Summary The primary purpose of this position is to provide paralegal support and management assistance at the professional level to Air Force attorneys and clients in all areas of law practiced by the 11th Wing, Office of the Staff Judge Advocate, Joint Base Anacostia Bolling, MD, including general/civil law and military justice, and law office administration; and perform tasks as assigned by the Staff Judge Advocate (SJA) and the Law Office Superintendent (LOS). Responsibilities Participates in the substantive development of cases in Gen Law/Civil Law by performing the following functions. Analyzes and evaluates comprehensive rules, regulations, techniques, and procedures concerning case litigation worthiness standards in civil law matters. Provides paralegal support in the Military Justice Division and provides assistance to other support and staff trial attorneys in the development of cases. Performs Paralegal Support administrative duties in support of the legal office. Reviews all publications, regulations, and directives in order to stay abreast of current Air Force policies relating to the legal office. Requirements Conditions of Employment Qualifications In order to qualify, you must meet the specialized experience requirements described in the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards for General Schedule Positions, Administrative and Management Positions. SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: Applicants must have at least one (1) year of specialized experience at the next lower grade GS-07, or equivalent in other pay systems. Examples of specialized experience includes knowledge of the principles, concepts, and methods of legal research and analysis sufficient to perform recurring case development and documentation assignments which are typically covered by established precedents. Knowledge of legal techniques and skills necessary to analyze both issues of fact and issues of law in order to prepare digests of case decisions, evaluate the applicability of precedents, or to draft briefs, other litigation papers, advisory opinions, or findings. OR EDUCATION: master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.B. or J.D., may be credited where the graduate education is directly related to the work of the position. NOTE: You must submit a copy of your transcripts. OR COMBINATION OF EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATION: A combination of education and experience may be used to qualify for this position as long as the computed percentage of the requirements is at least 100%. NOTE: You must submit a copy of your transcripts. FEDERAL TIME-IN-GRADE (TIG) REQUIREMENT FOR GENERAL SCHEDULE (GS) POSITIONS: Merit promotion applicants must meet applicable time-in-grade requirements to be considered eligible. One year at the GS-07 level is required to meet the time-in-grade requirements for the GS-09 level. TIG applies if you are in a current GS position or held a GS position within the previous 52 weeks. NOTE: Applicants applying as VEOA candidates who are current GS civil service employees or are prior GS civil service employees within the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements. KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs): Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies in the following areas: Knowledge of the principles, concepts, and methods of legal research and analysis sufficient to perform recurring case development and documentation assignments which are typically covered by established precedents. Knowledge of the litigation activities of the Air Force and of statistical techniques sufficient to gather and analyze data and to evaluate its usefulness in resolving legal issues. Knowledge of general operations of law enforcement and legal terminology. Knowledge of instructions, rules, regulations, and procedures relative to specialized legal and paralegal matters, and civilian personnel matters, in order to provide training and assistance. Knowledge of interviewing techniques sufficient to interview potential witnesses, victims, investigators, and other sources of information and skill in developing evidence to support the agency's litigation activities. Knowledge of office functions to screen telephone calls and visitors, prepare and review correspondence, and perform other administrative work of the organization. Ability to communicate effectively, in writing and verbal communications; to prepare legal briefs and summaries of analyses. Skills of computer databases and ability to operate computers and computer software programs. Ability to troubleshoot hardware and software problems on computer terminals and to determine the best method to correct the issue. Ability to administer use of the local area network and resolve local area network connectivity problems. Knowledge of Federal civilian personnel and Federal civilian pay policies. Ability to analyze and solve problems. PART-TIME OR UNPAID EXPERIENCE: Credit will be given for appropriate unpaid and or part-time work. You must clearly identify the duties and responsibilities in each position held and the total number of hours per week. VOLUNTEER WORK EXPERIENCE: Refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service Programs (i.e., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community; student and social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge and skills that can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Education IF USING EDUCATION TO QUALIFY: If position has a positive degree requirement or education forms the basis for qualifications, you MUST submit transcripts with the application. Official transcripts are not required at the time of application; however, if position has a positive degree requirement, qualifying based on education alone or in combination with experience, transcripts must be verified prior to appointment. An accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education must accredit education. Click here to check accreditation. FOREIGN EDUCATION: Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the requirements. You must show proof the education credentials have been deemed to be at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education program. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying. Additional Information Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP): For information on how to apply as an ICTAP eligible click here. To be well-qualified and exercise selection priority for this vacancy, displaced Federal employees must be rated well qualified or above for this position. You must submit a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting position, grade level, and duty location. Employed Annuitants (Reemployed Annuitants): Applicants in receipt of an annuity based on civilian employment in the Federal Service are subject to the DoD Policy on The Employment of Annuitants. Click here for more information. 120-Day Register: This announcement may result in a 120-day register that may be used to fill like vacancies for 120 days after the closing date. Applicants may be referred for consideration as vacancies occur. Military Spouse Preference (MSP) Eligible: MSP applicants, if determined best qualified, must be selected and placed at the highest grade for which they applied. You must include a completed copy of the DD Form 3145-4, Military Spouse PPP Self-Certification Checklist dated within 30 days along with the documents identified on the checklist to verify your eligibility for MSP. Click here to obtain/download a copy of the DD Form 3145-4, Military Spouse PPP Self-Certification Checklist. Priority Placement Program (PPP) Applicant Eligible: PPP Applicants, if determined well qualified and selected, will be placed at the at the full performance level. You must include the applicable completed copy of the PPP Self-Certification Checklist dated within 30 days along with the documents identified on the checklist to verify your eligibility as a PPP Applicant. Click here to obtain/download a copy of the applicable PPP Self-Certification Checklist (DD3145-1 through DD3145-4, select the appropriate checklist for your claimed preference). To determine the applicable PPP Self-Certification Checklist required to substantiate the eligibilities you are claiming, refer to the AF Civilian Employment Eligibility Guide located in the Required Documents section of this vacancy announcement. Direct Deposit: All federal employees are required to have direct deposit. Disabled veteran leave is available to a Federal employee hired on/after 5 Nov 2016, who is a veteran with a service-connected disability rating of 30% or more. For more information, click here. If you have questions regarding this announcement and have hearing or speech difficulties click here.
