Paralegal Specialist

Commander, Navy Installations Command; Hawaii; On-site; USD 55,000 - 70,000; Full time

Job summary

Commander Navy Region Hawaii is seeking a Paralegal Specialist to support legal operations within the Staff Judge Advocate office. The role involves preparing forms and standard legal documents, coordinating Service of Process for military and civilian personnel, and drafting responses to FOIA/PA requests.

The candidate will perform legal research, analyze current case law, and produce memoranda with rationales for release or denial in appeals, while staying current on related laws and

Qualifications

• Specialized experience in conducting fact-finding and problem analysis related to legal matters.
• Ability to apply legal techniques to analyze fact and law to draft briefs or findings.
• Ability to respond to FOIA/PA requests and summarize investigations.

Responsibilities

• Prepare forms, standard legal documents, and routine correspondence with correct format and grammar.
• Assist with coordinating Service of Process on military and civilian personnel.
• Prepare correspondence to request information from courts and investigative agencies.
• Respond to requests and clarify ambiguous requests from requestors.
• Draft FOIA/PA responses and related memoranda.
• Conduct legal research and analysis on current case law to prepare responses.
• Provide legal rationales for release or denial in appeals.
• Research current legislation and directives to keep the Staff Judge Advocate informed on FOIA/PA law.

Skills

Legal research

Regulatory interpretation

FOIA/PA handling

Legal writing

Education

J.D. or LL.B.

Graduate degree equivalence

Job description

Summary

You will serve as a PARALEGAL SPECIALIST at the COMMANDER NAVY REGION HAWAII.

Duties

• You will prepare forms, standard legal documents, and routine correspondence while ensuring correct assembly, format, and grammar.
• You will assist tenant command with coordinating Service of Process on military and civilian personnel in accordance with the Manual of the Judge Advocate General and other regulatory guidance.
• You will prepare correspondence to request official information from other government entities including courts for the State of Hawaii, and Federal, State, and county investigative agencies and medical examiners.
• You will respond to requests that are granted and communicate with requestor to clarify ambiguous requests.
• You will conduct paralegal review of and draft responses to Freedom of Information/Privacy Act (FOIA/PA) requests and reports.
• You will perform legal research and analysis on current case law and guidance for preparation of responses to FOIA/PA requests.
• You will provide memoranda on legal rational for release or denial in the event of an appeal.
• You will research current legislation, regulations, directives, and decisions of various courts and administrative bodies for the purpose of keeping the Staff Judge Advocate abreast of the current state of FOIA/PA law.

Requirements

Conditions of employment

• Must be a US Citizen.
• Must be determined suitable for federal employment.
• Must participate in the direct deposit pay program.
• New employees to the Department of the Navy will be required to successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit e-verify.gov
• Generally, current federal employees applying for GS jobs must serve at least one year at the next lower grade level. This requirement is called time-in-grade. Time-in-grade requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement.
• Within the Department of Defense (DoD), the appointment of retired military members within 180 days immediately following retirement date to a civilian position is subject to the provisions of 5 United States Code 3326.
• Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service.
• You will be required to obtain and maintain an interim and/or final security clearance prior to entrance on duty. Failure to obtain and maintain the required level of clearance may result in the withdrawal of a job offer or removal.
• You will be required to complete training, obtain, and maintain a government credit card for travel and travel-related purchases.
• This position may require travel from normal duty station to CONUS and OCONUS and may include remote or isolated sites. You must be able to travel on military and commercial aircraft for extended periods of time.

Qualifications

Your resume must also demonstrate at least one year of specialized experience at or equivalent to the GS-07 grade level or pay band in the Federal service or equivalent experience in the private or public sector. Specialized experience must demonstrate the following: 1) Conducting fact-finding and problem analysis in order to problem solve, and interpret regulations and policies related to legal matters; 2) Carrying out the proper principles, concepts, and methods of legal research and reference sources in order to provide legal assistance; 3) Applying legal techniques and skills necessary to analyze both issues of fact and issues of law to prepare digests of case decisions, evaluate the applicability of precedents, and draft briefs, advisory opinions, or findings; 4) Analyzing and summarizing substantive information on statutes, legal subjects, and reviewing investigations as directed by command; and 5) Applying verbal and written communication methods to effectively present legal information, prepare various materials for region use, and respond to FOIA and PA requests. NOTE: This information must be fully supported in your resume.

Additional qualification information can be found from the following Office of Personnel Management website: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/0900/paralegal-specialist-series-0950/ and https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/#url=Group-Standards

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (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.

Education

In lieu of specialized experience, you may qualify with the following education or combination of both education and experience:

• Successfully completed a master's or equivalent graduate degree;
• Successfully completed two full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's degree;
• Obtained an LL.B. or J.D. that is related to the position being filled;
• A combination of experience and graduate education as described above that equates to one year of experience.

A transcript must be submitted with your application if qualifying using education. See Required Documents for additional information.

Additional information

This position is covered by the Department of Defense Priority Placement Program.

Additional vacancies may be filled by this announcement.

A tentative offer of employment will be rescinded if the selectee fails to meet the pre-employment requirements, including failure to report to any of the scheduled appointments.

During the application process you will have the ability to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions in the local commuting area. Depending on the hiring organization and the position being filled, job requirements (e.g., security clearance, travel, drug testing, financial disclosure filing, bargaining unit status, etc.) may vary. Other hiring managers filling similar positions may offer relocation expense reimbursement and/or may offer recruitment incentives for new employees, depending on funding availability and in accordance with policy. If you opt-in and are referred on a certificate, your resume will be available to other hiring managers for 180-days from the date the job announcement closes. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

Federal annuitant information: The selection of an annuitant is subject to the Department of Defense and Department of the Navy policy on the employment of annuitants. Policy information may be found at: http://www.secnav.navy.mil/donhr/Documents/CivilianJobs/FedCivAnnuitants.pdf

PPP applicants will be placed at the FPL, if determined Well Qualified (WQ). To receive priority consideration, the FPL must be the same grade level or equivalent of the retained grade or the grade held immediately prior to separation.

In addition to meeting all minimum qualification and eligibility requirements, ICTAP applicants must be well qualified for the position to receive consideration for special priority selection. A well-qualified ICTAP applicant is one who possesses the competencies and experience to perform the duties of the position successfully with orientation to learn/understand the activities, procedures, policies and processes. Demonstrated work experience in the occupation is typically qualifying for placement. This criterion cannot be met by education and training. ICTAP candidates must provide copies of all of the following documentation at the time of application: 1) agency notice; 2) most recent performance appraisal and 3) most recent SF-50 or notification of personnel action that includes position, grade level, and duty location. Applicants who do not provide this documentation will not receive consideration as an ICTAP candidate.

For more information about ICTAP eligibility please review the following link: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/working-in-government/unique-hiring-paths/federal-employees/career-transition/

Military Spouse Preference applicants will be placed at the highest grade for which they have applied and are determined Best Qualified (BQ). A BQ military spouse possesses knowledge, skills, abilities, and competencies comparable to others who meet the competitive referral criteria for the specific position.

Certain incentives (such as Recruitment, Relocation or Student Loan Repayment) may be authorized to eligible selectees.

A relocation incentive is generally a single payment intended to offset some of the relocation costs experienced by the selectee. A relocation incentive may be authorized

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new window Learn more about federal benefits.

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Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.