I-9. Federal law requires verification of the identity and employment eligibility of all new hires in the U.S. FERC also participates in the USCIS Electronic Employment Eligibility Verification Program (E-Verify). For more information about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit: http://www.uscis.gov/e-verify. Attend a mandatory ethics training. We are governed by the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) Standards of Conduct, the criminal conflict of interest statutes, and FERC's supplemental ethics regulation, which specifically prohibits FERC employees from holding certain energy-related securities. To comply with these regulations and statutes, divestiture of at least some energy securities is likely to be required after you begin employment. See 5 C.F.R. 2634-41; 18 U.S.C. 201-208; 5 C.F.R. 3401. If selected, you may also be required to file a financial disclosure statement within 30 days of appointment. Receive authorization from OPM on any job offer you receive, if you are or were (within the last 5 years) a political Schedule A, Schedule C, or Non-Career SES employee in the Executive Branch. As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may be required to serve a one-year probationary period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your probationary period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.
