Paralegal Specialist

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; Portland (OR); On-site; USD 65,000 - 85,000; Full time

Job summary

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Portland, Oregon is seeking a Paralegal Specialist to manage District FOIA/Privacy Act operations, analyze legal issues, conduct in-depth research, and draft pleadings, briefs, and reports across contract, tort, labor, and environmental matters.

Coordinates discovery and pretrial preparation while administering automated legal management, matter tracking, and e-discovery systems for legal staff.

Job description

About the Position:

As a Paralegal Specialist you will managing District FOIA/Privacy Act operations and providing complex litigation support. Analyzes legal issues, conducts in-depth research, and drafts pleadings, briefs, and reports across contract, tort, labor, and environmental matters. Coordinates discovery and pretrial preparation while administering automated legal management, matter tracking, and e-discovery systems for legal staff.

Who May Apply: US Citizens

In order to qualify, you must meet the experience requirements described below. 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). You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Your resume must clearly describe your relevant experience; if qualifying based on education, your transcripts will be required as part of your application. Additional information about transcripts is in this document.

Specialized Experience:

• Analyzing, processing, and determining the releasability of complex Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and Privacy Act requests, including applying legal exemptions and preparing initial denial determinations;
• Conducting comprehensive legal and factual research using automated databases and legal resources to analyze precedents, statutes, and agency regulations;
• Drafting legal documents, including pleadings, briefs, discovery requests/responses, litigation reports, and legal memoranda in support of ongoing litigation;
• Assisting attorneys with trial preparation, witness interviews, discovery coordination, e-discovery processes, and pretrial proceedings;
• Utilizing and maintaining automated legal case management, matter tracking, and e-discovery databases.

This definition of specialized experience is typical of work performed at the next lower grade/level position in the federal service (GS-11). Some federal jobs allow you to substitute your education for the required experience in order to qualify. For this job, you must meet the qualification requirement using experience alone--no substitution of education for experience is permitted.