Land Law Examiner

Bureau of Land Management; Durango (CO); On-site; USD 42,000 - 64,000; Full time

Job summary

The Bureau of Land Management in Durango, CO is seeking a Land Law Examiner to adjudicate rights and privileges under public lands laws. You will research applications and claims for land use, minerals leasing, and mining on public lands, and prepare determinations for decision makers.

Applicants must meet the GS-05/07/09 qualification standards, including education, hours per week, and transcripts. Federal employment offers comprehensive benefits and a clear career path.

Qualifications

• Experience with real property laws and legal land descriptions.
• Ability to explain, apply, or interpret laws, regulations, or policies.

Responsibilities

• Adjudicate rights and privileges under public lands laws.
• Research and decide on applications and claims for land use, minerals leasing, and mining on public lands.
• Prepare routine correspondence and communicate with stakeholders.

Skills

Real property law familiarity

Legal document interpretation

Verbal communication

Education

Bachelor's degree

Job description

You will serve as a Land Law Examiner with Bureau of Land Management adjudicating rights and privileges under the laws that govern the use and disposition of public lands and resources. You will research and make decisions on applications and claims for land use, minerals leasing, and mining on public lands. Pay will vary based on grade level for which you're selected. First time hires to the Federal government normally start at the step 1 rate.

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-09/18/2026-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement. All candidates must also meet Time-in-Grade requirements.

To receive credit for experience, your resume MUST state either "full-time" (or "40 hours a week") or "part-time" with the number of hours worked per week to ensure proper crediting of specialized experience. Failure to adequately provide information needed to determine number of hours worked in each position may result in that time not being credited when evaluating qualifying experience. For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the full and/or part-time hours requirement as the service dates will be reflected.

Minimum Qualification Requirements: To qualify for this position, you must meet the following minimum qualifications:

To qualify for this position at the GS-05 grade level:

Experience: To qualify, you must possess at least three (3) years of general experience one (1) year of which was equivalent to at least a GS-4. General experience is defined as demonstrated experience: that provided a familiarity with real property laws and legal land descriptions, land titles, tract maps, and legal documents, or other experience that involved explanation, application, or interpretation of laws, regulations, policies, etc. Such experience may have been gained in positions such as law clerk, claims examiner, contact representative, or other work dealing with laws, rules, regulations, procedures, etc.

Education:

Four-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree. You must include hours per week and transcripts.

Combination

of education and experience as listed above. You must include hours per week and transcripts.

To qualify for this position at the GS-07 grade level:

Experience: To qualify, you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-05 level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience is defined as demonstrated experience:

• Determining the accuracy and proper execution of applications or claims and the qualifications of applicants for legal rights as requested;
• Adjudicating routine lands, mining, or mineral leasing applications;
• Answering inquiries from the public or internal customers regarding public land laws and regulations;
• Preparing routine correspondence.

You must include hours per week worked. -OR- Education: Successful completion of at least one full year of graduate level education. This includes or supplemented by 12 semester hours of course work related to the administration of land laws. Examples: include course work in land surveying, cartography, land use law, real estate law, land appraising, land use planning, water rights, mining laws, or legal instrument review and interpretation. You must include transcripts. -OR- Combination of education and experience as listed above. You must include hours per week and transcripts.

Superior Academic Achievement (SAA):

Successfully completed a bachelor's degree in a directly related field AND meet one of the following: (1) Class Standing: rank in the upper 3rd of the graduating class in the college, university, or major subdivision, based on the completed courses; OR (2) Grade-Point Average (GPA): earn a GPA of (a) 3.0 or higher out of a possible 4.0 ("B" or better) based on 4 years of education, or 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 completed during the final two years. Note: GPA will be rounded to one decimal place, for example, 2.95 = 3.0, 2.94 = 2.9; OR (3) Membership in a National Scholastic Honor Society. Applicants applying under SAA must have 12 semester hours of course work related to the administration of land laws. Examples include course work in land surveying, cartography, land use law, real estate law, land appraising, land use planning, water rights, mining laws, or legal instrument review and interpretation. Transcripts must be provided.

To qualify for this position at the GS-09 grade level:

Experience: To qualify, you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience is defined as demonstrated experience:

• Processing and/or adjudicating basic lands and minerals cases;
• Researching and reviewing legal land descriptions and ownership status from various map and records sources;
• Using basic computer and software applications to handle data; and
• Communicating effectively with internal and external customers on routine topics.

You must include hours per week worked. -OR- Education: Successful completion of at least a Master's or equivalent graduate degree or two full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.B. or J.D in a field of study such as land surveying, cartography, land use law, real estate law, land appraising, land use planning, water rights, mining laws, or legal instrument review and interpretation. You must include transcripts. -OR- Combination of education and experience as listed above. You must include hours per week and transcripts.

Volunteer Experience:

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.